Mental Retardation Misconception

In today’s society, there is a general misunderstanding and lack of attention to mental retardation. This common misconception is due to the stigma that society puts on people who have this disorder. This stigma is normally associated with the perception that people with mental disorders are likely to cause harm to others regardless of how distressed they may be. In order to know how to approach these mental disabilities it is important to understand more about them.

When thinking about mental disabilities, do you feel that mental retardation and having a mental illness is the same thing? If you say yes, you are actually quite wrong because they are totally separate problems. A mental illness can be temporary, like many other illnesses, but mental retardation is usually a lifelong condition. Mental retardation occurs at or near birth and is almost always recognized by school age. On the other hand, mental illness is most common in early adulthood and middle years. Most importantly the main difference between the two is how they are treated. With mental illness the main solutions are surgery, medication, and counseling but with mental retardation educational techniques and therapy can normally cure the problem. The lack of knowledge that people possess on the topic of mental retardation results in improper care and treatment.

Before introducing the lack of attention towards mental retardation I feel it is important to introduce what it actually is. It is “the lack of normal development of intellectual capacities, or a condition in which a person has an IQ that is below average and that affects an individual's learning, behavior, and development.” (Ibrahim Mabwa, Yahoo! Contributor Network 2010) I feel that what Ibrahim is trying to say is that mental retardation means all the life processes are slowed down but not stopped. It is a common misconception that people who deal with mental retardation may be incapable of doing basic life processes but really they...