Is this a true contradiction though? Depression, anxiety, and even schizophrenia don’t disable the person’s free will so absolutely that they loose all responsibility for their actions. It makes sense for someone to treat depression as an illness and separate their moral self from it, because there is so much of it left. I doubt people would say the same about victims of brain damage, who are unrecognizable from their former self, don’t remember anyone and react aggressively to everyone, including loved ones, because the parts that made them who they were no longer function and will likely never function again. It’s hard to say that a person in such a state has any responsibility for anything.. but it’s also hard to say if they are still a person. I think our definition of a person involves some level of moral responsibility, and our sense of hope depends on it. If moral responsibility is gone, the person is gone. It might sound harsh, but I only speak from personal experience. I always felt that my grandfather died before his body did – the latter kept going a month longer, terrorizing the family.
I used to believe it. I do think it’s a phrase that implies antidepressants to a depressed person are like insulin to someone with type 1 diabetes. I think the phrase is used by mental health advocates to promote the idea that mental health is just as important as physical health, and there’s no shame in medicating it, but it’s meaningless when it’s not based on facts. I only stopped believing it when I found out that:
1. There are people who take antidepressants but are still depressed, looking for the “right combination” for years and still not finding it despite being on up to 4 drugs at a time.
2. Going (slowly) off antidepressants will not make the person immediately depressed.
3. Depression often resolves when the biggest problem in the person’s life is taken away. If it was like diabetes, this wouldn’t happen.
4. Effectiveness of antidepressants in general is way overhyped.
5. It leads to a feeling of lower self-efficacy, more pessimism and doesn’t even reduce stigma. Who needs that?
I can relate to the people you’ve talked to, except I was never threatened with hospitalization. Perhaps because the cuts were a year old and any hospitalization would have been a year too late! A friend of mine was, however, held overnight in a psych ward for cutting, which was a scary and unnecessary experience. Perhaps I was just lucky no one saw my cuts earlier, and I didn’t realize the danger I was in. It’s truly sad that a person who’s already stressed out will be subjected to additional stress or social judgement because their coping behavior is odd. I’ve still yet to hear a good reason why cutting is bad compared to, say, getting tattoos or engaging in BDSM, both of which involve more socially acceptable ways of inflicting pain on oneself. But I think both teenagers and kids are smart and will often listen when you explain why exactly cutting is bad, if the explanation is logical (f. ex. “You might get an infection or accidentally cut too deep and start bleeding uncontrollably”), especially when provided with a good alternative. I myself think alternatives that let you use your body are the best, as they create a similar “pain” and pleasure that cutting creates, at least in my experience. Running, dancing to edgy music, boxing class, etc., it all works.
I was never depressed or suicidal, but used to cut and burn myself due to stress and desire to burn off frustration in some way. Speaking only from the perspective of a self-harmer, I never understood what was so strange and dangerous about it, unless you cut deep or don’t have your tetanus shots updated. I did not enjoy it when a school doctor made a big deal out of it while telling me he knew more about my feelings than I realized. I never thought of my self-harm as a big deal, so he was wrong.
I don’t cut myself anymore, but only because I would be opening myself to unnecessary judgement from people if I did. Otherwise I might still sometimes do it. Running or dancing are probably better methods for burning off stress though! 🙂
Is this a true contradiction though? Depression, anxiety, and even schizophrenia don’t disable the person’s free will so absolutely that they loose all responsibility for their actions. It makes sense for someone to treat depression as an illness and separate their moral self from it, because there is so much of it left. I doubt people would say the same about victims of brain damage, who are unrecognizable from their former self, don’t remember anyone and react aggressively to everyone, including loved ones, because the parts that made them who they were no longer function and will likely never function again. It’s hard to say that a person in such a state has any responsibility for anything.. but it’s also hard to say if they are still a person. I think our definition of a person involves some level of moral responsibility, and our sense of hope depends on it. If moral responsibility is gone, the person is gone. It might sound harsh, but I only speak from personal experience. I always felt that my grandfather died before his body did – the latter kept going a month longer, terrorizing the family.
Report comment
I pill-shamed someone out of pills they didn’t really need once.
Report comment
I used to believe it. I do think it’s a phrase that implies antidepressants to a depressed person are like insulin to someone with type 1 diabetes. I think the phrase is used by mental health advocates to promote the idea that mental health is just as important as physical health, and there’s no shame in medicating it, but it’s meaningless when it’s not based on facts. I only stopped believing it when I found out that:
1. There are people who take antidepressants but are still depressed, looking for the “right combination” for years and still not finding it despite being on up to 4 drugs at a time.
2. Going (slowly) off antidepressants will not make the person immediately depressed.
3. Depression often resolves when the biggest problem in the person’s life is taken away. If it was like diabetes, this wouldn’t happen.
4. Effectiveness of antidepressants in general is way overhyped.
5. It leads to a feeling of lower self-efficacy, more pessimism and doesn’t even reduce stigma. Who needs that?
Report comment
I can relate to the people you’ve talked to, except I was never threatened with hospitalization. Perhaps because the cuts were a year old and any hospitalization would have been a year too late! A friend of mine was, however, held overnight in a psych ward for cutting, which was a scary and unnecessary experience. Perhaps I was just lucky no one saw my cuts earlier, and I didn’t realize the danger I was in. It’s truly sad that a person who’s already stressed out will be subjected to additional stress or social judgement because their coping behavior is odd. I’ve still yet to hear a good reason why cutting is bad compared to, say, getting tattoos or engaging in BDSM, both of which involve more socially acceptable ways of inflicting pain on oneself. But I think both teenagers and kids are smart and will often listen when you explain why exactly cutting is bad, if the explanation is logical (f. ex. “You might get an infection or accidentally cut too deep and start bleeding uncontrollably”), especially when provided with a good alternative. I myself think alternatives that let you use your body are the best, as they create a similar “pain” and pleasure that cutting creates, at least in my experience. Running, dancing to edgy music, boxing class, etc., it all works.
Report comment
I was never depressed or suicidal, but used to cut and burn myself due to stress and desire to burn off frustration in some way. Speaking only from the perspective of a self-harmer, I never understood what was so strange and dangerous about it, unless you cut deep or don’t have your tetanus shots updated. I did not enjoy it when a school doctor made a big deal out of it while telling me he knew more about my feelings than I realized. I never thought of my self-harm as a big deal, so he was wrong.
I don’t cut myself anymore, but only because I would be opening myself to unnecessary judgement from people if I did. Otherwise I might still sometimes do it. Running or dancing are probably better methods for burning off stress though! 🙂
Report comment