Why Life in America Can Literally Drive You Insane

[xchrom]

http://www.alternet.org/personal-health/whats-behind-dramatic-rise-mental-illness

n “ The Epidemic of Mental Illness: Why?” ( New York Review of Books, 2011), Marcia Angell, former editor-in-chief of the New England Journal of Medicine, discusses over-diagnosis of psychiatric disorders, pathologizing of normal behaviors, Big Pharma corruption of psychiatry, and the adverse effects of psychiatric medications. While diagnostic expansionism and Big Pharma certainly deserve a large share of the blame for this epidemic, there is another reason.

A June 2013 Gallup poll revealed that 70% of Americans hate their jobs or have “checked out” of them. Life may or may not suck any more than it did a generation ago, but our belief in “progress” has increased expectations that life should be more satisfying, resulting in mass disappointment. For many of us, society has become increasingly alienating, isolating and insane, and earning a buck means more degrees, compliance, ass-kissing, shit-eating, and inauthenticity. So, we want to rebel. However, many of us feel hopeless about the possibility of either our own escape from societal oppression or that political activism can create societal change. So, many of us, especially young Americans, rebel by what is commonly called mental illness.

While historically some Americans have consciously faked mental illness to rebel from oppressive societal demands (e.g., a young Malcolm X acted crazy to successfully avoid military service), today, the vast majority of Americans who are diagnosed and treated for mental illness are in no way proud malingerers in the fashion of Malcolm X. Many of us, sadly, are ashamed of our inefficiency and nonproductivity and desperately try to fit in. However, try as we might to pay attention, adapt, adjust, and comply with our alienating jobs, boring schools, and sterile society, our humanity gets in the way, and we become anxious, depressed and dysfunctional.

The Mental Illness Epidemic

Severe, disabling mental illness has dramatically increased in the Untied States. Marcia Angell, in her 2011 New York Review of Books piece, summarizes: “The tally of those who are so disabled by mental disorders that they qualify for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) increased nearly two and a half times between 1987 and 2007—from 1 in 184 Americans to 1 in 76. For children, the rise is even more startling—a thirty-five-fold increase in the same two decades.”

[B Calm]

1. I took early retirement in April. Driving an 18 wheel truck was

driving me insane.

[RKP5637]

2. To me, I think, the country continues to collectively grow more insane, ...

people more rude and obstreperous. For years I was an eternal optimist, now, not so much.

[LiberalLoner]

5. +1

[xchrom]

3. see also: Mentally ill people 'hit hard by recession'

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-23463309

The economic recession across Europe has had a profound impact on people with mental health problems, research from King's College London suggests.

Between 2006 and 2010, the rate of unemployment for those with mental health problems rose twice as much as for other people - from 12.7% to 18.2%.

Men and those with low levels of education were particularly affected, the study said.

The authors warn that social exclusion could increase among the mentally ill.

[MuseRider]

4. It really isn't a very happy place anymore.

It is scary, dangerous and the chances of ending up in really bad shape are so high for most that it would be unusual for people to be oh so happy. Hard work to better yourself used to be fulfilling because there was always the chance you would really pull yourself up into a great spot but if not good was then really good enough to be happy and comfortable.

Add that to the daily woes of living on a planet we are destroying or a country gone insane or constantly at war, etc. Even the current political scene for those that pay attention is almost more than anyone can handle with 24 hour news cycles that just pound us with constant WTF scenarios from our leaders, who can ever have the time to sort it all out?

There are so many reasons people are going insane, too many to write up and all of them justified just by living here.

We either need to "toughen up" and learn to deal with life this way ( it should not be like this but for now we are screwed like it or not) or try to take back what was so quickly (for those who pay no attention) taken away. That attempt might be enough to bring people back into some sort of better functioning. It is mighty hard to fight any of this alone.

What is this thing about Malcolm X? Why him? One would think there are many many examples of this, why not Ted Nugent? Good grief!

[RKP5637]

6. Well said! n/t

[Sarah Ibarruri]

7. We can thank right wingers for this. They LOVE deranged, sick systems of government nt

[liberal_at_heart]

9. Both parties are guilty for this outcome. Both parties abandoned labor and the middle class.

[Sarah Ibarruri]

11. You cannot deny there was a right wing trend in the U.S., can you?

There was a right wing extremist-evangelical trend starting with Reagan, and it is only now beginning to die. It can't die soon enough. Unfortunately, the biggest part of the damage is already done.

I do ask you to keep in mind that when there are trends in a country, it matters little what one does to counter them. The trend in this country was not only right wing. It was extremely right wing, AND it was intertwined with Jesus religions. That's the majority of religions in this country. How does one fight that sort of sick, powerful trend? I'd say you can try but you won't win. All you can do is let it die out, and it is beginning to die.

[LongTomH]

8. "Life may or may not suck any more than it did a generation ago"

I think that, for many of us, it does suck more!

[JoeyT]

10. I didn't need to be driven, it was close enough to walk.

A generation ago you could actually work toward something in your soul crushing job. Now you work a soul crushing job to survive so you can continue to work a soul crushing job. Many people make just barely enough to survive on, and people that think they're going to start at the bottom and work their way to the top are widely regarded as morons.

[KoKo]

12. I read that article earlier...

and thought it might be tapping into some truth about how folks are dealing in these hard times.

I don't want you to take this the wrong way...but when I got to the end of it...I though it was one of those "Positioned Ads" that the Drug Companies (and others) are doing to capitalize getting us hooked on their products to take advantage of the Idealists amongst us who have reason to be feeling "kinda down," these days with what we have to deal with.

As I said...don't take me wrong...but I have years of experience in Big Pharma...and like the rest of the Big Companies...they Profit off the huge array of new DRUGS to deal with Depression, Bi-Polar...and our Kids ADD, ADT and all the other maladies that are rampant in our Society these days.

I thought it was propaganda....even though they were good at "addressing the issue"...just gotta "consider the source" and what they are pushing.