I have to admit to only scanning the post, but the thing that kept jumping out at me was the distinction between mentally ill and mentally healthy. I have trouble seeing mental health in absolutes like that. I guess I see mental health in similar terms to physical health. Some of us are obese, some of us have arthritis, some of us get migraines, allergies asthma. Who is "healthy" and who is "unhealthy". I see mental health in the same way -- we are all sick to varying degrees and healthy to varying degrees.
And it gets even more nuanced than that for me -- sometimes I wonder whether depression or anxiety should be considered a normal response to the world. Maybe those of us who are happy in spite of it all are actually mentally ill. Or what about those people who go around being high performing even though they are on 40 ounces of booze a day, or the people who are abused as children and function perfectly well because they've burried their pain under a big pile. Is that mental health?
I've on occasion suggested to people that they consider trying psychotherapy, and I haven't yet got a positive response. Apparently you have to be whacked out crazy to get therapy. I sometimes say, well, you are not really obese, but you still exercise and eat right, and you still go to the doctor to get your blood pressure checked. Why wouldn't you treat your mental health the same way? You might not be in desperate need of therapy, but maybe it would help you just generally see the world in a slightly different light that is kinder and gentler. But they can't get past the idea that one must be sick to see a therapist, and having a sick soul is shameful. There are a lot of people carrying an enormous burden thinking that they right thing to do is just tough it out because there's no way they are mentall ill.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2010-06-06 03:41 am (UTC)And it gets even more nuanced than that for me -- sometimes I wonder whether depression or anxiety should be considered a normal response to the world. Maybe those of us who are happy in spite of it all are actually mentally ill. Or what about those people who go around being high performing even though they are on 40 ounces of booze a day, or the people who are abused as children and function perfectly well because they've burried their pain under a big pile. Is that mental health?
I've on occasion suggested to people that they consider trying psychotherapy, and I haven't yet got a positive response. Apparently you have to be whacked out crazy to get therapy. I sometimes say, well, you are not really obese, but you still exercise and eat right, and you still go to the doctor to get your blood pressure checked. Why wouldn't you treat your mental health the same way? You might not be in desperate need of therapy, but maybe it would help you just generally see the world in a slightly different light that is kinder and gentler. But they can't get past the idea that one must be sick to see a therapist, and having a sick soul is shameful. There are a lot of people carrying an enormous burden thinking that they right thing to do is just tough it out because there's no way they are mentall ill.
Hi by the way. Thanks for friending back.