Get’s some coverage in the local paper–The Portland Mercury. Here is a small snippet from a must read article:
The Portland group’s initial goals are simple: to provide a safe, comfortable place for people to talk about their experiences, be they negative or positive, diagnosis identified or not, or medicated or not. It also seeks to re-educate a public that not only tends to associate voice hearers with a higher potential for violence, but also habitually treats these people by snuffing their irregularities into silence with potent medication.
The New School
Nutritional analysis, detoxification, and stress and lifestyle management are just some of the alternatives and supplements to pharmaceuticals that have successfully provided relief. PHV hopes to connect practitioners in these fields with potential clients who might be anxious to seek them. It’s important to note, however, that Hearing Voices groups, the Icarus Project, the Mad Pride movement in general are not focused on pushing people to reject medication—the aim is to illuminate the existence of alternate means of coping and provide honest information on all available resources. (read the whole article)
Here in Canada, in order to be covered by our “universal health care system” for emotional issues, you MUST be diagnosed or labelled. That’s where real problems start because labels have a habit of sticking and we tend to internalize them.
Labels are categories of people, but we’re all different. I refuse to be a “square peg.” I’m me. So these … Read Morediagnostic labels can and often are more problematic than helpful. Too many people have to recover their sense of identity and individuality after they’ve been labelled and that’s a tough journey, in and of itself.
yes, it’s the same here…and it is a very serious problem…not just because we and everyone around us internalizes them, but here it also makes us ineligible for medical insurance, life insurance, disability insurance and all sorts of other things. In some states they do not allow people to enter certain professions either…like law…it’s very very troubling.
Great story. I love the phrase “Mental Diversity” instead of “Mental Illness.” That, I think, says it all! I would tweak it to say “Emotional Diversity” perhaps. But accepting “diversity” is the key! That would solve a lot of problems.
Thanks, Gianna.
yes…you’re the second person to replace emotional where mental is usually used and I’m headed in that direction as well…I generally use the term mental distress as a generic word for all that troubles us humans…but I like emotional better…it makes it even more human and understandable to those who might think we’re different just because we’ve been labeled…
yes, expense can be a problem but there is a lot one can do on a limited budget. I have a couple of friends on SSI who manage to improve diet and find key supplements for themselves and have been drug free and emotionally stable for a long time…some impairments remain from drug damage…but they continue to improve.
I have found dietary and lifestyle changes to be indispensable…my mood, nor anxiety are not issues anymore except in relation to how I’m physically impaired…that gets very frustrating.
I believe this is in part because I live a very clean life…but I’ve invested quite a bit…initially starting with healing my gut…I had severe IBS…an unhealthy gut will create an unhealthy mind…
healing the gut can in large part be done with diet…but I needed high doses of probiotics too…which do cost money…
I get angry that these things are not considered human rights. The right to good health.
I looked into some of this but could never afford it. I eat a lot better than I used to, but could probably do better and it no doubt has ramifications on anxiety and depression.