Depression, OCD, Psychopathy, and Schizophrenia are the four most commonly misrepresented mental disorders represented in the media. Here, we talk about the difference between the Myths surrounding them, and the Realities that compose them. (This slideshow was made for COM-201 at Spalding University. All pictures and music are being used for educational purposes only -- that purpose being to educate viewers on the realities of various mental illnesses.)

1. Mental Illness:
The Myths vs The Realities
Z. C. Loki
COM-201

2. True or False?
• People with Depression are usually very sad and suicidal.
• People with OCD are usually obsessed with cleanliness and order.
• Psychopaths are usually dangerous, insane, and murderous.
• Schizophrenics are usually delusional and have multiple personalities.

3. The Media is to Blame
Depression, OCD, Psychopathy, and Schizophrenia are the four most
commonly portrayed mental disorders. And usually, they are grossly
misrepresented in:
• Film
• Television
• Novels & Novellas
• Short Stories & Poems
• Stage Plays
• Musicals
• Comic Books
• Video Games

4. Depression

5. The Myths of Depression
• People with Depression are usually extremely sad.
• People with Depression are usually very suicidal.
• Depression has only mentally related symptoms.
• Depression is all mood related.
These symptoms are not of
Depression, they are of
Suicidal Ideation.

6. The Realities of Depression
Sadness is not the only or even the most prominent symptom of depression. Sufferers
of the ailment can feel physically weakened as well, either via soreness or just
exhaustion.
It is also not merely a mood disorder, as it can be inflicted by anything from traumatic
events to chemical imbalances within the brain.
Lastly, suicidal thoughts are not obsessive to Depression sufferers, and are but of the
most extreme examples of out of control Depression.

7. According to the DSM, Depression is characterized by nine main symptoms:
• A negative change in mood
• A loss of interest or pleasure
• Significant weight changes
• Sleep disturbances
• Psychomotor retardation
• Physical fatigue or exhaustion
• A diminished ability to concentrate
• A sense of worthlessness
• Suicidality
Sufferers of Depression can be afflicted by any and all of these symptoms.

9. The Myths of OCD
• People with OCD are afraid of dirtiness.
• People with OCD are afraid of disorganization.
• People with OCD always wash things and rearrange things.
• The obsessions and compulsions mean the same thing.
These are not symptoms of OCD,
These are symptoms of Germaphobia
and/or Ataxophobia.

10. The Realities of OCD
First, Obsessions and Compulsions are two completely different things:
• Obsessions are repetitive and irrational thoughts and anxieties.
• Compulsions are repetitive and irrational actions or tics.
The obsessions and compulsions can revolve around most anything, not only
cleanliness and order. And they are not fears or phobias. They are their own,
separate thing.

11. The Realities of OCD (cont.)
OCD TRAITS
Ordering Neutralizing Hoarding Cleaning Checking Obsessing
Ecker, Kupfer, and Gonner. Incompleteness as a Link. (2014)
Of the six most common
OCD Traits, Ordering is
actually the least common,
and Cleaning is only the
third most common.

12. According to the DSM, OCD is characterized by two main symptoms:
• Repetitive and irrational obsessions that may be graphic, violent, or sexual, or
simply unwanted and are nigh impossible to shake.
• Repetitive and irrational compulsions that the person may try to ignore but
are nigh impossible to shake.

14. The Myths of Psychopathy
• Psychopaths are usually dangerous.
• Psychopaths are obsessed with violence.
• Psychopaths are compelled to kill.
• Psychopaths are usually evil.
• Being psychopathic means being mentally insane.
These symptoms more or less
describe Psychosis better than
Psychopathy.

15. The Realities of Psychopathy
The term Psychopathic is usually assumed to be just another synonym for “insane” or “crazy”.
But in reality, Psychopathy has nothing to do with actual insanity or detachment from reality.
Psychopathy literally is just a disorder that causes the sufferer to be unable to feel guilt or
remorse.
And although this in itself can lead to an increased chance of becoming a serial killer or other
kind of criminal, it means they could become one – not that they will become one.
Think of it this way. If you have a bathtub in your house, you increase your chances of
drowning. If you have a plastic bag in your house, you increase your chances of asphyxiating.
You can, but it doesn’t mean you will.

16. • A diminished or complete lack of remorse and/or guilt
• Pathological lying
• A grandiose sense of self-worth
• An impaired or a complete lack of the ability to form close or long-term
platonic or romantic relationships

18. The Myths of Schizophrenia
• Delusions and Hallucinations are the same thing.
• Schizophrenics are mostly delusional.
• Schizophrenics have dialogues with their hallucinations/delusions.
• Schizophrenics have multiple personalities.
These symptoms match Multiple
Personality Disorder better than
they match Schizophrenia.

19. The Realities of Schizophrenia
First off, Hallucinations are Delusions are not the same thing:
• Hallucinations are auditory or visual figments that the sufferer knows to be
nonexistent.
• Delusions are auditory or visual figments that the sufferer believes to be existent.
Delusions are possible for a Schizophrenic to suffer from, but Hallucinations are far
more commonplace.

20. The Realities of Schizophrenia (cont.)
As for the common belief that Schizophrenics have multiple personalities, that
is actually a symptom of Multiple Personality Disorder, and has absolutely
nothing to do with Schizophrenia.

21. According to the DSM, Schizophrenia is made up of five different symptoms:
• Auditory or visual hallucinations
• Auditory or visual delusions
• High levels of Paranoia
• Disorganized speech
• Disorganized thoughts
The DSM’s Definition of
Schizophrenia

22. Quick Review
• Depression does not always equal Sadness and Suicide.
• OCD does not always equal Cleanliness and Order.
• Psychopathy does not always equal Violence and Murder.
• Schizophrenia does not always equal Delusions and Multiple Personalities.
TRUE
TRUE
TRUE
TRUE

23. Concluding…
There are other disorders that are misrepresented by the media everyday, always
furthering the popular stereotypes of mental illness:
• ADHD
• BPD
• EDD
• IED
• PTSD
• And hundreds, hundreds more…

24. Why It’s Important to be Aware of Mental
Illness Myths and Mental Illness Realities
• It’s important to be aware of other people’s issues.
• You or a loved one could eventually become afflicted by one.
• All things learned are things worth learning.
• It’s respectable, courteous, and good natured to those who have them. We
appreciate the effort you put into being learned about our conditions; we
don’t have to feel like outcasts or pariahs; we enjoy not being mistaken as
lunatics, and instead being noticed as the humans we are – humans who just
happen to have a disease no more weirder than asthma or lactose-intolerance.

25. BE EXCELLENT TO EACH OTHER