5 Ways to Combat Mental Health Stigma To heal the divisive wound of stigma and discrimination, you have to change the way you think about it. These six tips can help break through all the ignorance, fear, and misinformation you might have about mental health disorders. Reframe the conversation about mental health. “Often, the terms attached to mental health are ‘crazy, insane,’ and whatever mental health diagnosis the person has,” says Raymond John S. Naguit, M.D., R.N., founder and national chairperson of the Youth for Mental Health Coalition. “Only a few talk about wellness.” Naguit says people should realize that mental health is multi-factoral in nature. It isn’t just about a diagnosis, how one was raised by their parents, or how a person seems when they interact with you. Rather than putting people with mental health disorders under one umbrella label—“He’s crazy.” Or “She’s always depressed.”—focus on the many ways to help them recover. “If we change the way we think about something, it will influence the way we act on them, too,” says Naguit. 28