In light of the recent tragedy in Connecticut, one thing that has been put on the table is the need to work with and better serve those with mental illness, as it is mental illness, (the theory goes) not guns that are to blame for the mass shootings of late and thus the problem, not assault weapons. As I see it there are several problems with this approach. Though it is true that we do not do enough to help those with mental illnesses in many ways it comes down to the same problems we have with all public health problems, assessment of the illness, and access to resources that they need.
To deal with the first is not an easy task. With all of the stigma that still surrounds mental illness, it makes those who need help less inclined to seek the help they need, as they may be labeled inappropriately by those who do not understand and as such, not treated the same way by their peers as if they did not seek this help out.
In the past, I have sought out help for depression, but when I told my peers about it, I was treated as if there was something wrong with me. This extends to the idea that people should just be happy all the time, which is simply an unrealistic ideal to live up to, and as such when people do not, there is stigma about why we can not do it. That being said and with this social stigma it is hard to expect people to seek it out help without being labeled, which does keep some people away from seeking the help they need when they need it.
When it comes to access to resources this is one of public policy and access to public health. To be fair, not everyone has access to health insurance, as well as not all mental health issues being covered by insurance. In an ideal world, if you were feeling depressed, there would be access to help for you so that you could work through it. No stigma, just go get the help you need. If you can't afford it, as in this case it comes down to a public good question, you should have the help you need and have that covered by the public as it is good for all of us. Of course this has it's down side too. With the push back for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) it has been made perfectly clear that everyone having insurance is not something that is a priority for everyone, and if they could they would keep it from taking effect since it is mandatory.
So the question to me becomes, where do we draw the line between helping the common good and getting people the help that they need, making it accepted as a society to get this help, thus encouraging the people in our lives who need it to seek it out, and as a society agreeing that this is so important that we are willing to help pay for it. What we know for sure is that something has to change, be it gun laws or the giving of those who need it the help that they need, and the only way to do that is for us, as a community to agree that we need to do something to fix it, and thus do all we can to make things better for ourselves and our future generations.
Jordan R. Hinckley
December 19th 2012
