The case for inviting everyone to everything– In a time when loneliness is more pervasive than ever, why not extend an invitation?
Bringing Hope and Suicide Prevention Resources to Veterans and Military Members
Navigating the Depths: A Personal Journey into Black Men’s Mental Health and the Power of Therapy
Making sports safer for kids is a never-ending fight ‘Teachers aren’t experts – they need tools to talk about mental health’ Dallas Children’s Advocacy Center Shows How Kids Heal From Abuse Inmates With Mental Illness I work as a GP and feel powerless to treat patients with mental illness The Awkward Conversation: How to Respond…
Mental health is complicated. The solution to one individual case is complicated. The solution to the lack of resources is complicated. Telling people to get more exercise, let alone selling them the diet and workout that will solve all their mental health issues, is a fraud, isn’t it? Saying that we simply need to give everyone free therapy without addressing the serious shortage of therapists is as well.
Anyone who suggests there is a simple solution to the mental health problem facing us as a country and the world is not to be taken seriously.
Of course, he’s right. What he sees in the UK is the same thing I see from my “much less qualified but simply paying attention” seat in the US, and I’m sure many of you see where you live as well. Our current mental health resources are designed to help “fix” something wrong with us. I can’t say they even do that well, but at least that is the plan, and that plan makes sense for many mental health struggles.
It is only part of the picture, though. In all seriousness, how would the 6-8 therapist sessions a good insurance plan covers help someone escaping domestic abuse or trying to feed a family on a minimum wage job? How is the teenager being abused at home, bullied at school, and overwhelmed by the bleakness of what the world might look like when they are an adult supposed to find hope in one crisis text line conversation?
How will we provide hope and connection to people without first understanding their world and how they navigate it every day?
Expecting life to bend to our expectations and definition of what “complete” looks like will only lead to disappointment. Life is constantly in flux, full of ups and downs. Why anyone would expect treatment for mental health issues to somehow be different, is hard for me to explain.
There’s no doubt about this, the more people get used to seeing and hearing about mental health issues among their friends and people they follow on social media, the more likely they’ll see it as no big deal to actually talk about them. I’m in. And if you really want to be a Stigma Rebel,…
