【1981 Archives】

A Twitter user living with bipolar disorder has pointed out a major problem with stock imagery depicting the condition.

In a tweet thread, @Chrystran posted a series of problematic stock images which claimed to illustrate bipolar disorder.

"I made this thread *as* someone with bipolar who finds these popular depictions of bipolar frustrating, inaccurate & silly," she wrote on Twitter.

According to an NHS definition, bipolar disorder is a condition which "affects your moods, which can swing from one extreme to another." People living with this condition have "periods or episodes" of depression and mania, per the definition.

But, as @Chrystran points out in her thread, the representations of the condition through stock imagery don't quite match up to the reality of living with bipolar. Indeed, many of the photos feature extremely reductive and inaccurate portrayals of the condition.

While these images are "silly," as @Chrystran says, the misrepresentation of this condition is deeply problematic. Stephen Hinshaw, professor of psychology at the University of California–Berkeley says "the worst stereotypes" come out in media portrayals of mental illnesses. "The portrayals serve to distance 'them' from the rest of 'us.'" Stock images such as these could further contribute to negative and harmful stereotypes surrounding bipolar disorder.

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Indeed, one of the photos she found bore a strong resemblance to Arya Stark in Game of Thrones.

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Lots of the images feature mirrors "that don't work right."

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"Didn't you know? 9 out of 10 doctors recommend coping with mental illness by playing scrabble exclusively with words & concepts concerning your mental illness," she wrote. (They don't, for the record.)

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Looks like it's high time to start thinking about creating some new stock images.