Lyndsay Moss: Why fear is the key to stigma over mental illness

THERE are few subjects that remain taboo these days. Celebrities in the jungle discuss how they lost their virginity; the "real life" magazines reveal intimate details of the infidelities and bizarre sex lives of "real people"; and pop stars and actresses are deemed abnormal if they refuse to talk about their latest boob job, tummy tuck or colonic irrigation treatment.

Given this, some think it strange that the subject of mental illness retains such as a stigma. It is true that some well-known faces have helped break down some of the barriers to discussing subjects such as eating disorders, depression and bipolar d...