Language about mental health does real work. Careful wording lowers stigma and makes it likelier that someone reaches for help; careless wording does the opposite, and in the case of suicide, the specific words used are linked to real risk. None of the guidance below is about being delicate for its own sake. It's about being accurate and not causing harm.
Lead with the person, not the diagnosis
A diagnosis is something a person has, not what they are. "A person with schizophrenia" keeps the person in view; "a schizophrenic" reduces them to a condition. This person-first construction is the default in most clinical and editorial style guides. The one honest caveat: some communities prefer identity-first language, so the deeper rule is to follow the stated preference of the person or group you're writing about, and default to person-first when you don't know.
Talking about suicide, with care
This is the highest-stakes language in mental health, because how a death is described is linked to contagion. The established guidance, from Reporting on Suicide, the World Health Organization, and the AP Stylebook, is consistent: say "died by suicide" rather than "committed suicide," which frames it as a crime. Avoid "successful" or "failed" attempt. Don't describe the method or the location. Don't present suicide as an understandable response to circumstances or as a solution. And pair any coverage with where to find help. If you're writing about a specific person's death, that restraint matters most.
If you or someone you're writing about is in crisis, the number to include is 988, the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline in the US, available 24 hours a day.
Substance use is a medical condition, not a character flaw
"Addict," "junkie," and "druggie" are slurs that carry blame; "a person with a substance use disorder" or "a person in recovery" names a medical condition without the moral verdict. In the same spirit, a drug test is "positive" or "negative," not "dirty" or "clean," which moralizes a lab result.
Don't borrow diagnoses as insults or quirks
"Crazy," "insane," "psycho," and "deranged" turn serious conditions into casual insults. And using a diagnosis as a personality quirk, "I'm so OCD about my desk," "the weather is so bipolar," trivializes what is, for someone who actually has it, a hard condition to live with. Name what you actually mean instead: particular, changeable, chaotic, surprising.
Watch the framing of struggle
"Suffers from," "afflicted with," and "a victim of" cast the person as passive and permanently miserable. Most people managing a condition are doing exactly that, managing it. "Lives with," "has," or "is being treated for" is more accurate and leaves the person their agency.
Say this, not that
| Instead of | Prefer | Why |
|---|---|---|
| committed suicide | died by suicide, took their own life | “Committed” frames it as a crime or sin. Major reporting guidelines moved away from it years ago. |
| successful / failed suicide attempt | a suicide attempt, a non-fatal attempt | “Successful” attaches achievement to a death. There is no success here. |
| a schizophrenic, a bipolar, an anorexic | a person with schizophrenia, a person with bipolar disorder | A diagnosis is something a person has, not what they are. Lead with the person. |
| the mentally ill, mental patients | people with mental illness, people living with a mental health condition | A group of people is not a single mass defined by illness. |
| addict, junkie, druggie | a person with a substance use disorder, a person in recovery | The older words are slurs that carry blame. The condition is medical. |
| clean / dirty (drug test) | tested negative / positive, in recovery | “Dirty” moralizes a lab result and shames the person. |
| crazy, insane, psycho, lunatic, deranged | name what you actually mean: distressing, surprising, chaotic | These turn serious conditions into casual insults and deepen stigma. |
| so OCD, so bipolar, a little schizo | particular, tidy, changeable, of two minds | Borrowing a diagnosis as a personality quirk trivializes the real condition. |
| suffers from, afflicted with, a victim of | lives with, has, is being treated for | Most people managing a condition are not suffering every moment, and the framing removes their agency. |
| normal people (vs. people with mental illness) | people without a mental health condition | The opposite of having a diagnosis is not being “normal.” |
Questions
Is person-first language always the right choice?
Not always. Person-first language ('a person with autism') is the general default in clinical and journalistic style guides, but some communities prefer identity-first language. Many autistic people, for example, prefer 'autistic person.' The respectful rule is to follow the stated preference of the person or community you're writing about, and to default to person-first when you don't know.
Why does the wording around suicide matter so much?
Language about suicide affects real risk. Guidelines from Reporting on Suicide, the World Health Organization, and the AP Stylebook advise against 'committed suicide,' against describing the method or location, and against framing a death as inevitable or as a solution, because detailed or sensational coverage is linked to contagion. 'Died by suicide' and a focus on help and prevention are the standard.
Can I use this guide on my own site or in my newsroom?
Yes. It's free to reference and share with attribution. It's drawn from the public guidelines named in the sources, written in plain language for anyone who writes or talks about mental health: journalists, educators, HR teams, clinicians, and content writers.
Sources and further reading
- Reporting on Suicide, the recommendations for media coverage of suicide, developed with suicide-prevention and journalism organizations.
- APA Style and the American Psychological Association's inclusive-language and bias-free-language guidelines.
- The Associated Press Stylebook entry on mental illness and the AP guidance on suicide.
- NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness), stigma-reducing language resources.
- SAMHSA guidance on person-first language for substance use.
- World Health Organization, guidance on responsible reporting of suicide.
Compiled by Shrinktionary from the public guidance cited above, and part of The Shrink Network's editorial work. It summarizes established style guidance in plain language. It's education, not medical advice. Free to reference with attribution to Shrinktionary.