You will not go through life never knowing anyone who is dealing with mental health issues. You might go through life never being trusted enough for anyone to tell you about theirs, but educating yourself will go a long way to being useful, and supportive, to the people you care about.
Seriously, go read it. And save it.
I often talk about encounters between police and someone in a mental health crisis ending in tragedy. So it was refreshing for me to see a situation handled differently, and effectively. I also felt like it might be refreshing to share it to you as well, to see what it could look like when someone with proper training responds to these calls.
Obviously, talking about can lead to these other things. Not talking about it won’t get us anywhere. But we need to do more than talk, we need to figure out better ways to treat people who need it, and make it accessible. That doesn’t happen until all of society understands the importance of it, and is truly educated about it. So, keep talking, but also keep demanding better.
I’ve seen this possibility since 2001, when I started blogging. The possibility that someone, somewhere, dealing with mental health issues, or overcoming abuse, would hop online looking for someone, anyone, who understands that they are dealing with.
We’ve never had more ways to connect with each other, even during a pandemic. Why not use them, and why not be the person who connects others online?
This opinion piece from Katherine Kornberg covers ground that might seem familiar to long-time readers, but if you’re new around here, this is the reality of where our mental health system is. Completely under-funded, under-resourced, and as a result? This: “Without the proper community-based mental health solutions, prisons and jails have become a “dumping ground”…
