Mental Health 1CC3 Discussion Questions

1) The readings by Vonnegut, Simon and Saks all revealed one major
theme the stigma surrounding schizophrenia. These personal stories
reveal the guilt, shame and disgust faced by the individuals as they
were all capable of understanding the extent of their mental illness. In
Clea Simons, Everything Falls Apart, the writer goes into detail about
what its like living with a sibling who suffers from schizophrenia. The
extent of this mental illness not only impacts the individual, but also
their families. As discussed in lectures, it creates a halo effect,
ultimately defining the person and their actions. These readings also
display the internal conflicts an individual faces with schizophrenia.
Those struggling with the mental illness are at a constant battle with
themselves and the various voices attempting to take of their actions.
Positive symptoms were prevalent through each story as psychotic
breaks and hallucinations became a major aspect of the individuals
experiences. Elyn R. Saks The Centre Cannot Hold depicted a form
of paranoia in which the writer was afraid that her psychologist was
secretly out to get her. Negative and disorganized symptoms were not
as significant through these stories. These symptom clusters differ
from the definitions learned in class in the sense that many of these
symptoms were comorbid and were the consequences of another
symptom. For example, hearing voices and paranoia may go hand-in-
hand as the individual hears voices further agitating his paranoia.
2) In The Quiet Room, by Lori Schiller and No Time to Say Goodbye, by
Carla Fine display the multiple aspects of forcing an individual into
treatment. Schiller described her experience as traumatizing as she
compared her method of treatment to rape. The rough and hostile
nurses along with being forced to take medication aggravated her
mental illness even more, and there was nothing she could do about it
as she had no say in her treatment plan. In No Time to Say Goodbye,
no one in the personal account is hospitalized, however, it made me
wonder if Carlas husband had been forced into treatment before his
suicide, he still may be alive. Treatment is something that should not
be forced onto individuals unless they are a threat to themselves or
society. Forcing one into psychiatric treatment may be as detrimental
to their mental health as their illness. As an individual with basic
human rights, one should be allowed to reject treatment if necessary,
just as someone with a physical illness is allowed to do so. However, if
this individual is prone to suicidal attempts or has the capability to
harm others (perhaps due to an illness aggravating violence), the
psychiatrist, along with the familys consent, should be allowed to
detain and force treatment on the individual for their own betterment.
3) Stigma is created when society does not realize what a mental illness
is, and places a judgement on an individual for labelling their variation
of normality. In Depressives in the Lounge, Sharon OBrien is
 shocked to realize that those in her therapy group are much like
herself. The stigma surrounding mental illness not only stops at a third
person, but it also begins to impact the individual themselves. They
begin to believe that their mental illness is a reflection of who they are,
and that they are different from society because of this. Similarly, in
To Tell or Not to Tell, the stigma of mental illness forces Carol Owen to
be afraid of disclosing her mental illness. In a workplace, physical
disabilities are usually made clear in case an individual needs to be
accommodated for, however, Owen believes that letting her coworkers
know about her mental illness will cause her to be perceived differently
in terms of her abilities and not get a job. Mental illness elicits so much
stigma because it is a somewhat abstract concept that is not entirely
understood by those who do not suffer from it. Unlike a medical illness,
such as cancer or AIDS, mental illness affects the mind, and thus a
third person may feel that the illness is self-created.
4) Derek Summerfield made very valid arguments regarding the criticism
and assumptions made by psychiatrists on mental health. When
adding an illness in the DSM, mental health professionals fail to
recognize situational factors that may contribute to the illness, and
instead focus entirely on its symptoms. This can result in many false
diagnoses and may not provide the necessary care an individual may
need. He also stresses the fact that no psychiatrist will be able to come
up with a valid definition for what a mental disorder is, yet they
attempt to do so anyways. The globalization of mental illness is a
major theme stressed throughout this video. Derek Summerfield
suggests that norms differ across various cultures, thus a diagnosis in
one part of the world may not exist in another. Not only does
globalization of mental illness make it difficult to classify or label an
individual with a specific illness, but it also results in ineffective
treatments as they are subjective to cultures. Summerfield also
discusses the inefficiency of the use of drugs in treatments, stressing
that they may act as placebos, ultimately convincing an individual that
they truly do have a certain illness.