Research a mental disorder that you are unfamiliar with or that interests you. Look at how this disorder impacts a person's everyday life, well-being, and relationships. Based on these findings, reflect on the ways in which the disorder could impact a sense of dignity or the dignity that others attribute to them.
A mental illness that I am interested in learning more about is anxiety/panic attacks. There are several disorders that fall under this category but as a whole this mental illness is interesting to me since it can affect anyone. The hardest part about fully understanding this disorder is that there are different levels. All humans experience anxiety whether its a college student before a final exam, or an adult accepting a job offer that could change the rest of his/her life. Big decisions in life often cause individuals to be nervous or anxious and in situations where the person is mentally ill these symptoms are overwhelming. In the most severe cases these feelings of worry and fear interfere with an individual's ability to lead a normal life.
For me to consider how this anxiety disorder impacts an individuals everyday life is very difficult. Having the constant feelings of worry and fear would definitely tear at a person's ability to function effectively. I know myself, short periods of worry/nervous feelings are enough for me, let alone experiencing them on a daily basis. A person's well being would most definitely be harmed through experiencing these feelings often. As far a person with anxiety attacks developing relationships, I think it would be very difficult for them. If one had feelings of worry and fear all the time, relationships with others would bring about trust issues, and broken promises could cause major problems. It seems that everyday life issues that we all combat and move on from, would cause someone suffering from an anxiety disorder much anguish.
When thinking about a mental illness such as this and the impact it would have on one's dignity it is important to consider both the dignity one holds for him/herself and the dignity that others attribute to him/her.
Not being able to conduct a normal life would cause a person to have a lower self esteem, and therefore a lower sense of self dignity. By watching others carry on with their everyday routines and live life as they wish, a persons self dignity would certainly decrease. They would probably wonder, "What is wrong with me, why can't I get over these anxious feelings." The most important thing they need to think about is that its not their fault, its just a characteristic they need to work with. This brings in the idea of dignity from other people's perspectives. Sometimes I feel that society tends to think people with anxiety disorders are "making it up." In my opinion, who, other than the individual himself, can determine how much anxiety he/she is experiencing. Overall, society has a whole views individuals suffering from a mental disorder with a lower level of dignity. These individuals are thought of to be "flawed" and not "perfect" like the vision of today's ideal individual.
This is just one mental disorder that some individuals experience. In my opinion this is not the most extreme, and there are people that may be "worse off" in terms of their self dignity. The situations that all people with mental disorders experience in regards to dignity may be similar but how they affect each individual is very unique.
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