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Mental illness caused by a bad society

Roswell

Where do you draw the line, is mental illness medical or caused by society?

If a Jew was mentally ill when they were being persecuted in Nazi Germany, it would be hard to draw the line.

Black men are a lot more likely to be sectioned in mental health hospitals. Perhaps that's linked to racism being more prevalent towards black men in the UK?

Autistic people are significantly more likely to kill themselves and die young than other people. Is that genetically inevitable or because society drives people to it?

Parents

  • In his book 'The Sane Society' (1950ish), Erich Fromm makes the interesting point that where mental illness is defined relative to the average or 'normal' population, it is logically impossible to have a society where the majority suffer from mental wellness. He then goes on to explain the sickness that he sees in modern industrial consumer societies and I believe he offers an alternative vision of health & wellness. 

    It seems like part of your question is interrogating the validity of the way in which we define mental illness? 

    My understanding is that in the UK, an important part of the definition centres around the extent to which someone is able to participate in 'normal' daily tasks like caring for themselves and their homes, going to work, socializing etc. 

    I would say that in some cases it's very clear if someone is either side of the line, but in others, where they exist closer to the imaginary line between health and sickness, it's harder to say on which side they should be placed. 'Non-health' inputs such as access to support networks, financial freedom, access to nature etc. might be the difference between an individual becoming 'sick' or managing to get by okay, but presumably in the case of autism, for example, the underlying brain condition is not changed by these external conditions. 

    My belief is that the conditions under which most people live in contemporary industrialized societies are deleterious to mental health, and that a society organized along more egalitarian, sustainable and altruistic grounds would result in better mental health & well being outcomes for everybody, regardless of if they have a pre-existing condition or not. 

    The book 'The Divided Brain' (The master and his emissary) from Iain McGhilchrist (documentary & summaries available online) is a fascinating look at the bi-hemispheric nature of the human brain and what that means for us as individuals and society. He suggests that autism, as well as other conditions might be caused by variances in the sizes/functioning of the two hemispheres.., and that this may also be  linked to prone-ness to depression.., suggesting that their might be some biological link.., but don't take my word for it! 

    Highly Highly recommend that book to everyone, it's fascinating stuff!

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