Historically, until not so long ago, it has been assumed that psychological or psychiatric problems were something practically toxic, either a manifestation of the evil first, or a sickness of the soul later. This has meant that over the centuries an irrational stigma has been maintained against those who feel bad or who have mental disorders.

Fortunately, Psychology and Psychiatry have managed to broaden our conception of what mental health is: experiencing problems in these areas does not mean that you are no longer human or that you deserve to be treated differently from the rest of the population.

On this occasion we will talk about overcoming this stigma with Rosa Melgar Moreno , a psychologist based in Madrid with more than 15 years of experience attending patients with all kinds of needs and sensitivities.

Rosa Melgar: overcoming stigma in psychotherapy

Rosa Melgar talks in this interview about how harmful it has been (and still is) to assume that psycho-therapy is “for crazy people”, and how the usefulness of psychological intervention does not understand the separation between “healthy” and “unhealthy”.

Is the idea that only those with severe psychiatric disorders go to the psychologist still valid?

Without having statistical data to prove it, I can say emphatically “yes”. And not so much serious psychiatric disorders that are perhaps more framed in the context of hospitals, but rather the person who goes to the psychologist is stigmatized as immature, weak, or who simply does not know how to solve the daily problems “that we all have” on his own. In other words, psychological problems are minimised to such an extent that the person who is experiencing them is devalued if not suffered.

Do you notice that, even in those who are attending their first therapy session, there are certain prejudices about what will be done in the psychological intervention?

Normally the person who comes to the clinic has already overcome this obstacle…. either because people they trust “convince” them of the benefits of therapy or psychological advice, or because the media give a more realistic image of what it means to go to a psychologist’s office or, on many occasions, because people in their immediate environment have had contact with clinical psychology having experienced some problem in this area…. and overcome it with good results, of course.

What do you think has contributed most to the fact that the stigma about going to psychotherapy has weakened so much in recent decades?

As mentioned above, the media, and in particular television, are undoubtedly the most important players. For example, on repeated occasions in the news or news programmes, there are references to psychological help in crisis situations: accidents, floods, etc. On the other hand, there are programs, let’s call them “serious” in which a psychologist appears as part of the discussion table or gathering.

Finally, there have been several programs in recent years that had as their content personal problems, children and youth for the most part, which were conducted by a psychologist.
All of this has made it possible to disseminate the action of clinical psychology as a discipline that, like other professions in the health field, contributes to the quality of life of the person, without the need for the person to present a “psychiatric disorder”…

What are the benefits of psychology applied to areas beyond mental health?

One environment where the work of psychologists is fundamental is in education. And I don’t mean the treatment of child problems that can spread into the classroom.

I am talking about the indispensable contribution from evolutionary psychology and neuropsychology to establish not only adequate curricular content for each and every one of the children in our schools or institutes. For the establishment of educational laws, politicians should be guided by the criteria of teachers, pedagogues, psychologists and neuropsychologists. These should be the ones who form the bulk of the work team that legislators would later have to give body of law.

If you had to highlight three non-clinical work contexts in which more psychologists are needed, which ones would you say?

Recovering my previous response, in professional teams advising legislators on education (of course with a specific weight).

In schools and institutes as teachers of subjects that should be key in the academic curriculum of any child and adolescent: development of own criteria, social skills, assertiveness, self-esteem, teamwork, development of skills such as tolerance, respect, … Hopefully the day will come when these contents will be taught in the classroom with the same commitment to teaching mathematics, language or knowledge of the environment. Without wishing to compare, I do not know which are more valuable for the future in each person’s life.

In the media, participating in informative programs not only about psychology, but also about current issues where the opinion of a psychologist can give rise to deeper and more beneficial analyses for society as a whole.

In terms of the skills that psychologists must have to adapt to all these areas of intervention and work with people, which do you think are most important?

I am going to give the greatest importance to the knowledge, to the training that the psychologist has in the area of work where he develops his work. It is fundamental to have an extensive and deep knowledge of what you are talking about in order to be able to convince your interlocutor, whoever he or she may be, with scientific arguments that do not give rise to negative assessments or doubts as to their validity.

And, of course, speaking of interlocutors, the psychologist must adapt his language to the profile of the person or persons with whom he is interacting. As much as you know, if the person you are talking to does not understand you, your communication is not very effective…

Finally, whether you are a psychologist or any other professional or person of a higher or lower qualification, modesty and honesty are fundamental for me as inseparable companions when dealing with a situation of any vital level, but always when there are people involved.