I want us to talk about something very important—person-centered care, sometimes called person-centered planning. This applies not only to mental disorders, but to all illnesses. However, in mental health, it is especially critical. Person-centered care simply means this: you customize care according to the individual you are dealing with. You do not generalize. You do not compare. You do not assume that because two people have the same diagnosis, they should be treated the same way. Care is not about the diagnosis. Care is about the person.
Even if two people have the same mental disorder, they are not the same person. You may find two siblings with the same condition. You may find two patients in the same house with the same diagnosis. But person-centered care demands that you deal with them individually. What works for one person may harm another. What calms one person may distress another. What motivates one person may shut another down. There is no “group care” when it comes to person-centered care. There is only individual care. You support this person according to their needs, their preferences, their strengths, and their limits—not according to a textbook and not according to how someone else with the same condition behaves.
One of the biggest mistakes people make is forgetting that a person with a mental disorder is still a person. A mental disorder does not erase humanity. It does not erase dignity. It does not erase identity. You are not dealing with a condition. You are dealing with a human being.
Many caregivers unknowingly treat people with mental disorders as cases, not people. They focus entirely on symptoms, behaviors, and diagnoses, while ignoring the person behind them. That is where conflict, resistance, and breakdown in care begin.
Person-centered care starts with this mindset: “I am caring for a person, not managing a condition.” When you shift your mindset, your approach changes. Your tone changes. Your patience grows. Your respect becomes visible.
One of the most damaging things we do in care is labeling. You hear people say: “He is schizophrenic.” “She is bipolar.” “That one is depressed.” “This one is mad.” “That one is crazy.” These words reduce a person to a diagnosis. They strip away identity and replace it with a condition.
Imagine being introduced everywhere by your illness. Imagine being called by your diagnosis instead of your name. That is not care. That is dehumanization. Person-centered care means using the person’s name. Call them David. Call them Mary. Call them by the name they choose and identify with.
If you must refer to a condition, you say: “A person living with schizophrenia” “A person living with bipolar disorder” “A person experiencing depression” The difference may sound small, but it is powerful. One respects the person. The other reduces them.
When you focus only on the condition, all you see is what is wrong. When you focus on the person, you see what is possible. Person-centered care asks what can this person do? What does this person enjoy? What gives this person peace? What helps this person feel safe? What decisions can this person make for themselves? Every person has abilities. Even those with severe mental disorders have something they can do. Supporting those abilities builds confidence, independence, and dignity.
Person-centered care does not mean controlling a person’s life. It means supporting their choices. It means allowing the person to decide what to wear, when to eat, how to spend their day, who they want around them and how they want support given. As long as the person is not harming themselves or others, they have the right to live their life in their own way. When caregivers impose decisions, force routines, or ignore preferences, resistance grows. But when people feel respected and heard, cooperation comes naturally.
Person-centered care; builds trust, reduces conflict, encourages cooperation, promotes recovery, maintains dignity and supports baseline stability. Most behavioral challenges reduce when people feel respected as individuals rather than treated as problems to be managed. Person-centered care is not complicated. It is human. See the person. Use their name. Respect their choices. Support their abilities. Customize care to their needs. Never forget this; you are not caring for a diagnosis. You are caring for a human being. That understanding alone can transform how mental health care is given—and how people experience it.
Even if two people have the same mental disorder, they are not the same person. You may find two siblings with the same condition. You may find two patients in the same house with the same diagnosis. But person-centered care demands that you deal with them individually. What works for one person may harm another. What calms one person may distress another. What motivates one person may shut another down. There is no “group care” when it comes to person-centered care. There is only individual care. You support this person according to their needs, their preferences, their strengths, and their limits—not according to a textbook and not according to how someone else with the same condition behaves.
One of the biggest mistakes people make is forgetting that a person with a mental disorder is still a person. A mental disorder does not erase humanity. It does not erase dignity. It does not erase identity. You are not dealing with a condition. You are dealing with a human being.
Many caregivers unknowingly treat people with mental disorders as cases, not people. They focus entirely on symptoms, behaviors, and diagnoses, while ignoring the person behind them. That is where conflict, resistance, and breakdown in care begin.
Person-centered care starts with this mindset: “I am caring for a person, not managing a condition.” When you shift your mindset, your approach changes. Your tone changes. Your patience grows. Your respect becomes visible.
One of the most damaging things we do in care is labeling. You hear people say: “He is schizophrenic.” “She is bipolar.” “That one is depressed.” “This one is mad.” “That one is crazy.” These words reduce a person to a diagnosis. They strip away identity and replace it with a condition.
Imagine being introduced everywhere by your illness. Imagine being called by your diagnosis instead of your name. That is not care. That is dehumanization. Person-centered care means using the person’s name. Call them David. Call them Mary. Call them by the name they choose and identify with.
If you must refer to a condition, you say: “A person living with schizophrenia” “A person living with bipolar disorder” “A person experiencing depression” The difference may sound small, but it is powerful. One respects the person. The other reduces them.
When you focus only on the condition, all you see is what is wrong. When you focus on the person, you see what is possible. Person-centered care asks what can this person do? What does this person enjoy? What gives this person peace? What helps this person feel safe? What decisions can this person make for themselves? Every person has abilities. Even those with severe mental disorders have something they can do. Supporting those abilities builds confidence, independence, and dignity.
Person-centered care does not mean controlling a person’s life. It means supporting their choices. It means allowing the person to decide what to wear, when to eat, how to spend their day, who they want around them and how they want support given. As long as the person is not harming themselves or others, they have the right to live their life in their own way. When caregivers impose decisions, force routines, or ignore preferences, resistance grows. But when people feel respected and heard, cooperation comes naturally.
Person-centered care; builds trust, reduces conflict, encourages cooperation, promotes recovery, maintains dignity and supports baseline stability. Most behavioral challenges reduce when people feel respected as individuals rather than treated as problems to be managed. Person-centered care is not complicated. It is human. See the person. Use their name. Respect their choices. Support their abilities. Customize care to their needs. Never forget this; you are not caring for a diagnosis. You are caring for a human being. That understanding alone can transform how mental health care is given—and how people experience it.
