You’re very welcome! There have been many times that I have wished I was in the field transforming it from the inside, but since that doesn’t seem to be my path, I’m just doing my best to encourage others to see the truth for themselves. I’m raising my voice for those that suffer inside oppressive and tyrannical systems, while many willfully turn a blind eye - dismissing their voices and the voices of those that advocate for them.
I really want us as a society and global community to start looking at the iatrogenic damage that is a result of current and past prescribing practices. To see the mechanisms of damage, and truly help these individuals heal. I have read about the incredible struggles and healing journeys some individuals embark on to heal from this sort of damage - most times completely by themselves… I don’t believe that it’s healthy for society that individuals struggle so much to heal damage that was likely in conflict with the Hippocratic Oath from the very beginning.
If you haven’t already, check out the Soteria House model of mental health care! I feel that many of the answers we seek in regards to reform have already been discovered and proven. It just takes a willingness for us to admit the problem and work together to manifest the solution.
A lesson I learned recently is acceptance. Not everybody has the will or ability to see the full picture by themselves, and I certainly don’t believe I have the full picture as an outsider looking into to the system - with no medical training or formal education/experience working in mental health.
I believe that we have to all be compassionate and patient for the best outcome to emerge. Every moment can be a teaching moment for ourselves and others.
Of course, I recognize the harm in misinformation and the amount of effort it can take to challenge it. When we speak about topics we don’t know head from tail about, it does have the real potential to drown out the signal. I believe it has across our discussion forums and discourse as a whole.
It’s important to recognize that we live in a society though, and if more people calmly, succinctly (and with the best intentions) identified misinformation and gently corrected it - there would likely be a less chaos and confusion in our discourse. People have the potential to learn from our example and put the lessons we have learned into practice for themselves. This can scale up. Not everybody has to be 100% correct to be speaking to their truth or some truth. The commenter you are responding to is likely reacting to something and I believe it’s helpful to acknowledge their concern and direct it the best we can so they aren’t so confused.
I understand your frustration - I really, truly, do. Your feelings are valid. And to your other points, I am in agreement. Diagnosis is a complicated subject. There is a TON of nuance to explore in that topic. I’m a neurodiversity advocate and I am somebody who strongly believes in the benefits of diagnosis to those who willfully seek help and support.
I believe mental healthcare is a limited approach in the form that it is currently taking. It’s disconnected from society at large, it is disconnected from our communities, it has the potential to disconnect those treated from themselves. It is extremely costly to access in most cases - I don’t believe it’s healthy for society to put people in debt for wanting to heal and improve - to relieve their crisis. We need to approach it differently. We need to call upon those working in the field to acknowledge the collective trauma that very clearly exists in themselves, which most certainly affects the standard of care.
As I mentioned to another commenter who responded; please check out the Soteria House paradigm. They have done incredible work and I believe there are many lessons that we all can learn from that model of mental healthcare.
Thanks for engaging! I hope I was of service.