Psychiatrist Thomas Szasz breaks down the complications between the mentally ill and how to treat them. For a start, he places diseases and the mentally ill in two different categories. His reasoning begins with defining that a disease “‘a condition of the body, or of some part or organ of the body, in which its functions are disturbed or deranged; a morbid physical condition’”(Szasz 1). Although some may disagree with Szasz’s accusation, he furthers his understanding on the subject. Szasz clears up that “we do not attribute motives to a person for having leukemia,” and that it “would be uttering nonsense if we asserted that diabetes has caused a person to shoot the President”(Szasz 1). Therefore, mental illness is a serious subject that should …show more content…
be analyzed based upon a person’s past, present, and future. With a disease, we do not have to look at the past, present, or future; most importantly, many diseases such as Crohn’s disease and Alzheimer's have an unknown cause. The claim that “mental illness is not a disease” does not undermine or belittle the fact that many suffer from a mental illness and should be treated promptly for the well-being of society. The devastation that filled America due to the Las Vegas shooting will not be forgotten.
When your favorite singer is playing town, we have to give it a second thought because we never know when a mentally unstable person wants to shoot up the die hard fans. No one can deny the shooter needed mental help, and it cannot be denied people that commit unlawful violence against civilians suffers some type of mental disorder. Jeffrey Rosen wrote in his article, The Brain on the Stand, making it clear that “to suggest that criminals could be excused because their brains made them do it seems to imply that anyone whose brain isn't functioning properly could be absolved of responsibility”(Rosen 1). With this implication, most incarnated should have the advantage of mental assistance; otherwise, this world will reap the consequences over and over again due to the lack of better treatment. When the proper therapy is provided, the mentally ill starts to see the effects of their actions. The mother of several children, Marci Webber, killed her four year old daughter. Webber reached rock bottom strapped to the mental institution bed. After much suffering and questioning, Webber “started to remember the horrific details” (Gutowski 1). She then continues her thought stating, "It seemed as if I was beginning to have glimpses of reality," she told the Tribune. "I knew, I did this. I killed my own daughter” (Gutowski 1). The answer to mental illness does not require rocket science, even though the brain has many complications; the goal is to have patients understand and grasp the reality of their actions and how it affects other people as
well. The argument for the treatment of the insane does not pardon the punishment or consequences for their actions. Because the unjustifiable criminal suffers from some sort of illness, minor or major, Margaret A. Hagen perfectly describes how every person should be encountered. Hagen states, “The law should not sustain nor should citizens accept a system where a mental disorder is considered bona fide in one domain and bogus in another” (Hagen 1). There should be no double standards with consequences to actions: mental illness is serious and real in every single case. Tomar Cooper Locker, a man that killed a boxer and wounded five bystanders for reasons beyond the normalcy of the mind. Locker was only in a mental institution for two months, then released to the public. Locker was not fine. He still suffered from the dark, clouded thoughts of his brain. It is logical to demand longer institution to patients, but they also have to experience incarnation as well. Sometimes, the mentally ill want to be treated just like everyone else; their consequences are not an exception. The point of confinement is to have each individual understand that they cannot expect to keep doing this criminal act over and over again without consequences. Overtime, a patient can participate in the events of each day. For example, Gutowski speaks of the improvement of a patient explaining that “the judge relies on the recommendations of a hospital treatment team and independent expert evaluations before freeing a criminally insane patient. Before that happens, the patient is allowed a series of smaller steps--from walking the grounds of the hospital unsupervised to receiving passes for supervised trips elsewhere” (Gutowski 1). The design of this method is to see progress; the patient is our number one concern. Unfortunately, the patient may still have to reap the consequence their whole life. For instance, “their history of psychiatric commitment, however, limits certain freedoms. Mothers who have killed a child, for example, typically lose custody of their other children. Freed patients can vote but are barred from owning a gun. And the Tribune found cases of two former doctors and a lawyer who were not allowed to resume their practices” (Gutowski 1). We truly wish the best for each person affected, but the “what if’s” and unknowns are protected under the preceding rules mentioned. Hopefully when a mental institution and incarnation coincide, the world will not fear going to concerts, festivals, and school.
Everyone should be treated equally, should get support and care equally. “Schizophrenic. Killer. My Cousin.” is a true story published on Mother Jones on May-June 2013 issue (non profit organization article) by Mac McClelland. McClelland was formerly Mother Jones’ human rights reporter and writer of “The Rights Stuff”. In it she, talks about her cousin Houston, who had mental illness and at his age of 22 he stabbed his father 60 times with four different knives. Mac McClelland’s aunt Terri also suffered from mental illness at the age of 16. Aunt Terri and Houston were diagnosed with schizophrenia, a brain disorder in which people see reality abnormally. McClelland’s thesis states that well staffed hospital and properly administered antipsychotic medications would have helped Houston like how it did for Terri. The
The article “Family Says Man Shot by Officers was Mentally Ill” discusses an incident where Kody Conley, an African-American male experiencing schizophrenia, was shot by two police officers in Omaha, Nebraska. The incident took place after Conly fired a stolen gun near Creighton University campus. After the incident took place near the campus, Conley was taken to CHI-Creighton (Creighton University Medical Center), and is said to be alive. Although he is alive, his family expresses that he is in serious condition and is in a medically induced coma. The author, Miranda Christian, reports the two police officers who shot Conley are on administrative leave, and the Omaha Police Department are currently investigating the incident.
There are many types of mental illnesses that can affect a person’s ability to function on a level fit for society. Those illnesses affect people differently and to different extremes. Diagnosable mental disorders are changes in thinking, moods, or behaviors that can cause a rise in the risk of death and may cause distress, pain, or disability. More severe mental illnesses include three major illnesses: Schizophrenia, major depression, and manic depression. Schizophrenia is a brain ailment that causes a loss in the ability to distinguish reality from fantasy. Many people who suffer from schizophrenia often hear voices that tell them to do different things. In some cases, the voices tell them to hurt themselves or other people. Other symptoms ma...
However, local and national news also produces negativity towards mental illness by “portraying people with mental illness as threats to themselves and to others” (Anaya 4). In the past two years, the news features stories such as a man who has schizophrenia, running on a shooting spree then killing himself; or a mother with depression who murders her children, then kills herself (Anaya 4). Anaya explains that television programs use mental illness as a headline to grab the attention of views and ultimately implies to respond with fear (5). Highlighting that mental illnesses are the reason for the evil in society, hurting those who suffer with mental illnesses. Therefore, the population begin to believe mental illness is bad, so do the people who suffer with mental
As science has evolved, so have treatments for mental illnesses have over time. The medical model is described as the view that psychological disorders are medical diseases with a biological origin (King, 2010, pg. 413). Abnormal behavior that categorizes some disorders can be impacted by biological factors such as genes, psychological factors such as childhood experiences, and even sociocultural factors such as gender and race (King, 2010). Treatments such as psychosurgery (lobotomy) , drug therapy (pharmaceuticals), electroconclusive therapy, and psychoanalysis are used to treat a wide range of psychological disorders. Back then, the public’s negative views on mental illnesses also went as far to associate with the people who treated it; psychiatrists. “Nunnally (1961) found that the public evaluated professionals who treated mental disorders significantly more negatively than those who treat physical disorders,” (Phelan, Link, Stueve, & Pescosolido, 2000, pg. 189). People back then didn’t see the point in “paying to be told that they were crazy”. However, in today’s society, it is now acceptable to seek help from psychiatric professionals; we are seeing more and more people seek mental health treatment. “In terms of facility-based records of utilization (Manderscheid and Henderson 1998), the data suggest that the rate of utilization of professional mental health services has at least doubled and maybe tripled, between the 1950’s and today,” (Phelan, Link, Stueve, & Pescosolido, 2000, pg. 189). In the 1950’s, neuroleptic drugs like Thorazine were introduced to treat the symptoms of schizophrenia. These drugs block a neurotransmitter called dopamine from getting to the brain, which in turn reduce schizophrenic symptoms, however there are some side effects such as substantial twitching of the neck, arms, and legs, and even dysphoria or lack of pleasure. (King, 2010, pg.
Mental illness has been around as long as people have been. However, the movement really started in the 19th century during industrialization. The Western countries saw an immense increase in the number and size of insane asylums, during what was known as “the great confinement” or the “asylum era” (Torrey, Stieber, Ezekiel, Wolfe, Sharfstein, Noble, Flynn Criminalizing the Seriously Mentally Ill). Laws were starting to be made to pressure authorities to face the people who were deemed insane by family members and hospital administrators. Because of the overpopulation in the institutions, treatment became more impersonal and had a complex mix of mental and social-economic problems. During this time the term “psychiatry” was identified as the medical specialty for the people who had the job as asylum superintendents. These superintendents assumed managerial roles in asylums for people who were considered “alienated” from society; people with less serious conditions wer...
The statement “ the psychopaths is not mentally ill” made me realize that I didn’t truly understand what it meant to be mentally ill was, however I thought that a good starting place would be to firstly understand what it meant to be “healthy”. The first place I looked at was what it meant to be ‘mentally healthy’. according to the United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, being mentally ‘healthy’ is a “state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully” producing an interesting idea that being ‘healthy’ implying a deep connection with firstly acting sociable and secondly rationally. Mental illness on the other hand was as expected, the complete opposite to being ‘healthy’. It is described to be “health conditions that are characterized by alterations in thinking, mood, or behaviour (or some combination thereof) associated with distress and/or impaired functioning” inferring that to be mentally unwell is to gain an issue with you mind that causes changes to you personality relative to how you were perceived while ‘healthy’, therefore causing changes in your rational and also you sociability, the information also dictated that mental illness are a developing factor, that derive from social or environmental stressor at any time and to anyone.
Mental illness is more common than one would like to believe. In reality, one in five Americans will suffer from a mental disorder in any given year. Though that ratio is about equivalent to more than fifty-four million people, mental illness still remains a shameful and stigmatized topic (National Institute of Mental Health, n.d.). The taboo of mental illness has an extensive and exhausting history, dating back to the beginning of American colonization. It has not been an easy road, to say the least.
Doward, J. (2013), Medicine's big new battleground: does mental illness really exist? The Observer 12 May.
However, many National foundations and programs (National Alliance of Mental Illness, American Medical Association, America Psychiatric Association, and National Institute of Mental Health) reject such claims, especially the ones about how mental illness is a myth. A famous critic is Dr. Szasz who wrote The Myth of Mental Illness, written in 1961. One of his basic arguments argued against the existence of mental illness and claimed that mental illness is a myth (Poulsen). Szasz rejected the traditionally accepted medical model for comprehending human struggles or difficulties and he was known for his high disapproval of the model (Poulsen). Furthermore, Szasz saw widely-accepted medical manuals about mental disorders as incorrectly suggesting the presence of mental disease in people (Poulsen). However, his central view of mental illness is a myth has been dismissed by the medical community for a long time (Poulsen). Since mental illness has been verified as real by the mental health community, my argument is still valid. On a popular website, Dr. Cornwall has a similar opinion to Dr. Szasz’s in that Dr. Cornwall doesn’t believe in mental illness. Dr. Cornwall calls mental illness “madness” in which he refers to this madness as temporary and not genetic (Cornwall). Additionally, Dr. Cornwall’ evidence of his argument is only his not-detailed personal experiences and those of his
Emma E. McGinty, Daniel W. Webster, Marian Jarlenski, and Colleen L. Barry. "News Media Framing of Serious Mental Illness and Gun Violence in the United States, 1997-2012." American Journal of Public Health. Mar 2003: Vol 104, No. 3. Nursing/Academic Edition. Web. 01 Apr 2014.
“Mental illness refers to a wide range of mental health conditions — disorders that affect your mood, thinking and behavior” (Mayo Clinic). Mental disorders can happen many times through one’s life, but mental illness is classified as an ongoing problem with the symptoms that can affect the ability to perform normal day to day tasks (Mayo Clinic). Many people look at those afflicted with mental disorders as being crazy or clinically insane, while the reality is a problem many people live with on a daily basis with help from medications, psychologist visits, family, friends, help groups, and many other support systems. The lack of support available to mentally ill patients, the more that will refuse treatment and refuse to find help for their disorders. Many people who were born with mental disorders grow up knowing they have a problem, but people who develop them later in age don’t understand how to cope with it.
History shows that signs of mental illness and abnormal behavior have been documented as far back as the early Greeks however, it was not viewed the same as it is today. The mentally ill were previously referred to as mad, insane, lunatics, or maniacs. W.B. Maher and B.A. Maher (1985) note how many of the terms use had roots in old English words that meant emotionally deranged, hurt, unhealthy, or diseased. Although early explanations were not accurate, the characteristics of the mentally ill have remained the same and these characteristics are used to diagnose disorders to date. Cultural norms have always been used to assess and define abnormal behavior. Currently, we have a decent understanding of the correlates and influences of mental illness. Although we do not have complete knowledge, psychopathologists have better resources, technology, and overall research skills than those in ancient times.
When patients are labeled with a mental illness they start to believe they actually have that illness. In more severe cases, misdiagnosis can result in the patient’s death or simply taking their own life. According to Dr. Mercola “Diagnostic errors are just one type of error that occurs in the medical field, and you might be surprised at just how common errors occur. While the 1999 IOM report blamed 98,000 deaths a year on hospital errors, a 2013 study in the Journal of Patient Safety projected that medical errors now account for 210,000 to 440,000 US deaths annually”. To better understand the severity of misdiagnosis, imagine a close family member getting diagnosed with a mental disorder that he or she doesn’t have and from that they decide to take their own life due to unnecessary treatment that is harmful to their
Mental health and the criminal justice system have long been intertwined. Analyzing and understanding the links between these two subjects demands for a person to go in to depth in the fields of criminology, sociology, psychology, and psychiatry, because there are many points of view on whether or not a person’s criminal behavior is due to their mental health. Some believe that an unstable mental state of mind can highly influence a person’s decision of committing criminal actions. Others believe that mental health and crime are not related and that linking them together is a form of discrimination because it insinuates that those in our society that suffer from poor mental health are most likely to become a criminal due to their misunderstood behavior not being considered a normality in society. In this report I will go into detail of what mental health and mental illness is, what the differentiates a normal and a mentally unstable criminal, give examples of criminal cases where the defendant’s state of mind was brought up, introduce theories surrounding why one would commit crimes due to their mental health, and lastly I will discuss how the criminal justice system has been modified to accommodate mental health issues.