James Mangold's Girl Interrupted

Kranke et al., (2009) explored stigma within adolescents who medicate for mental illness and their research concluded with feelings of shame, secrecy and isolation. The fear of being labelled with a sickness is associated with the want to not appear different to their peers. It is also self stigmatising behaviour whereby the client attempts to distance themselves from their perceived idea of a person with mental illness. Antidepressants are the most commonly used medication alongside therapy when treating BDD. Client’s noncompliance of treatment can arise for various reasons such as the belief that they do not need it or that it isn’t working, unmanageable side effects or because they hold a psychological barrier towards medications (Tracy, 2012). The therapist must decipher what reasoning the client has for noncompliance, in this case, the fear of becoming ‘zombie like’. There is a need to stress the importance of routine when it comes to taking medicine, as without it the client may relapse or suffer unnecessarily and hinder the therapeutic healing. In addition, exploring the underlying feelings surrounding the label of madness or one with mental illness. Perceived stigma and individual views of those with mental illness influence inhibition of medication taking, so understanding the client’s perspective is crucial to breaking the psychological barrier and aiding effective therapy (Sirey et al., 2001). If the

The film “Girl, Interrupted” is a true story adapted from the original memoir by Susanna Kaysen. Set in the 1960s, it relates her experiences during her stay in a mental institution after being diagnosed with borderline personality disorder following a suicide attempt. Many films include characters with a mental illness; the actors who play these characters have the immense challenge of staying true to the illness they portray.

The movie ‘Her’ is the story about Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix), a man who develops a relationship with Samantha (Scarlett Johansson), an intelligent computer operating system personified through a female voice. At the beginning of the film, Theodore is completely inept when it comes to how to make relationship with person, specifically women. However, after he gets to know Samantha, an OS program, a feeling of true love develops inside of Theodore’s mind. Then he realizes how he was fatuous in his past. Throughout the film, the director (Spike Jonze) uses five distinct color schemes to correspond Theodore’s feeling and situation.

In England, keeping up appearances is paramount (for some) to maintaining social acceptance, and social obligations are held in high esteem. In people with bipolar disorder, these cultural norms seem to be easily converted to neuroses, overt concerns with the opinions of others, and lessened self-esteem as a result of those opinions. In the documentary, for example, Stephen’s sister described his reaction to the less-than-optimal reviews of one of his performances as him having “a hissy fit.” It was also his imagery of his parents looking on while contemplating suicide that prevented him from completing the attempt. 27-year-old Zoe Schwartz was described as being “desperate to be a success,” and a close friend said (regarding her suicide) that “it was her pride [that] killed her.” Even Cordelia Feldman, when asked pointedly, “I mean what’s it say about you if you can’t write?” by her cognitive behavioral therapist Jan Scott of the Institute of Psychiatry in London, was left speechless and emotional in response. When she was able to talk, she replied with what I know to be typically English: “I hate weakness in myself.” Teaching vulnerability, I believe, would therefore be a beneficial addition to CBT in treatment for clients of similar cultural

Girl Interrupted is a movie based on Susanna Kaysen’s novel, which was inspired by her stay in a mental institution in the 1960s. Incidentally the main character, played by Winona Ryder, is named Susanna. She is eighteen years old and begins the movie by reflecting back on the events leading up to her visit to the psychologist. She has just graduated from high school and other than being an aspiring writer, has no plans for her life. In addition she has flashbacks of her attempted suicide, though she denies taking a bottle of aspirin with vodka. When she was brought to the hospital they found bruises on her wrist, but she claimed she had

Girl, Interrupted (1999) directed by James Mangold is largely based on a semi- autobiographical book by the same title. The movie chronicles eighteen year old Susanna Kaysen’s experiences surrounding her stay at a mental institution. It is 1967, a time of social change and unrest. Susanna makes a half-heart attempt at suicide, ingesting a bottle of aspirin and chasing the pills with a bottle of vodka. She is taken to the emergency room, her stomach is pumped and she survives. Afterwards she meets with a psychologist who explores her more recent feelings and experiences. The psychologist concludes, with her parents assent, that she would benefit from a stay at Claymore, a private mental institution. The next year and nine months forever

The stigma label could increase his perception of hopelessness, which, in turn, perpetuates or magnifies the cycle of the illness. His family may feel the effects of the stigma since many people mistakenly consider all mental disorders to be either genetic or the result of an unfavorable upbringing. This, in turn, can erroneously create the family’s feelings of unfounded guilt or embarrassment. His friends and others in his support system can also be negatively impacted by the stigma simply from an association standpoint, possibly resulting in them distancing themselves from an already somewhat isolated patient. So the stigma exasperates the patient’s internal negative perceptions and can externally create conflict between him and those closest to him.

Girl, Interrupted provides an in-depth look into Susanna Kaysen’s experience of living with a mental illness and staying in a mental hospital. Twenty-five years after she leaves McLean she learns of her diagnosis of borderline personality disorder and discusses it in her memoir. Kaysen reads about her disorder from the DSM-III-R and views her diagnosis as:

The film, “Girl Interrupted” directed by James Mangold focuses on the lives of many women who have a psychological disorder. I will focus specifically on Susanna Kaysen, an 18 year old, who struggles with mental health issues during and after high school. Susanna voluntarily admits herself to psychiatric ward after an unsuccessful attempt to commit suicide by taking a bottle of vodka with aspirin. Her decision was influenced by a short consultation with a family acquainted psychiatrist, because she is informed that she will only stay a few weeks. Afterall, she was institutionalized for a year and a half. Psychotherapy will attempt to diagnose and treat the disorder or symptoms she experiences, through analyzing psychological theory(s), that best understand her thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. The biosocial theory effectively supports Susanna’s diagnosis of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), while Behavior Analytic Theory could be applied in the treatment of Susanna’s symptoms and correcting her behavior.

The film Girl, Interrupted focused on an eighteen year old girl by the name Susanna that was admitted into a private mental hospital after being accused of a suicidal attempt. The movie follows Susanna on her journey in the institution as she encounters women with different admittance stories. The one who intrigues Susanna the most is Lisa. Lisa is thought to be a sociopath with the way she manipulates those around her to get her way. She is constantly in and out of the institution causing those around to fear, yet admire her. My main focus will be on Lisa and although it was not specified in the film just how old she is, she seemed to be around the same age group as Susanna. This means that, according to Erikson’s Psychosocial Stages, she is on stage five or six. Stage five happens during adolescence where ones primary task is their identity versus their own role in society whereas stage six happens in young adulthood and one faces intimacy versus isolation. The article incorporated gives more insight on how Erikson’s stages play hand in hand with one another and can potentially affect the mental state of someone if not successfully fulfilled. There is also a possibility that, with the ‘symptoms’ of a sociopath, Lisa could have had past problems during what Sigmund Freud considered the anal stage of her childhood.

Because of her suicidal actions she was checked into a psychiatric hospital where she meets others who are also suffering. Through this experience she comes out with a changed perspective on life, her identity is shaped as she realises she doesn't want to end up like the people in the asylum. Susanna narrates “But I know what it's like to want to die. How it hurts to smile. How you try to fit in but you can't.” Girl interrupted connects with Sucker punch as both main characters want to make the effort to make their situation better. Susanna wants to change and be able to leave the hospital while Babydoll wants to escape her personas realities and get back to living her real life reality. Both characters strife to rebel against the hand society dealt them. By wanting and needing to get better and improve their situations, the characters are learning to shape their identity into something they can be proud of and live with for the rest of their lives, which is something that happens to Liesel and Jack in the Book Thief and

Additionally, Susanna comes across the stigma of mental illness relating to non-conformity while investigating the indicators of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD);

The film “It’s a Girl” is about gendercide in India and China. Gendercide is when cultures either abort, kill, abandon, or neglect girls because of preferences to have sons. Cultures where this is common favor males over females because males bring strength and wealth to the family or provide care for their elderly parents. Boys also take the family name and pass it on to their children. Another reason that males are favored is because of marriage traditions. A marriage tradition called dowry is where the bride’s family pays the groom’s family in property and other wealth. Families do not want to have daughters because they will lose their wealth and their little girl to the husband’s family. India and China are both countries where gendercide is a widespread problem and they both have different policies and cultures that attribute to gendercide. India’s culture attributes to gendercide and the government does have laws in place to prevent it, but the laws are not enforced. However, China has the One-Child policy which is the reason for gendercide in the country.

When psychological disorders our book describes that there's a stigma that comes along with the label of being or having a psychological disorder. These stigmas can create negative attitudes towards these people suffering psychological disorders. The stigma in today's society could range from anywhere discomfort being around somebody or a prejudice against them due to a stereotype and discrimination that a person with a psychological disorder could be violent or dangerous.

There are many stigmas, or misconceptions and misperceptions in our society which need to be shattered. I believe that one of the worse possible effects of stigma is that it causes those affected by psychological disorders, or mental illness, to crawl more deeply into themselves because it provokes a sense of shame. Stigma thrusts those suffering with mental illness into a sense of isolation, social exclusion, and discrimination. “Stigma can lead to discrimination … It may be obvious or direct … Or it may be unintentional or subtle…” (Staff). Stigma is often as big as the illness itself and I confess to having been a perpetuator of this dreaded thing, although not consciously aware and without the intent of furthering the harm of someone.