Are Catholics ignoring the Mentally Ill and being indifferent to them?

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and perceiving it as not their issue? Catholics thankfully are very vocal and passionate regarding Prolife issues and there is courageous public discussion about homosexuality,however Catholic Social Justice must also involve caring about and advocating for the dignified,human treatment of people with Mental Illnesses and this is an area that society-and even Catholics-have largely become indifferent to and need to become more vocal and involved and call on policy makers for dignified treatment of this population according to Christian Values,and less solutions based on/coming from fear.Here are some photos from a US prison with mentally ill inmates & the terrible suffering they are going through.
Www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2303763/Photographer-Jenn-Ackermans-haunting-look-mentally-ill-inmates-inside-Kentucky-prison.html?itos= feeds-newsxml
 
and perceiving it as not their issue? Catholics thankfully are very vocal and passionate regarding Prolife issues and there is courageous public discussion about homosexuality,however Catholic Social Justice must also involve caring about and advocating for the dignified,human treatment of people with Mental Illnesses and this is an area that society-and even Catholics-have largely become indifferent to and need to become more vocal and involved and call on policy makers for dignified treatment of this population according to Christian Values,and less solutions based on/coming from fear.Here are some photos from a US prison with mentally ill inmates & the terrible suffering they are going through.
Www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2303763/Photographer-Jenn-Ackermans-haunting-look-mentally-ill-inmates-inside-Kentucky-prison.html?itos= feeds-newsxml
In my debates in other threads it seems to me Catholics don’t care about mental issues all that much, but emphasise the physical aspect of humans far too much. Mental health should come first and formost. One can be in great physical condition and still die of a broken heart.
 
For as long as I’ve been a Catholic I’ve often wondered the same thing. I have more than one mental illness diagnosis. I’m finally getting the help I’ve needed for so long. But there have been many times when I got chewed out because someone saw my behavior as inappropriate. It can sometimes make you wonder if it’s worth going out. 😦
 
and perceiving it as not their issue? Catholics thankfully are very vocal and passionate regarding Prolife issues and there is courageous public discussion about homosexuality,however Catholic Social Justice must also involve caring about and advocating for the dignified,human treatment of people with Mental Illnesses and this is an area that society-and even Catholics-have largely become indifferent to and need to become more vocal and involved and call on policy makers for dignified treatment of this population according to Christian Values,and less solutions based on/coming from fear.Here are some photos from a US prison with mentally ill inmates & the terrible suffering they are going through.
Www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2303763/Photographer-Jenn-Ackermans-haunting-look-mentally-ill-inmates-inside-Kentucky-prison.html?itos= feeds-newsxml
Nope, not really. (But then I’m a Catholic psychiatrist, so I would say that!) 😉 In fact, most “religious anti-psychiatry” has come from Protestants like Jay Adams, and even Catholic exorcists are careful to stress the difference between mental illness and demonic possession.

On a personal note, the Missionaries of Charity in my town run a home which cares exclusively for mentally ill or intellectually disabled women, many of whom have been abandoned by their families, or found wandering the streets in a pitiable condition. That certainly counts as concern in my book.
 
and perceiving it as not their issue? Catholics thankfully are very vocal and passionate regarding Prolife issues and there is courageous public discussion about homosexuality,however Catholic Social Justice must also involve caring about and advocating for the dignified,human treatment of people with Mental Illnesses and this is an area that society-and even Catholics-have largely become indifferent to and need to become more vocal and involved and call on policy makers for dignified treatment of this population according to Christian Values,and less solutions based on/coming from fear.Here are some photos from a US prison with mentally ill inmates & the terrible suffering they are going through.
Www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2303763/Photographer-Jenn-Ackermans-haunting-look-mentally-ill-inmates-inside-Kentucky-prison.html?itos= feeds-newsxml
The Church like everyone else is finally starting to come to grips with mental illness.
In my debates in other threads it seems to me Catholics don’t care about mental issues all that much, but emphasise the physical aspect of humans far too much. Mental health should come first and formost. One can be in great physical condition and still die of a broken heart.
While a broken heart per se can’t kill someone it can increase the chance of a myriad of ways to die, especially in men it can lead to suicide.
 
@ Cat Herder :👍

I was hoping someone would mention St. Dymphna . What she went through in her own life was pretty hair-raising.

I fail to see the connection : The OP posts some pictures from a prison which is state-run ; but in a way that would seem to imply the question whether this is somehow the Church’s fault.

As a personal assistant to a severely disabled priest who spent the last 10 years of his life in a long term-/palliative care facility , and who served 16 years prior to those last 10 as a chaplain in a home which served to re-integrate people suffering from more difficult cases of mental illness back into society , I find the insinuations to be rather insulting.

I also know a gentleman who runs 3 different homes for patients with mental illnesses - which receives them once they’ve been released from their respective psychiatric wards - because no one else wants them or can live with them - including their families. He once opened a new center in a neighboring town and was forced to move it elsewhere - the civil authorities let him know they weren’t welcome there. . . it was the local authorities - not the Church who did the dirty deed.

Where the OP’s post misses the point most tragically is that it would imply/presume, much as those who come here to promote active homosexuality , that our own family and/or its members are somehow immune to mental illness because they have Catholics in them . That’s an error. And as someone who has family members and friends (one of whom committed suicide at the tender age of 26) who struggle with mental illness, I posit that whether the OP’s assertion is based on ignorance or not , I find its approach both unrealistic and offensive.

Maybe it would be a good idea to read around these forums a little when someone comes here before they end up posting something that could offend some of our other members who are doing such a great job too :

Catholics and Mental Illness

Returning to the real world , here we are told by experts that 1 in 5 Canadians will suffer from some form of mental illness in their lives :

Statistics on the prevalence of mental disorders and related suicides in Canada
🤷

Finally, I would note that the OP’s post has tried to position active homosexuality as something separate from mental illness . Many of us on these forums are already aware that the only reason the APA removed homosexuality from its list of mental disorders was that they were intimidated into doing it by the gay militants. There was no scientific basis to remove it.

Homosexual Activists Intimidate American Psychiatric Association into Removing Homosexuality from List of Disorders
 
Compassion?

Absolutely yes.

All kinds of assistance?

Absolutely yes.

But the mentally ill are still not allowed to operate the controls of the airliner.

Nor make tax policy.
 
Does it matter?
Should we not take account for what we believe.
Would Jesus care about the mentally ii, the widow, the blind the meek… of course.
If you are a true believer in Jesus Christ, then pray for them, Jesus clearly saved the man who was cast out onto an island, because he was ‘mentall ill’, in fact he was so ‘ill’ he would brake any chains that held him. What did Jesus do he cast out the legions of demons and freed the man …
So as someone who loves God you should pray to Jesus Christ and if (IF) you are saved you then can even cast out the demons yourself, if you are unsaved Jesus says the devil can cast himself out now can he?
Does Jesus not command you love your neighbour as you love yourself…
therfore if you understand now the catholics cannot do anything for the ‘mentally ill’ only Jesus can, and with due respect, a learned in the field can also do nothing but prescibe pills and toxins to subdue the person…
GOd does all things according to his will and love.
 
Please forgive me for not quoting you entirely RPRPsych , I enjoyed your entire post , but think that this part of it fits so nicely again right here in the sequence of things.
😉
Nope, not really. (But then I’m a Catholic psychiatrist, so I would say that!) 😉 In fact, most “religious anti-psychiatry” has come from Protestants like Jay Adams, and even Catholic exorcists are careful to stress the difference between mental illness and demonic possession.

. . .
 
I think there’s more emphasis on opposing abortion and homosexual “marriage” because there are groups fighting for these things. There is no prominent group that wants to wipe out the mentally ill or hurt them (not formally, anyways). For that reason, Catholics spend more time on the other issues.

Now, I do think there are a lot of problems with the way mentally ill people are treated. I just don’t think those problems are in any way more prominent among Catholics, and Catholics are currently focusing on other problems.
 
I think the issue is that no one can gaurantee how a mentally ill person will act in certain situations. There was an incident at my church a few years ago where a mentally ill woman tried to take a cying baby from its’ mother. They had a bit basically a fight over baby. The mentally ill woman was later taken, by the cops, to the VA. But there were no beds available. I remember someone bring it up and that the mother needed prayer because of what happened. I later told the priest that the mentally ill woman needed as much prayer
 
I think the issue is that no one can gaurantee how a mentally ill person will act in certain situations. There was an incident at my church a few years ago where a mentally ill woman tried to take a cying baby from its’ mother. They had a bit basically a fight over baby. The mentally ill woman was later taken, by the cops, to the VA. But there were no beds available. I remember someone bring it up and that the mother needed prayer because of what happened. I later told the priest that the mentally ill woman needed as much prayer
Sometime all you can do is pray for them.
 
The Church like everyone else is finally starting to come to grips with mental illness.

While a broken heart per se can’t kill someone it can increase the chance of a myriad of ways to die, especially in men it can lead to suicide.
Sometimes when the will to live is gone( over a brokenheart) The body can shutdown.😦 Iv’e seen it happen before. Truely sad!
 
To the ones saying No,what programmes does your parish have in place?
Eg:Visiting psychiatric hospitals,outreach towards the mentally ill to welcome them to Church,teaching parishioners how to befriend and support them,prayers for them,helping with antistigma,writing to policy makers to advocate for dignified Christian treatment of them etc…
 
Nope, not really. (But then I’m a Catholic psychiatrist, so I would say that!) 😉 In fact, most “religious anti-psychiatry” has come from Protestants like Jay Adams, and even Catholic exorcists are careful to stress the difference between mental illness and demonic possession.

On a personal note, the Missionaries of Charity in my town run a home which cares exclusively for mentally ill or intellectually disabled women, many of whom have been abandoned by their families, or found wandering the streets in a pitiable condition. That certainly counts as concern in my book.
A Catholic Psychiatrist,that’s refreshing:)
I agree Catholic Church is definitely much more aware and cautious regarding the distinctions of mental illness vs possession then many other Christian churches and is accepting of Psychiatry.
That’s great what the Missionaries of Charity are doing.I’d love to see more of that everywhere and also priests inspiring everyday Catholics what they themselves can do.
 
I’m not in anyway implying that it’s Catholics doing/fault the way these men in the photos are being treated or the way that people with mental illnesses are treated in general.What I’m suggesting is that as Catholics we need to be more vocal when we see others treating them this way.Eg:writing letters to politicians,calling on the Catholic Church to fund more Catholic run places or whatever else can be though of.People that do already help in some way should be more greatly aknowledged.
Different countries may be different too.In Australia here,there is an indifference from parishuoners and priests and there is no active attempts to try to welcome and encourage the severely mental ill to Church.There is two Catholic treatment places-one is run like government run places and the other is excellent where the patients are treated well however only the wealthy could afford to go there.

I didn’t quite understand the homosexuality comment.

UOTE=NeedImprovement;10586158]@ Cat Herder :👍

I was hoping someone would mention St. Dymphna . What she went through in her own life was pretty hair-raising.

I fail to see the connection : The OP posts some pictures from a prison which is state-run ; but in a way that would seem to imply the question whether this is somehow the Church’s fault.

As a personal assistant to a severely disabled priest who spent the last 10 years of his life in a long term-/palliative care facility , and who served 16 years prior to those last 10 as a chaplain in a home which served to re-integrate people suffering from more difficult cases of mental illness back into society , I find the insinuations to be rather insulting.

I also know a gentleman who runs 3 different homes for patients with mental illnesses - which receives them once they’ve been released from their respective psychiatric wards - because no one else wants them or can live with them - including their families. He once opened a new center in a neighboring town and was forced to move it elsewhere - the civil authorities let him know they weren’t welcome there. . . it was the local authorities - not the Church who did the dirty deed.

Where the OP’s post misses the point most tragically is that it would imply/presume, much as those who come here to promote active homosexuality , that our own family and/or its members are somehow immune to mental illness because they have Catholics in them . That’s an error. And as someone who has family members and friends (one of whom committed suicide at the tender age of 26) who struggle with mental illness, I posit that whether the OP’s assertion is based on ignorance or not , I find its approach both unrealistic and offensive.

Maybe it would be a good idea to read around these forums a little when someone comes here before they end up posting something that could offend some of our other members who are doing such a great job too :

Catholics and Mental Illness

Returning to the real world , here we are told by experts that 1 in 5 Canadians will suffer from some form of mental illness in their lives :

Statistics on the prevalence of mental disorders and related suicides in Canada
🤷

Finally, I would note that the OP’s post has tried to position active homosexuality as something separate from mental illness . Many of us on these forums are already aware that the only reason the APA removed homosexuality from its list of mental disorders was that they were intimidated into doing it by the gay militants. There was no scientific basis to remove it.

Homosexual Activists Intimidate American Psychiatric Association into Removing Homosexuality from List of Disorders
 
I think the issue is that no one can gaurantee how a mentally ill person will act in certain situations. There was an incident at my church a few years ago where a mentally ill woman tried to take a cying baby from its’ mother. They had a bit basically a fight over baby. The mentally ill woman was later taken, by the cops, to the VA. But there were no beds available. I remember someone bring it up and that the mother needed prayer because of what happened. I later told the priest that the mentally ill woman needed as much prayer
That’s really good of you.There’s not enough awareness in the Church or the world about mentally ill sufferers internal states.As it’s not something that many people can relate to they might misperceive the sufferers actions as outrageous,or malicious etc and might leave the problem to be deal with by healthcare providers instead of there being an internal Church support system.
 
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