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I think this is a really great summary about our schizophrenia site. Many aspects of labelling are discussed along with the way people may be affected by labelling. The extra site that this person sourced out has a very different focus than Allsion's story and is worth the effort to check it out.
http://www.searchlight.com/stigma/sting.htm


Through reading Allison's story, our group discussed the effects of labels on people with difficulties. We explored ways which labels can be both harmful and beneficial. One of the benefits include helping the sufferer with their understanding of the illness. This can aid in preventing self-esteem damage because the person can contribute part of their illness to
biological and hereditary aspects which may relieve the pressure and guilt the person feels for having the illness. They may feel less inclined to think that they are "crazy" because they know that there
are some aspects of the illness which are out of their control and that they can now possibly use drugs as an assistance in recovery. The knowledge of label can be used to guide a person to recovery.
They may be able to seek out information for themselves in understanding their illness. It would make it easier for a person to find information in a library or on the net (to list a few resources) if they have a topic to search for. It was brought up however, that
some people would not know how to use their label to their benefit because it would be viewed as something "bad". Perhaps it would lead the person into denial or avoidance. A label can also help other people understand the person's experience. When people can classify behavior in some way, they can use knowledge and empathy in their interactions with the sufferer. A
professional must have a label in order to determine appropriate causes and treatment.

A label can also work against a person in a societal sense. People tend to have pre-determined or stereotypical ideas about people with
mental illnesses such as schizophrenia. This could lead them to avoid or ridicule the sufferer. They may begin to treat her according to their idea of "typical mental patient".Some of the labels used in this passage were "psychotic", "depressed" and anti-depressant". The use of these type of words could very likely assist a person in feeling abnormal. She now uses these words
to identify herself with like that is who she is. She may tend to loose sight of the fact that she is a person with an illness instead of being the illness. For example we can describe her as "Allison is
someone who suffers from schizophrenia" as opposed to "Allison is schizophrenic". Allison is a person, not an illness. She has many aspects to her personality an schizophrenia is only one of them.
From an internal point of view, a person who is faced with the knowledge that they have an illness may do things to cover up their behavior. This can lead to an avoidance of the problem and can aid in pushing people who are close to the sufferer away. A person in self-denial uses lies, excuses and manipulation in order to make themselves appear as though there is no problem.

One of our group members mentioned that a certain amount of privacy and secrecy might be advantageous to the sufferer so that they are accepted by society. People tend to fear and avoid things that they
don't understand. This could reduce judgment and unfair treatment of the person.
Our group visited another site involving a man who had been stigmatized and he explains his experience with mental illness. He states the fear and imprisonment that his label provides. He mentions that he is in constant self-judgment and feels like there is something wrong with him. He seems to realize that he cannot use his illness as an excuse to not get things done but is scared that will simply consume him so that he is "not able to function and provide himself
with the "simplest" things that may keep him alive".

We never did come to a solid, unanimous stance on the issue but rather pointed out a number of different benefits and negative effects of
labels.