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Quick question for older people.

Galena

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Do you think perceptions of mental illness have changed over the last twenty years? Ten years? How people with it are treated, attitudes about needing help? When it's in adults, and when it's a kid who is struggling?

I wasn't able to observe this due to being too young that long ago.
 

prplchknz

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I think over all people are more accepting of it, but not completely and there's still a lot of mistrust around meds and i dunno if that'll we'll ever fully go away. its like a misunderstanding of people who need them aren't just lazy and it doesn't make them zombies. for me allows me to function, but at the same time some of the things aren't accepted still and there's still a ton of stereotypes. but to be fair i was also young 10 years ago. 20 i was just a kid.
I've just noticed a difference with how i was treated 7 years ago vs now and now people are more accepting and don't go are you sure? you just need sleep
ps how old is old?
 

Galena

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ps how old is old?
Roughly, someone who was older than a kid in the 90s.

But thanks - kids still notice things. I may have too, but wasn't sure if it was just me.
 

prplchknz

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Roughly, someone who was older than a kid in the 90s.

But thanks - kids still notice things. I may have too, but wasn't sure if it was just me.

yeah i was a 90s kid. i figured i didn't fit your demographic but thought i'd answer anyways.
 
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80's kid/teen reporting. A lot of things are more acceptable now. When I was a kid so many things were just not discussed, including mental illness. Also being homosexual, atheist, asexual, pagan, transgender, the list goes on. If you couldn't define yourself in terms of being the all American you just kept your mouth shut. There were counterculture groups. I was a second wave punk with mohawk, Doc Martens, leather jacket and all that. I can't remember the amount of shit I caught.

Anyway society was starting to shift in the 80's just slowly but even now clinical depression and other mental issues can be viewed with a stigma attached. People are often ignorant of the varieties and intricacies of mental illness and there's this tendency to just lump different problems together. Still I think there's definitely a willingness to discuss it more. Back then it was always done so in hushed tones and they treated the person like they're mentally unstable in a potentially violent way. People seemed to view any problem as if it were the most extreme case. The availability of knowledge we have now has definitely helped.

Then of course there's the family reputation to think about. People were and I think still are worried about how they'll be judged because someone they love has a mental health issue. Anyway I hope that helps.
 

Peter Deadpan

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Yes, I think the Internet has became a haven for all that we rarely spoke of prior to its gain in popularity. It's much easier to open up to people via social media and forums, whether we know them irl or not. Over time, I think it has become more broadly acceptable to speak of our struggles and pain and I don't see that going anywhere but up so to speak. There are also a lot of campaigns/organizations whose mission is to raise awareness of mental illness.

I was born in '85, btw, and I can tell you that when I was in high school, we didn't really talk about depression or anxiety and there were plenty of LGBTQ teens essentially living lies out of fear. I have a lot of hope for this movement as I have seen a lot of progress already. We all just have to keep fighting the good fight.
 

ceecee

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Do you think perceptions of mental illness have changed over the last twenty years? Ten years? How people with it are treated, attitudes about needing help? When it's in adults, and when it's a kid who is struggling?

I wasn't able to observe this due to being too young that long ago.

Yes. I'm an "older person" and I also work in healthcare. I can tell you that first, it's more widely and openly discussed which removed stigma (there is still work to do in that area). I think in younger people, it's taken far more seriously than it once was. Also in older people. I think the first step is still the difficult hurdle it always was. Provider availability as well as funding is still an issue too. But overall it's better than it was even 10 years ago and there is much less urge to only throw meds at it.
 

The Cat

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Yes, things have changed. Quite a bit. Though toward what end yet...I am uncertain....it seems positive...
 

Lord Lavender

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I think overall things will get better as we learn more about mental disorders and advances in treatment take place. I think ummm that however it will have to be well funded and I do think government should fund more into mental health.
 

The Cat

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I think overall things will get better as we learn more about mental disorders and advances in treatment take place. I think ummm that however it will have to be well funded and I do think government should fund more into mental health.

I don't necessarily agree with that, but I'm not entirely unbiased in that regard, so I should perhaps recuse myself, it's a fair point Brain, and perhaps it could be beneficial, but my experiences have me distrustful of it.
 

ceecee

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I don't necessarily agree with that, but I'm not entirely unbiased in that regard, so I should perhaps recuse myself, it's a fair point Brain, and perhaps it could be beneficial, but my experiences have me distrustful of it.

Which part don't you agree with? The government (at least in the US) needs to dump funds into mental health care exceeding the budgets of many states. I'm not overstating this. Mental health professionals (there is a shortage, growing all the time), facilities, hospitals, research...name it. Until this happens, the problem will get worse. Until the numerous barriers to care are removed, it will get worse. I understand that you have bad experiences but much of that is due to funding. I'm not even counting military and others that would fall under military health care - that's beyond what can be discussed in a couple paragraphs.
 

Lord Lavender

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I don't necessarily agree with that, but I'm not entirely unbiased in that regard, so I should perhaps recuse myself, it's a fair point Brain, and perhaps it could be beneficial, but my experiences have me distrustful of it.

I suppose it depends on how we look at it. i think technology and knowledge wise things will improve but one of the main issues facing mental care (Or any kind of care) is the delivery of it. For example we have abuse in care homes from staff and management, lack of funding into mental health facilitates e.t.c. Your experiences are hardly unique (Not dismissing them just saying that there are definitely patterns and that many have faced said issues) I know of people in my family who have been failed by the mental health system so it is kinda something I have seen first hand.

They were failed mostly by bureaucracy as it meant that they didnt get the full access to resources and support they needed as what they had access to was in the hands of unaccountable bureaucracy. I think mental care overall needs more hands on leadership not remote red tape.
 

The Cat

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Which part don't you agree with? The government (at least in the US) needs to dump funds into mental health care exceeding the budgets of many states. I'm not overstating this. Mental health professionals (there is a shortage, growing all the time), facilities, hospitals, research...name it. Until this happens, the problem will get worse. Until the numerous barriers to care are removed, it will get worse. I understand that you have bad experiences but much of that is due to funding. I'm not even counting military and others that would fall under military health care - that's beyond what can be discussed in a couple paragraphs.

As I said, it's a fair point, and I am by no means unbiased, so my ability to have a fair and balanced perspective with which to debate, on this matter, is not in tact. It would be, in my current estimation, a disservice to all involved, for me to let my own personal experience interfere. So for the time being, with respect, I shall not proceed at this time, perhaps in time I can articulate my thoughts and opinions in this regard more cognizantly; but at this point, I fear it would sound (if you'll all please excuse the irony) entirely mad. I will continue to observe, and hopefully learn, with as open a mind as I am able.
 
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You have to wonder if the inadequate state we find our mental health system in is due in part to the modern tendency to throw drugs at everything? A philosophy no doubt driven by pharmaceutical companies. Certainly some patients would benefit more from therapy than antidepressants? Some by a combination and then some by drugs alone. How many jobs have disappeared because the psychiatric community is encouraged and in someways bound by the drug industry to push chemical solutions?
 

Totenkindly

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80's kid/teen reporting. A lot of things are more acceptable now. When I was a kid so many things were just not discussed, including mental illness. Also being homosexual, atheist, asexual, pagan, transgender, the list goes on. If you couldn't define yourself in terms of being the all American you just kept your mouth shut. There were counterculture groups. I was a second wave punk with mohawk, Doc Martens, leather jacket and all that. I can't remember the amount of shit I caught.

Anyway society was starting to shift in the 80's just slowly but even now clinical depression and other mental issues can be viewed with a stigma attached. People are often ignorant of the varieties and intricacies of mental illness and there's this tendency to just lump different problems together. Still I think there's definitely a willingness to discuss it more. Back then it was always done so in hushed tones and they treated the person like they're mentally unstable in a potentially violent way. People seemed to view any problem as if it were the most extreme case. The availability of knowledge we have now has definitely helped.

Then of course there's the family reputation to think about. People were and I think still are worried about how they'll be judged because someone they love has a mental health issue. Anyway I hope that helps.

Yup, I grew up in the 70's and early 80's, and there used to be even a stigma attached to somewhat innocuous issues like depression, and if you attended therapy then something must seriously be wrong with you. Things have changed a lot since then, to the degree that people have been going on talk shows for years to say things that used to be embarrassing to speak of in private therapy. We have a weird dual opinion of mental illness -- on one hand, feel free to discuss it in public, but on the other hand it can be used as an excuse to dismiss or ostracize someone and can still bring shame on the family.

There are a number of current problems, despite an improvement in being able to discuss things. For example, potential overdiagnosis of some issues (are some levels of distress "normal" or are they actual mental illness?) or armchair diagnosis by average people who have no actual experience with true mental illness issues -- which both allows people to obsess over their "various conditions" when they don't really have conditions, as well as allows people to unfairly diminish the issues suffered by folks who actually do have a nasty mental illness. Also, the reliance on medication to treat everything (sometimes medication is necessary and helpful) can sometimes take away from invested therapy and behavioral approaches to problems.

I grew up in an area where even tattoos would have been seen as reprobate/criminal influence, or at least having been in jail. Mohawks would have been like from a separate planet.

Overall I think parts of society at least have loosened up enough for such things to be discussed or certain demographics accepted more.

You have to wonder if the inadequate state we find our mental health system in is due in part to the modern tendency to throw drugs at everything? A philosophy no doubt driven by pharmaceutical companies. Certainly some patients would benefit more from therapy than antidepressants? Some by a combination and then some by drugs alone. How many jobs have disappeared because the psychiatric community is encouraged and in someways bound by the drug industry to push chemical solutions?

Yeah, I read this after I made my post here.

I mean, pharmaceutical solutions can be effective for some things, but typically behavior and perception derives from more than a chemical imbalance. Taking a pill is easy; realigning one's perspectives and perceptions is painful and can take time and effort and maybe never perfectly work. Something comparable would be losing weight -- yes, you can use chemicals to help with that, but there's usually a lot of things that need to be changed, whether it's new routines, eating habits, exercise habits, etc., that need to also be developed to help long-term.
 
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Yup, I grew up in the 70's and early 80's, and there used to be even a stigma attached to somewhat innocuous issues like depression, and if you attended therapy then something must seriously be wrong with you. Things have changed a lot since then, to the degree that people have been going on talk shows for years to say things that used to be embarrassing to speak of in private therapy. We have a weird dual opinion of mental illness -- on one hand, feel free to discuss it in public, but on the other hand it can be used as an excuse to dismiss or ostracize someone and can still bring shame on the family.

There are a number of current problems, despite an improvement in being able to discuss things. For example, potential overdiagnosis of some issues (are some levels of distress "normal" or are they actual mental illness?) or armchair diagnosis by average people who have no actual experience with true mental illness issues -- which both allows people to obsess over their "various conditions" when they don't really have conditions, as well as allows people to unfairly diminish the issues suffered by folks who actually do have a nasty mental illness. Also, the reliance on medication to treat everything (sometimes medication is necessary and helpful) can sometimes take away from invested therapy and behavioral approaches to problems.

I grew up in an area where even tattoos would have been seen as reprobate/criminal influence, or at least having been in jail. Mohawks would have been like from a separate planet.

Overall I think parts of society at least have loosened up enough for such things to be discussed or certain demographics accepted more.



Yeah, I read this after I made my post here.

I mean, pharmaceutical solutions can be effective for some things, but typically behavior and perception derives from more than a chemical imbalance. Taking a pill is easy; realigning one's perspectives and perceptions is painful and can take time and effort and maybe never perfectly work. Something comparable would be losing weight -- yes, you can use chemicals to help with that, but there's usually a lot of things that need to be changed, whether it's new routines, eating habits, exercise habits, etc., that need to also be developed to help long-term.

It's a huge issue. Especially this pseudo psychology the drug companies engage in. Your kids somewhat hyper? Slap him on Ritalin. What kid isn't hyper? How about a proper diagnosis first? And how many 'syndromes' have popped up since corporations became interested in psychology beyond the aspects of advertising? Do you sometimes yawn when you're tired? You may have Involuntary Exhaustion Syndrome or I.E.S. I have nothing against businesses in general but when your business is health mental or otherwise morality definitely enters the picture for me. Insurance companies in the health care industry are insidious. Everything is geared towards reactive medicine instead of preventive medicine. You have doctors telling you they can't run a test for something because the insurance company won't allow it. I can see if someone is a hypochondriac and needlessly racking up scans but damn.

Anyway I digress as I have such a nasty tendency to do. Believe me having a mohawk in my uptight little town didn't go over well. It mortified my poor mom too. Why do you have to look like an extra in a Mad Max movie? Haha.
 

prplchknz

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It's a huge issue. Especially this pseudo psychology the drug companies engage in. Your kids somewhat hyper? Slap him on Ritalin. What kid isn't hyper? How about a proper diagnosis first? And how many 'syndromes' have popped up since corporations became interested in psychology beyond the aspects of advertising? Do you sometimes yawn when you're tired? You may have Involuntary Exhaustion Syndrome or I.E.S. I have nothing against businesses in general but when your business is health mental or otherwise morality definitely enters the picture for me. Insurance companies in the health care industry are insidious. Everything is geared towards reactive medicine instead of preventive medicine. You have doctors telling you they can't run a test for something because the insurance company won't allow it. I can see if someone is a hypochondriac and needlessly racking up scans but damn.

Anyway I digress as I have such a nasty tendency to do. Believe me having a mohawk in my uptight little town didn't go over well. It mortified my poor mom too. Why do you have to look like an extra in a Mad Max movie? Haha.

I wasn't hyper. but no i agree there's a difference between a high energy kid and a kid with ADHD.
 
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I wasn't hyper. but no i agree there's a difference between a high energy kid and a kid with ADHD.
There definitely my cousin has ADHD and I was diagnosed with ADD in the early 80's. Big difference side by side. Same spaced out moments though. lol
 

Typh0n

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Unfortuneately, I have not noticed a change. In the 90s, mental illness carried a stigma and still does today.

Maybe my perception is skewed because I haven't lived in the same place the whole time, much less in the same country, or been concerned with the same things. But it just seems mental illness still carries a stigma, especially among employers, which is where it seems like it would matter the most.
 

Yuurei

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Good Lord yes.

It's gone from one extreme to another. I consider this peroetually swinging pendulum to be the most dangerous disease known to humani ty.
 
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