It's tricky. With it being Mental Health Awareness Month, I feel driven to write something brilliant, but when I dig into the issue, as I have in the past, it puts me through the emotional wringer. Part of me wants to be the advocate; the other part of me just wants to write about hawks and have peace. But today, I'm the advocate it seems. I feel personally obligated to delve into the issue. Why?
Because it often seems like no one else wants to advocate for those suffering from brain disorders.
Sure, on the surface, when they hear about tragedies throughout the nation, people will say things like, "We need better treatment" or "How sad" or "What a tragedy; he must've been mentally ill." But rarely do people understand the extremely complex, "let's-push-it-under-the-rug" nature of the beast.
I have attended fundraising walks for cancer and diabetes and arthritis. The crowds have been enormous, and the money is flowing. I have also attended walks for those with mental illness. The crowds are hardly even crowds. A handful of lost people wandering around. It's as if everyone's thinking, Where's the support? Am I alone? Many times, yes.
Oftentimes, my mom will kindly say this: "Maybe they will find a cure for all these mental illnesses." To which I softly respond, "No they won't, Mom, because no one's looking."
First of all, no one's looking because there's the issue of societal stigma -- deadly and rampant. TV shows, movies, everyday life, on and on. Every single day, I hear people misuse or downplay the words "schizophrenic," "suicide," "bipolar," or "depression." They don't use the words to describe a disease; they use them to jokingly describe their mood that day, or they use them in flippant ways, such as in movie titles. It is baffling to me that this is still acceptable. Would large film studios allow this title: Stage 4 Lymphoma Friends. Or how about this? Diabetes Complications Squad. No, they wouldn't, because that would be ridiculous, right? And yet it's OK to use the word "suicide" lightly, when suicide is a symptom of brain disorders?
When we stigmatize these words and use them in colloquial conversation, movie titles, TV titles, and the like, it belittles mental illness. It tells the world this: these illnesses are not important, not real, and something we can brush aside.
And we wonder why in this nation, right here, right now, suicide is one leading cause of death in teens. Suicide causes more deaths in teens than car accidents. And we wonder why there are mass school shootings and suicides. "Suicides among young people continue to be a serious problem. Suicide is
the second leading cause of death for children, adolescents, and young
adults age 5-to-24-year-olds." (American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 2017)
Second, there's the lack of care...or care that is even more destructive than the actual illnesses. Did you know that 75% of those incarcerated have severe mental health issues? And here's how they deal with it. Here's one example: A schizophrenic man was punished by receiving a "special" shower...that is, it was so hot, the prison guards boiled him. He did not survive. ("The 'Insane' Way Our Prison System Handles the Mentally Ill," New York Times, 2018) This is just one example of many terrible cases. That is our version of care? The abuse feeds off a terrible cycle. And yet, when there is reform and treatment, there is hope. Take a look at this:
Most interesting perhaps is the case of Steve Leifman, a Florida judge
who runs a jail diversion program with a simple premise: When a person
with a mental illness is arrested for a nonviolent misdemeanor, he or
she can be steered toward treatment rather than criminal court. The vast
majority opt for treatment, where they are connected with housing and
other services. Recidivism is low, patients get the support they need,
and the prison system saves significant funds. Leifman says that over
the last decade he has managed to steer some 4,000 people out of the
criminal justice system. (New York Times, 2018)
Which means that mental health care, reform, and addressing the issue properly long-term will actually save money and save lives? Yes.
Third, there's the fear present within too-small, ill-equipped mental health organizations, and their lack of advocacy for those who are suffering. A while back, I contacted the National Alliance on Mental Illness* when I saw the onslaught of offensive movies and movie titles. Their response: "We can't do anything. We're just a group of moms, and we are so small." The woman I talked to sounded scared, indifferent, and distracted. As well as completely ignorant of the issues. At my local chapter, they were more understanding and wanted to "talk about it," but they too didn't want to post my writings or say anything publicly.
So I'm writing it now, and I'm sharing it now, because even national mental health organizations are too afraid to print my writings or touch on the depth of the issues.
Because there's a deep-seated shame and fear that exists. Because every day, people with brain disorders fight against an overall societal trap -- guilt, shame, indifference, intolerance, and abuse.
And my hope is that in the future, when I go on a fundraising walk for mental illness, there will be a cheering, supportive, loving crowd, one that is ready to fight against stigma, fight for proper treatment, and lead the way to curing these killers. Because the final symptom for depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia, among others, is suicide. It is a symptom, and it certainly should never, ever be used lightly.
I'm looking for a change in the view, the course of action, and especially in our attitudes and the words we use, because we need this change in order to have the support that other diseases already have in place. I'm looking for this change to save lives before the next mass shooting or suicide occurs. I'm looking for a miracle.
C.A. MacConnell
P.S. Feel free to share on FB or a link on Twitter, in honor of Mental Health Awareness Month.
*A first version named the organization the "National Association on Mental Illness." The correct name is "National Alliance on Mental Illness." The author apologizes for the typo. Although NAMI does indeed do very sound work, they are understaffed and underfunded, just as most mental health organizations are. Thank you.
