Mental Illness
For as long as there will be life on Earth, there will always be disadvantaged individuals. No one chooses ever chooses their genetic makeup, but there will always be people who are unfortunately born with disadvantages or disabilities. One group of people, in particular, is the mentally ill population.
Mentally ill people have always been discriminated against ever since society existed. There have been attempts to lessen the discrimination that have helped significantly, and they brought society in the right direction, but there are other issues that must be dealt with before mentally ill citizens will be able to enjoy the full qualities of life that most of us take for granted.
One of the most significant issues left to solve is the lack of access to affordable and effective treatment. Citizens with extreme psychiatric conditions naturally find it harder to find work, but if they were treated, their condition would be much less of an obstacle, so they would be able to work. At the same time, without work, the individual would not be able to afford treatment. I took control of my mental illness and sought help which was very gratefully granted, and I'm in debt to society, but not all mentally ill do so.
Another problem is the rising number of mentally ill people in prison. Sometimes, one might break the law because of an episode associated with their condition. In prison, the individual is forced to live under the prison rules, and they are treated like any other prisoner. Also, individuals are at risk of exploitation by other prisoners. In 2003, the Human Rights Watch declared that one in six prisoners had some type of mental disorder. Prisons were never built to treat mental illness, and they shouldn't have to. Sometimes, prisons diagnose conditions and send the individual to a facility to treat the condition, and after symptoms improve enough, they are sent back in prison, or released after their sentence runs out. This sounds pretty good, but it has very significant flaws. Most mentally ill prisoners who are released eventually break the law and end up back in prison again. Often times it is for simple possession of narcotics. Mentally ill prisoners who are released from treatment facilities with medication only have enough medicine for a certain amount of time. During that time, they must find their own treatment. A lot of the time, they will need to be very assertive, and sometimes aggressive to get treatment. They often lack in those characteristics for too long until they run out of medicine. At that point, the condition has more control over their everyday life and they might "fall through the cracks" and end up back in prison. If I can't take my medicine I can not fall asleep. In the past I have forgotten to pick up my meds and I had to live a weekend without sleep. During this time the topic of suicide came up multiple times.
An issue that is usually hard to identify is mental illness in adolescents and teenagers. I'm sure that no one needs to be reminded that significant changes in ones life take place during adolescence, so parents will expect drastic changes in attitude and/or behavior. Upon expecting these changes, parents could possibly be ignoring treatable mental illnesses. If the adolescent sees a doctor early, it will be much easier to follow up with treatment. If the condition is ignored, then the adolescent will have to have more assertiveness and responsibility to get treatment later in life. If my major depression was diagnosed at a younger age I could have possibly avoided my continual effort to end my life on inhalants.
Just by watching the news, it is easy to determine that little legislation is being made concerning the problems that were previously mentioned above. There has been some legislation made, but there is more that must be done. As of right now, it is illegal to discriminate against mental disabilities, but if a condition is untreated, then the individual will be less qualified for a job than if the illness was treated. Obviously, treatment would help solve all of the problems listed above, but it is hard to guarantee treatment.
I did not ask for my mental illness, nor did I ask for my life growing up under an abusive and pedophile father. It was dealt to me. In many ways I have overcome great odds. I went from a hopeless child struggling in education to a senior Computer Science major in one of America's best universities. Although I've experienced a set back in my status, as I have been struggling with deep depression for 2 years, I am slowly achieving confidence again.
For the Greater Good of Mentally Ill Citizens... Facebook Group Join if you have a moment.
Mentally ill people have always been discriminated against ever since society existed. There have been attempts to lessen the discrimination that have helped significantly, and they brought society in the right direction, but there are other issues that must be dealt with before mentally ill citizens will be able to enjoy the full qualities of life that most of us take for granted.
One of the most significant issues left to solve is the lack of access to affordable and effective treatment. Citizens with extreme psychiatric conditions naturally find it harder to find work, but if they were treated, their condition would be much less of an obstacle, so they would be able to work. At the same time, without work, the individual would not be able to afford treatment. I took control of my mental illness and sought help which was very gratefully granted, and I'm in debt to society, but not all mentally ill do so.
Another problem is the rising number of mentally ill people in prison. Sometimes, one might break the law because of an episode associated with their condition. In prison, the individual is forced to live under the prison rules, and they are treated like any other prisoner. Also, individuals are at risk of exploitation by other prisoners. In 2003, the Human Rights Watch declared that one in six prisoners had some type of mental disorder. Prisons were never built to treat mental illness, and they shouldn't have to. Sometimes, prisons diagnose conditions and send the individual to a facility to treat the condition, and after symptoms improve enough, they are sent back in prison, or released after their sentence runs out. This sounds pretty good, but it has very significant flaws. Most mentally ill prisoners who are released eventually break the law and end up back in prison again. Often times it is for simple possession of narcotics. Mentally ill prisoners who are released from treatment facilities with medication only have enough medicine for a certain amount of time. During that time, they must find their own treatment. A lot of the time, they will need to be very assertive, and sometimes aggressive to get treatment. They often lack in those characteristics for too long until they run out of medicine. At that point, the condition has more control over their everyday life and they might "fall through the cracks" and end up back in prison. If I can't take my medicine I can not fall asleep. In the past I have forgotten to pick up my meds and I had to live a weekend without sleep. During this time the topic of suicide came up multiple times.
An issue that is usually hard to identify is mental illness in adolescents and teenagers. I'm sure that no one needs to be reminded that significant changes in ones life take place during adolescence, so parents will expect drastic changes in attitude and/or behavior. Upon expecting these changes, parents could possibly be ignoring treatable mental illnesses. If the adolescent sees a doctor early, it will be much easier to follow up with treatment. If the condition is ignored, then the adolescent will have to have more assertiveness and responsibility to get treatment later in life. If my major depression was diagnosed at a younger age I could have possibly avoided my continual effort to end my life on inhalants.
Just by watching the news, it is easy to determine that little legislation is being made concerning the problems that were previously mentioned above. There has been some legislation made, but there is more that must be done. As of right now, it is illegal to discriminate against mental disabilities, but if a condition is untreated, then the individual will be less qualified for a job than if the illness was treated. Obviously, treatment would help solve all of the problems listed above, but it is hard to guarantee treatment.
I did not ask for my mental illness, nor did I ask for my life growing up under an abusive and pedophile father. It was dealt to me. In many ways I have overcome great odds. I went from a hopeless child struggling in education to a senior Computer Science major in one of America's best universities. Although I've experienced a set back in my status, as I have been struggling with deep depression for 2 years, I am slowly achieving confidence again.
For the Greater Good of Mentally Ill Citizens... Facebook Group Join if you have a moment.
Our country's NAMI Grade is a D. I'm lucky, my caretakers really care for me, although they're extremely busy. I forget my meetings though sometimes. :(
Read the Top 10 Myths of Mental Illness.
Treat mental illness and drug use together, experts urge
As much as I am for the rights of peaceful Americans who happen to enjoy marijuana for therapeutic reasons, I'm starting to move more of my attention towards this fight we mentally ill are forced to fight. While discrimination is illegal, the stigma is still there, and it's not nice. People avoid me like the plague when they know that I hear voices without my medication. Well, let me assure you I have no intentions on hurting anyone, including myself. The suicidal thoughts I have are a symptom of a dis-ease I fight with constantly. There's a part in me that wants to thrive and exist just like any other human being. I didn't suddenly become an alien when I was diagnosed with my illness. Mentally ill should have as many rights as medical marijuana patients, granted it's legal in your state. Mentally ill should have as many rights as bizarre religious sects. It's about freedom from stigma, exploitation, and corruption.
Normal's overrated.
