Cormac McCarthy
What’s the bravest thing you ever did?
Getting up this morning, he said
Cormac McCarthy
Olga Shmelova, MSc, CCC, CYCP
Let's stop Mental Health epidemic and Addictions crisis
When humanity was paralyzed by COVID-19 pandemic, at first it seemed surreal that the whole world had to be shut down. Yet, it was an absolutely critical strategy for everyone’s survival. However, what seems more bizarre, is that no one wants to recognize and admit that we need exactly same radical solutions when it comes to the Mental health and Addictions crisis.
The government and service providers are stuck in a hamster wheel of a psychiatric model and multi-billions pharmaceutical industry when it comes to main strategies of dealing with mental health and addictions challenges. Every year the statistics around diagnosing and medicating people become shocking. It has become clear that for the sake of this world’s sanity and safety of future generations we cannot allow this to continue anymore. Mainstream Mental health professionals have contributed into disempowering and pathologizing humans.
It takes courage to live
By trying to remove stigma around mental health, we create a phenomenon that Olga calls “normalizing pathologizing”. People get quickly diagnosed by psychiatrists and psychologists who make them believe that somethings is wrong with them. We start to believe that those labels are part of our identity, part of who we are. When in fact, that is not the reflection of our true nature. But who takes time to listen what really bothers us and where the suffering comes from? Doctors shut us down by putting pills in our mouths and willingly submitting paperwork for our “disabilities”.
To be able to stop Mental health and addiction epidemic, we need to pause and challenge the conventional system. We need to start listening and empowering people rather than helping to find an excuse. We need to not encourage people to take their space when they are not well, but show up for
them and together build stronger healthier communities by supporting each other. We need to become strong, resilient and brave. Because it takes courage to live in this world
