2. Schizophrenia Is Not A Violent Disease
There are many stigmas attached to mental illness, especially more severe forms, like bipolar and schizophrenia. People are often afraid of people who have these diagnoses, as they may associate the psychosis and delusional, paranoid behavior with violence.
However, the fact is that people who have mental illness are much more likely to become victims of violence than to be perpetrators. Any violence that mentally ill people commit is likely not directly connected to the disease, but other factors, such as drugs and alcohol.
Possibly the worst case of a mentally ill person committing a felony was that of Andrea Yates, who drowned all five of her children in the bathtub. She was experiencing postpartum psychosis, but years before her crime, she had also been advised to not have any additional children because of the intense stress that her husband’s lifestyle was causing.
