10-22-2021, 04:53 PM
(10-22-2021, 03:23 PM)pat19989 Wrote: I also see a lot of the mental illness we see in today's culture being a result of the times we live in. Not only are more people diagnosed because conditions are more normalized, but our society sets up a lot of people to develop a mind that is plagued with problems. The availability of distractions that take us apart from each other is astounding. We have taken all that our egos have been feeding us about being separate from each other and believing it for generations resulting in a structure that seeks to separate us possibly more than bring us together. This belief in separation, loneliness, etc has led to a lot of depression and anxiety.
Not to say any of this makes mental illness any easier to deal with for those that deal (myself, and pretty much everyone i know included). Its tough out here, but love shines through eventually.
I agree with your main point, society is enabling mental illness. But I see the mechanism being not just a normalization or acceptance, but one of mental illness, and victim mentality in general, being upheld as morally superior and most importantly as part of the identity construct of the individual. This is evident in the language used of illness and diseases of mental and physical nature where the person owns the illness. When people are validated and given attention for being ill or a victim, above what other people are given for positive traits or overcoming adversity, then a perverse incentive is created to be a victim or be ill. Combined with ownership of the illness and taking that in as part of themselves, it makes the prevalence increase much more.