No to Extremism...
Yes to Progress
MENTAL HEALTH EPIDEMIC
There is widespread growth in mental illness, depression, isolation, and anger. True, some may be because it’s reported more than in past, or because there always were troubled people and we see more of them now. That said, we cannot deny that we increasingly see horrible crimes in greater numbers - like mass shootings and hideous sprees killing young children and innocent shoppers.
We see an increase in drug addiction and overdoses - clear symptoms of depression, inability to cope with problems, poor judgment, or poverty. We also see an increase in anger and extremist politics. The Giuliani trial in Georgia is an example, as victims were horribly harassed and threatened by crazy people on social media, by telephone, etc. Even a teenager in a family ended up failing in school because of intense harassment. If enraged people going after an innocent teenager on social media is not a symptom of mental illness, what is?
This is not an isolated case. It is common that enraged people use social media to go after others. Apparently social media is a key reason why there is such an increase in threats and anger.
Part of it is the 24–7 spread of news, often with fake and crazy ideas. This type of obsessive following of news is kind of the equivalent of following your health by checking your pulse every five minutes. Similarly, it’s not the right way to follow up on news all day, let alone from unreliable sources.
Social media, a relatively new phenomenon, is likely the primary reason why there is such an increase in anger, violence and extremism. People already depressed or mentally unbalanced now go to extremes due to what they see in social media and unhinged people bombarding them with hateful messages.
It all suggests that mental illness needs to be treated routinely and be included in schools, college, medical plans, Medicaid, Medicare, etc. when people obsessively use Internet, they tend to be isolated from their neighbors and community - not talking, not going to church, not having social interaction. Not able to talk about their problems or get help and attention. It’s not healthy.
One wonders just how many mass killing sprees may have been prevented had there been mental health help, people to talk to, attention to their problems before they caused disaster. One wonders how many troubled high school kids may have gone in a better path had there been people who caught their troubles early on, spoke to them, treated them.
Government and medical programs fall short in recognizing increased mental illness and making treatment easily available and nearby. It we can easily get help when sick, why not offer the same for sickness of the mind?
It’s time for government schools, colleges, and medical plans to provide widespread mental health facilities. We all need someone to talk to in times of trouble. We all need a friendly ear.
