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Mental Health What is mental health like in your country?

C

cowardescent

Bluelighter
Joined
Jun 29, 2017
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I live in Ireland and even native Irish people think the mental health system is pretty shit. I have relatives in the US and although America is routinely critisized for not doing enough to help violent mentally ill people, I think there are much more options than here. My relatives have had issues with violence and psychosis and received better treatment than some of my friends that I knew in an Autism group.

The first thing is that doctors in the US overprescribe any medication however I think this is better than the opposite because if you are having homicidal/suicidal thoughts, you can almost get anything prescribed at A&E and a psychiatric outpatient. If you don't want it and prefer therapy then you can throw the prescription in the bin or if you want it combined you can fill it and get therapy.

Here things are very different. We all know that you in almost 95% of cases, even hinting at what you want prescribed regardless of whether it's controlled or not is the sure way not to get it so patients don't try (both in America and Europe) and the A&E don't do anything except send you home. Psychiatrists are often reluctant to prescribe anything and when they do, you have to pester them for a repeat even if it's not controlled. They never suggest alternative treatments (first time I heard of psychedelic therapy was in the UK and when I went to visit my relatives). This all culminates into people who don't get sufficient treatment and start self medicating (not trying to imply that drug users self medicate but mental issues make that highly likely) and may explain why we have so many "junkies" as people say.

Hope this post doesn't come off as a rant but I'm curious to get the different perspectives in different countries
 
Don't start me about Australia :(

Called up the Mental Health services in my area to get an appointment with a psychiatrist as my Doctor can't do much any more and my bi polar is getting worse. I have seen psychologists as well off and on for 20 years so not like I am full of shit when I say I need to see a psychiatrist. Lady is like if you are still suicidal next week then call again. So I call today, explain what has happened, told them I spoke to my Dr, response was can't he try you on new anti depressants? Was told he hasn't cycled me through enough different types of anti depressants to see a psychiatrist. Like what kind of fucken response is that? Then the one that shat me was is they wanted to hear how I had tried to harm myself to see if that qualifies as well for me to see a psychiatrist.

Spent a fucken hour this week on the phone and an hour last week. These clowns can fuck off.

There are positives here though in Australia for mental health but it mostly favours those who are unemployed. I.e. instead of paying $38 for cymbalta anti depressants or other meds its fixed at $7 - 8. You are also allowed to see a psychologist of your choice for free 10 times if you are unemployed as opposed to paying $180 an hour.
 
Well, where i'm at, its not unusual to watch someone kungfoo kick a a flimsy tree or yell at traffic.
 
noonoo said:
Don't start me about Australia :(

Called up the Mental Health services in my area to get an appointment with a psychiatrist as my Doctor can't do much any more and my bi polar is getting worse. I have seen psychologists as well off and on for 20 years so not like I am full of shit when I say I need to see a psychiatrist. Lady is like if you are still suicidal next week then call again. So I call today, explain what has happened, told them I spoke to my Dr, response was can't he try you on new anti depressants? Was told he hasn't cycled me through enough different types of anti depressants to see a psychiatrist. Like what kind of fucken response is that? Then the one that shat me was is they wanted to hear how I had tried to harm myself to see if that qualifies as well for me to see a psychiatrist.

Spent a fucken hour this week on the phone and an hour last week. These clowns can fuck off.

There are positives here though in Australia for mental health but it mostly favours those who are unemployed. I.e. instead of paying $38 for cymbalta anti depressants or other meds its fixed at $7 - 8. You are also allowed to see a psychologist of your choice for free 10 times if you are unemployed as opposed to paying $180 an hour.
Click to expand...

I think there are places in the world far worse than australia - but that's not to say it's good.

I've had heaps of treatment related to mental health as it regards to addiction and drug use, and a bit of treatment relating to trauma, and i've gotta say that i've actually been incredibly fortunate.

I mean, i went to a clinic in perth that helped me deal witb some addiction problems, and i saw the same amazing psych every week for over three years - and it didn't cost me a cent. They even gave me a bunch of drugs once to help with a detox, which i wasn't ever charged for. Really it was pretty awesome, and i know that they don't have state funderd things like that in the USA, for instance - or russia.
But certainly a lot of people get a lot less help than they need.
 
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spacejunk said:
I think there are places in the world far worse than australia - but that's not to say it's good.

I've had heaps of treatment related to mental health as it regards to addiction and drug use, and a bit of treatment relting ti trauma, and i've gotta say that i've actually been incredibly fortunate.

I mean, i went to a clinic in perth that helped me deal witb some addiction problems, and i saw the same amazing psych every week for over three years - and it didn't cost me a cent. They even gave me a bunch of drugs once to help with a detox, which i wasn't ever charged for. Really it was pretty awesome, and i know that they don't have state funderd things like that in the USA, for instance - or russia.
But certainly a lot of people get a lot less help than they need.
Click to expand...

I think this is the issue for me. Have gotten too used to being spoilt here for care that I seem to think I can pick and choose how shit should function.

The other thing I like about Australia and it has me baffled is that you can get a fine paid off by seeing a psychologist. I.e. for every session not only do you get to go for free to see that psychologist if you are on benefits but you also get an amount deducted for a parking fine or drink driving fine one may have of accrued.
 
Therapy is probably infinitely more effective in changing behaviour than fining people, right?
 
Here in Brazil you have 3 options to get mental health support (seeing a psychiatrist, getting counseling, getting medication):

1. See a (private) doctor in a private practice (once a month) and pay for the consult (which will last from 40-60 minutes), prices range from USD 30 - USD 200 / In the same way, seeing a therapist (once a week) in his/her private practice, prices range from USD 30 - USD 50 per session. Buy your meds* (even if you have it, private health insurance does not cover for medication's expenses), I spend monthly like USD250 for all my medications.

2. Health insurance (I pay around USD100/month for my health insurance, which cover for all kinds of medical expenses I might have, from a consultation to a surgery): so you'd get an appointment for a consultation with a doctor afiliated to your health insurance (this consultation would last max. 20 minutes, so you have less time to talk and thus the doctor has less time to evaluate you) + You have a fixed number of sessions with a counselor (therapists) per year, but these are mostly newbies-psychologists and don't have a lot of experience + Buy your meds like I said in number 1*.

3. Public health-care system: You will need to make an appointment months in advance to see a doctor for like 20-30 minutes, but before you see a pdoc you first need to see a general practioner, which will then refer you to see a pdoc. + You'd have to fight a lot in order to see a therapist, maybe not weekly but once every two weeks + You will have to buy your meds, BUT the government will give you expensive medications* for free, you'll have to go through a number of bureocratic steps before it.

*In all cases (1, 2 and 3) you can get expensive medications for free from the government, but you would have to be diagnosed with an specific illness which is on the list of the medications, for example, if you need Geodon (Ziprasidone), which costs here approximately USD 100 (40mg / 30 pills) you'll have to get a diagnosis of Schizophrenia, so if you don't use it for schizophrenia, for example, if you use it as a mood-stabilizer, you cannot get the medication for free, unless your doctor consents to "lie" for you and give you an schizophrenia diagnosis.

Well, I guess that's it!
 
D's said:
Well, where i'm at, its not unusual to watch someone kungfoo kick a a flimsy tree or yell at traffic.
Click to expand...

Here too... or tell you that God speaks to them... or the end is near, the lizard lords are going to destroy us all...

In the midwestern US it consists of throwing drugs at you hoping they help, or locking you up for self medicating with drugs.
 
^ i remember the first time i went to LA in my teens, and saw a guy talking to a trash can on the street, which stood out to me at the time. I guess i didn't realise that was par for the course in much of the USA?
I mean, i see obvious signs of mental illness here too, but nowhere near the scale of mental health combined with desperate poverty that you see in the US.
It stands out when you grew up in a welfare state, i suppose.
 
A lot of America's homeless have mental health issues or drug abuse issues, which I'm sure alot of us would agree often stems from mental health issues.
 
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