David Cameron: 'We need to end stigma of mental health'

[adolf hamster]

If folk would stop going to a and e every time timmy has a sniffle maybe there'd be enough money to put a bit more effort into mental health.

The sad thing is there seems to be 2 kinds of mental health in the eyes of the public; stone cold crazy murdering rampage kind of condition, and the "your fine just deal with it" kind of condition.

Take schizophrenia and autism, mention either one of those conditions and you'll get a different response in the eyes of joe bloggs.

Tbh its worrying that iirc isnt suicide now the biggest killer of men under 25 in this country? Probably a result of the lack of care and the apparent need in our society for a man to remain stiff upper lipped never showing fear, sadness or anger at any time. This needs to stop as even if you dont have a mental illness/condition from birth you can be damn sure if you try to constantly bottle up your emotions it wont be long before you do.

 

[Freakbro]

Tbh its worrying that iirc isnt suicide now the biggest killer of men under 25 in this country? Probably a result of the lack of care and the apparent need in our society for a man to remain stiff upper lipped never showing fear, sadness or anger at any time. This needs to stop as even if you dont have a mental illness/condition from birth you can be damn sure if you try to constantly bottle up your emotions it wont be long before you do.

It's worse, it's the biggest killer under 45

On the news the other day they talked about Mental health being treated equivalently to Physical health, the problem is Physical is generally easier to heal, you take a pill, fix a broken bone or cut something out.

Mental health isn't 'cured' in such a linear way, and may not be 'cured' at all. It's a long winded process which therefore takes up a lot more time & resources for the amount of results.

So it's all very well and good saying it should be on an equal footing, but the money isn't going to be there to provide it.

 

[Burnsy2023]

its a good move but lets see how hard its enforced first.

Enforcement is a nightmare as the legislation is so poorly written. I could park my Volvo in the huge gaps in the wording.

As for the topic at hand, I agree that DC is saying the right thing, but having other news articles saying about the decline in the MH budget clearly isn't acting on the sentiment. Also, out of hours emergency care for MH cases is disjointed, underfunded, and in many cases simply not available at all.

 

[Destination]

Enforcement is a nightmare as the legislation is so poorly written. I could park my Volvo in the huge gaps in the wording.

As for the topic at hand, I agree that DC is saying the right thing, but having other news articles saying about the decline in the MH budget clearly isn't acting on the sentiment. Also, out of hours emergency care for MH cases is disjointed, underfunded, and in many cases simply not available at all.

They really need a 'Nothing can be produced/manufactured for consumption without a Food licence type rule'
Then ask people specially what they wish to supply, and if it isn't on the 'approved' list it is automatically banned, and subject to confiscation.

 

[dowie]

IIRC, the stat is 1 in 4 per year, not in their life.

so basically almost everyone will suffer from mental health at some point - the prospects of being able to offer loads of ongoing support to the entire population etc.. isn't really realistic - raising awareness of the issues and friends and families helping

the more common issues are presumably anxiety and depression and there are an abundance of 'mindfulness' courses around these days for people to try + help from your local GP

 

[Schlong&Stable]

The problem I have with "mental health" is this:

In physical health, you can have a cold. Most people would not consider a cold to be out of the ordinary and would probably not even seek help for it. There might be medicine which helps with the symptoms, but that is usually only used short term.

In mental health you can have the equivalent of a cold in the form of say, a bout of depression. Of course that is not ideal, but it's a normal part of the human experience. Sometimes you just feel low and it takes time to pick yourself up.

But due to all the propaganda being pumped out recently about mental health, people are not acting like this is the equivalent of say Type 1 Diabetes: "Oh, I have a mental health problem and need special treatment". NO, you've the equivalent of a bloody cold. Buck your ideas and get on with life.

And it doesn't help that doctors usually treat these bouts of depression with anti depressants. Often prescribing them for months and years at a time.

 

[Burnsy2023]

The problem I have with "mental health" is this:

In physical health, you can have a cold. Most people would not consider a cold to be out of the ordinary and would probably not even seek help for it. There might be medicine which helps with the symptoms, but that is usually only used short term.

In mental health you can have the equivalent of a cold in the form of say, a bout of depression. Of course that is not ideal, but it's a normal part of the human experience. Sometimes you just feel low and it takes time to pick yourself up.

But due to all the propaganda being pumped out recently about mental health, people are not acting like this is the equivalent of say Type 1 Diabetes: "Oh, I have a mental health problem and need special treatment". NO, you've the equivalent of a bloody cold. Buck your ideas and get on with life.

And it doesn't help that doctors usually treat these bouts of depression with anti depressants. Often prescribing them for months and years at a time.

The problem is, and where your comparison falls apart, while you have a cold, your body is coordinating an immune response. You will get better, it's just a matter of time. With depression, the causes are often due to social issues that your body isn't going to fix or may not even be in control of. Time isn't going to guarantee you'll be better.

 

[neil_g]

The problem I have with "mental health" is this:

In physical health, you can have a cold. Most people would not consider a cold to be out of the ordinary and would probably not even seek help for it. There might be medicine which helps with the symptoms, but that is usually only used short term.

In mental health you can have the equivalent of a cold in the form of say, a bout of depression. Of course that is not ideal, but it's a normal part of the human experience. Sometimes you just feel low and it takes time to pick yourself up.

But due to all the propaganda being pumped out recently about mental health, people are not acting like this is the equivalent of say Type 1 Diabetes: "Oh, I have a mental health problem and need special treatment". NO, you've the equivalent of a bloody cold. Buck your ideas and get on with life.

And it doesn't help that doctors usually treat these bouts of depression with anti depressants. Often prescribing them for months and years at a time.

sorry but depression is not as simple as "feeling a bit low" and definitely not comparable to having a cold.

 

[Ayahuasca]

The problem I have with "mental health" is this:

In physical health, you can have a cold. Most people would not consider a cold to be out of the ordinary and would probably not even seek help for it. There might be medicine which helps with the symptoms, but that is usually only used short term.

In mental health you can have the equivalent of a cold in the form of say, a bout of depression. Of course that is not ideal, but it's a normal part of the human experience. Sometimes you just feel low and it takes time to pick yourself up.

But due to all the propaganda being pumped out recently about mental health, people are not acting like this is the equivalent of say Type 1 Diabetes: "Oh, I have a mental health problem and need special treatment". NO, you've the equivalent of a bloody cold. Buck your ideas and get on with life.

And it doesn't help that doctors usually treat these bouts of depression with anti depressants. Often prescribing them for months and years at a time.

This is the exact reason a mental health stigma exists because of people comparing mental health to physical ailments or because they think you can just snap out of it.

 

[dowie]

but he hasn't said you can snap out of it...

frankly having a cold or having the flu can be quite debilitating and fortunately they're only temporary - having one long term, like a sufferer of depression, would be quite ****** and affect your quality of life

if 1 in 4 people suffer from mental illness each year then in the vast majority of cases we are talking about milder things that people are unfortunately going to have to just learn to endure and cope with

 

[neil_g]

unfortunately going to have to just learn to endure and cope with

i'd suggest thats why we have such a high suicide rate. people trying to cope and eventually unravelling.

 

[Ayahuasca]

but he hasn't said you can snap out of it...

frankly having a cold or having the flu can be quite debilitating and fortunately they're only temporary - having one long term, like a sufferer of depression, would be quite ****** and affect your quality of life

if 1 in 4 people suffer from mental illness each year then in the vast majority of cases we are talking about milder things that people are unfortunately going to have to just learn to endure and cope with

Buck your ideas and get on with life sounds similar to just snap out of it to me.

The issue clearly made apparent by rising suicide rates in those with mental health problems is you can't just learn to endure and cope with it.

 

[McGray]

People are too fragile these days.

 

[dowie]

i'd suggest thats why we have such a high suicide rate. people trying to cope and eventually unravelling.

but we don't have a particularly high suicide rate - compare to our close neighbours for example:

http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/tgm/table.do?tab=table&init=1&language=en&pcode=tps00122&plugin=1

2011, 2012

UK: 6.71, 7.22

France: 16.86, 15.71

Germany: 11.9, 11.52

Netherlands:10.01, 10.66

Ireland: 12.11, 12.18

 

[dowie]

Buck your ideas and get on with life sounds similar to just snap out of it to me.

The issue clearly made apparent by rising suicide rates in those with mental health problems is you can't just learn to endure and cope with it.

when it is affecting 1 in 4 people each year it is affecting nearly everyone... ergo yes you do need to learn to cope with it in most cases

 

[Sliver]

People are too fragile these days.

And some people have genuine neurological problems effecting their mental health. Not fragile, ill, requiring treatment. When you get older you may well develop dementia. Cherish your mental health while you have it. You are fragile too. It doesn't take much to lose your lucidity.

 

[Ayahuasca]

when it is affecting 1 in 4 people each year it is affecting nearly everyone... ergo yes you do need to learn to cope with it in most cases

Ridiculous

Most cases, good to see you have the ability to assess most cases.

 

[neil_g]

but we don't have a particularly high suicide rate

if its the biggest killer of under 45 males then yes in my opinion it is high (irrespective of other countries).

 

[dowie]

Ridiculous

Most cases, good to see you have the ability to assess most cases.

you're not making much sense, if the majority of the population has some form of mental illness at some point then yes we all do need to learn to cope with it to some extent

you don't need to be qualified to asses individual cases to state that, tis just basic numeracy

 

[dowie]

if its the biggest killer of under 45 males then yes in my opinion it is high (irrespective of other countries).

well someone under 45 shouldn't usually die so it isn't surprising that deliberately ending your life would be the biggest killer...

given that workplaces are safer, we're not fighting any major wars and healthcare has improved dramatically over the decades then people generally not dying unless they chose to take their own life is rather a good thing