Category: Mental Health, Trauma, and Substance Use

Psychotherapy is the process of working with a professional provider to address behaviors, beliefs, emotions, relationship issues, and/or somatic responses that are causing distress. Psychotherapists treat a range of conditions and use diverse methods, each with its own defining techniques and suitability for treating specific diagnoses. Reporting that implies all a person needs to do to treat a mental health condition is to, for instance, take daily walks or deep breaths is both inaccurate and can stigmatize help-seeking via professional psychotherapy.

Mental illness is a phrase used in mental health research to measure prevalence and seriousness of disorders that interfere with daily functioning. The frame of illness can be helpful in reinforcing that clinical mental health conditions are health issues and not personal failings. But the term can also carry negative connotations, so context matters when deciding when and how to use it. “Mental health condition” is a more expansive term. 

Psychiatric medications are prescribed to shift emotions and thought patterns by adjusting brain chemistry in people with mental health conditions. They are also called mental health medications or psychotropic medications. Clinicians will often combine these medications with psychotherapy and other treatments for maximum effectiveness in relieving symptoms including anxiety and depression. Common myths related to psychiatric medications include that they are a “cop-out” or short-term solution, that they dull one’s personality, or that they are no more effective than placebos. Citing statistics that put individual stories of medication use in context, and bringing in an expert for analysis, can go a long way to ensure thoughtful coverage.

Harassment is hurtful speech or behavior, often intended to frighten, anger, or humiliate a person. It is typically rooted in bias against a marginalized group. It can involve offensive jokes, name-calling, insults, unwanted contact, provocative pictures, threats, and other hostile actions. Legal definitions for types of harassment can vary by state and don’t always match its use in everyday conversation (for example, “That person at the coffee shop was harassing me”). It’s important for media coverage to be clear and specific about whether instances of harassment meet legal criteria. For cases involving litigation, directly quoting court documents can help establish details of a given case even when facts are disputed and outcomes are pending.

Remission refers to a state in which symptoms have disappeared or become negligible and can refer to mental health, physical health, or substance use. “Remission” and “recovery” are often used interchangeably.

Binge-eating disorder is characterized by recurrent episodes of excessive food consumption. It is not the same as overeating. It can be misleading to describe eating a lot of food as bingeing unless it’s in the context of bulimia or binge-eating disorder. Unless you’re writing about the concept of food addiction specifically, addiction-related terms can also be misleading when applied to nutrition or weight.

Holistic medicine is a treatment philosophy that addresses all parts of a person: physical, emotional, and spiritual. It is not interchangeable with complementary or alternative medicine. Holistic medicine can certainly include complementary treatments like meditation or herbal supplements. However, holistic medicine is an approach to healing, not a specific method of treatment in itself.

When a person intentionally harms themself, often to cope with distressing situations or overwhelming emotions. Generally when discussing self-harm, person-first language (e.g., “person who cuts themself” rather than “cutter” or “self-harmer”) frames the phenomenon as something a person is doing versus an identity that defines who they are. Terms like “self-abuse” or “self-violence” can stigmatize the person and make it sound like they are committing a crime.