why is there not mental health forum on this site

nesf

Wibbs wrote: »

I've no clue how they got around that tbh. So I suspect on that admittedly small sample that the problem is even bigger.

It's very easy and simply done if there's no insurance involved. Similar to how many doctors will quite happily lie on a medical cert for you because telling your boss you needed time off due to a mental health problem can be a quick way of arranging your own constructive dismissal. Doctors and the Gardaí can be very co-operative so that a family doesn't have to list their son's/daughter's/father's/mother's death as a suicide in my experience.



Dev, your site, your call. Thanks for giving an answer.

DeVore

The funny thing is that on two occasions I didnt clue in fast enough (because, like, I dont spend enough time here :rolleyes:) and the mods on PI caught it and literally in one case save someones life when they managed (somehow, dont ask me how) to contact the partner of the person and get them to phone and talk to the person (in another country). They and other key members of the forum managed to keep things on track until family and partner made contact. I've zero doubt that it would have ended much worse were it not for them and I spent the whole day like this..... :eek:
They literally saved someone's life and frankly this is a job for professionals but ... we do what we can. F*ck but it was scary even reading it "backwards". I dont think anyone will ever really appreciate the job the PI mods do and I thank them publically from the bottom of my heart.

Suicide is a national disgrace that no one wants to talk about and male suicide even worse because our society castigates men who show emotion. Its a disgrace and we need to do something about it but like everyone else, I dont know what.

DeV.

nesf

DeVore wrote: »

Its a disgrace and we need to do something about it but like everyone else, I dont know what.

Simply educating the public would be a start. The stigma against mental illness in this country is still very strong, strong enough to encourage people to hide their diagnosis and for doctors to lie on medical certs about it. It's bad enough having to swallow four different types of drugs every day indefinitely for your mind to be "normal" without having to somehow hide this when inevitably you have an off day and have a minor mood swing or psychosis. It would be lovely and simple to be able to explain to someone that the conversation you had with them last week should not taken to be indicative of your actual beliefs or opinions because you were slightly manic because you were mood cycling due to being ill the previous few days similar to how you could explain being abrupt or uncommunicative because you had a bad headache at the time but no, you can't because you've no idea of whether that person will be understanding or whether that person will try to avoid all future contact with you, or simply try to screw you over because some people are just like that. Mental illnesses are "hidden" because they can't be observed with the naked eye normally and many people seem to want to keep them that way.

GuanYin

DeVore wrote: »

The funny thing is that on two occasions I didnt clue in fast enough (because, like, I dont spend enough time here :rolleyes:) and the mods on PI caught it and literally in one case save someones life when they managed (somehow, dont ask me how) to contact the partner of the person and get them to phone and talk to the person (in another country). They and other key members of the forum managed to keep things on track until family and partner made contact. I've zero doubt that it would have ended much worse were it not for them and I spent the whole day like this..... :eek:
They literally saved someone's life and frankly this is a job for professionals but ... we do what we can. F*ck but it was scary even reading it "backwards". I dont think anyone will ever really appreciate the job the PI mods do and I thank them publically from the bottom of my heart.

Suicide is a national disgrace that no one wants to talk about and male suicide even worse because our society castigates men who show emotion. Its a disgrace and we need to do something about it but like everyone else, I dont know what.

DeV.

If this is the incident I'm thinking of, it is a recent enough one?

It does highlight the benefits of the forum, but with all due respect to the great jobs done by those involved, and I'm not belittling in any way, it was a fluke (if that is the right word) that it turned out well.

Also, while these are rare occurances in PI, my short time on boards has taught me that if you build it, they will come. As I said, we could have 20 positive cases where we benefit somebody at some stage of mental health but the 1 where we don't help, or even do more harm than good, is the one outcome that has to sit with the moderator of the forum forever. As the guys in Biology and Medicine will tell you, even after a few years in medicine, you never truely become detached when you're involved in the process of healing and lose a patient, it is something no forum moderator, even if it is a hypothetical worst case scenario, needs to be exposed to.

DeVore

Absolutely GuanYin (aside: are you someone renamed or did I completely miss someone get 11k posts and mod some of our most important forums? )

I couldnt agree more and its something that scares the willies out of me.

It was a total fluke caught because our mods were on the ball. We will certainly not be that lucky even 20 times.


DeV.

Sully

DeVore wrote: »

Absolutely GuanYin (aside: are you someone renamed or did I completely miss someone get 11k posts and mod some of our most important forums? )

That is PSI

I remember the incident in question but its a risk we take is PI or even in the Mental Health Forum if it was ever given the okay. I suppose PI and MH would have two different risk barriers, which is why I agree that having a MH forum would need to be though very carefully. Probably not a good idea, as voiced by PSI who I couldnt agree more with. I think the nail has well and truely been hit on the thead by the comments passed about the pros and cons of such a forum. My question is though, can we have any type of MH forum with a level of discussion but not support maybe?

DeVore

I think these things really are best left to the professionals.... I dont think a raggle-taggle of internet weirdos (yes, thats us I'm talking about) are equiped to deal with these things.

DeV.

Sully

DeVore wrote: »

I think these things really are best left to the professionals.... I dont think a raggle-taggle of internet weirdos (yes, thats us I'm talking about) are equiped to deal with these things.

DeV.

I agree, but at the same time - should we close the door completely on discussion also? Its a scary area, but do we really need to add to the list of people afraid to discuss it? Im not in favour of support, I think PI is stretching it (while a great and very useful resource, it can get risky and has done in the past) but discussion of any form related to it even?

Looby_Loo

I am a mental health professional.
I think developing a mental health forum could be a very valuable informative, supportive resource. I have seen it work very well in another Irish message board.
However on the other hand, it may well be equivalent to opening Pandoras box

Wibbs

Sully wrote: »

I remember the incident in question but its a risk we take is PI or even in the Mental Health Forum if it was ever given the okay.

It could even happen in AH or another forum here entirely completely out of left field. Stranger things have happened.

OK it's less likely in other forums, but I suppose it's the risk you take in any community this big, even or maybe especially online. When society at large makes you feel ashamed or simply too rushed to listen, a largely anonymous arena may be very attractive to someone at the end of their tether.

Maybe I'm wrong, but as well as considering the mental health forum as an idea, IMHO I do think we need to have in place some sort of protocol for if and when this kinda thing crops up again.

Nevyn

Looby_Loo wrote: »

I am a mental health professional.
I think developing a mental health forum could be a very valuable informative, supportive resource. I have seen it work very well in another Irish message board.
However on the other hand, it may well be equivalent to opening Pandoras box

With how big and varied boards.ie is it would be opening pandoras' box.
Other sites which are professsional and dedicated to health or that are solely about that issue can work but I can't see such a thing working here not when
you have the likes of cs kiddes ect posting things for the lulz.

If the parenting forum gets hit with pictures about abortion in a thread about pregnancy that is bad enough with out what that level of crassness and callousness directed at those who are not in a good place to start with.

The last suicidal thread in PI I locked it after referring the poster to the aware forums and to the samaritans site, the PI mods in their role of mods are not trained to be dealing with people like that no matter what our personal experience have been over the years, never mind who ever happens to be reading PI at any given time.

Looby_Loo

The other site is not a health specialist message board. It is a good bit smaller with about two hundred active members (mostly female) and only one mod :eek:
It does get trolled but obviously not to the same extent as boards.ie
Maybe a sticky with contact information for mental health support services and agencies would be of help

The Black Oil

Winzelberg et al (2003). Evaluation of an Internet Support Group for Women
with Primary Breast Cancer.

Not the same as mental health, but a few points:

Seventy-two women with primary breast carcinoma were assigned randomly to a 12-week, web-based, social support group (Bosom Buddies). The group was semistructured, moderated by a health care professional, and delivered in an asynchronous newsgroup format.

Eligibility for the current study was determined by meeting all of the following criteria: being female, receiving a primary breast carcinoma diagnosis within the last 32 months, having no suicidal ideation, living in California, and being able to communicate in written English. Because there is still ambiguity regarding the legal responsibilities of moderators of online support groups, we made a conservative decision to restrict eligibility to participants who resided in California — the state in which the moderators were licensed to practice psychology.

Although a mental health professional moderated the group, participants were informed that the group was not meant to serve as a form of psychotherapy or as an alternative to psychotherapy. Participants were told that they could contact the researchers for a psychiatric referral for evaluation and treatment in the event of a psychiatric emergency.

Wibbs

Well there are stickies in PI with info and links pertaining to that. Maybe there should be a sticky along the lines of. "Read this if it's getting too much for you" that kinda thing. With links to the obvious places for obtaining help and a trained ear. With a codicil maybe saying, "this forum and this site is not equipped to deal with these areas, please take the right step and contact the above". Maybe I'm just rambling here. Apologies.

Looby_Loo

Wibbs wrote: »

Well there are stickies in PI with info and links pertaining to that. Maybe there should be a sticky along the lines of. "Read this if it's getting too much for you" that kinda thing. With links to the obvious places for obtaining help and a trained ear. With a codicil maybe saying, "this forum and this site is not equipped to deal with these areas, please take the right step and contact the above". Maybe I'm just rambling here. Apologies.

Just went for a gander.
There oes seem to be a good few links there but its all mixed in with the forum charter/ STD info/ adoption links etc etc

Because it is such a serious issue maybe a dedicated thread (sticky) for mental health links that would be a little easier to trawl through??

Your idea sounds good

Nevyn

Wibbs wrote: »

Well there are stickies in PI with info and links pertaining to that. Maybe there should be a sticky along the lines of. "Read this if it's getting too much for you" that kinda thing. With links to the obvious places for obtaining help and a trained ear. With a codicil maybe saying, "this forum and this site is not equipped to deal with these areas, please take the right step and contact the above". Maybe I'm just rambling here. Apologies.

Put people wont' want to read a stickie they want an actually response to their post about their problem cos they are a snowflake and are being brave and
"this forum and this site is not equipped to deal with these areas, please take the right step and contact the above" is the response I usually give and then lock the thread.

Dord

Wibbs wrote: »

Well there are stickies in PI with info and links pertaining to that. Maybe there should be a sticky along the lines of. "Read this if it's getting too much for you" that kinda thing. With links to the obvious places for obtaining help and a trained ear. With a codicil maybe saying, "this forum and this site is not equipped to deal with these areas, please take the right step and contact the above". Maybe I'm just rambling here. Apologies.

Despite your rambling, it makes sense. I think this would be the best option.

Steve

Please excuse my unqualified intrusion.

I've been following this and am thinking 'If I wanted to troll PI with a suicide thread, I now know how'*

Should you not move / continue it in the mod forum?

I think you guys are leaving yourselves a bit open to abuse by hoaxers by posting all this in public, you have a hard enough job as it is and I am in awe of the apparent 6th sense you guys have dealing with it.

just my 2c.




*not that I'd ever ever think of doing that

Wibbs

Thinking much the same as stevec tbh. Good point. Off to the bat cave maybe?

Looby_Loo

Wibbs wrote: »

Thinking much the same as stevec tbh. Good point. Off to the bat cave maybe?

Probably best

Dord

yep, good idea.

Nevyn

There's a bat cave ?

/Me thinks about the bat 'family' and tries to figure out who is who out of the PI mods.

Hey I want to be Huntress...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bat_Family#Batman_Family

Dord

Thaedydal wrote: »

There's a bat cave ?

Yeah, it's some dodgy goth club in Germany. I was there a few years ago... :pac:

Looby_Loo

Off yis go without me

Nevyn

Dord wrote: »

Yeah, it's some dodgy goth club in Germany. I was there a few years ago... :pac:

That is someone trying to recreat the real Batcave club which was in Soho, London.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batcave_%28London_nightclub%29

Steve

Dord wrote: »

Yeah, it's some dodgy goth club in Germany. I was there a few years ago... :pac:

But you're only a member for 2 days :pac:

This stinks of guano.

Steve

Looby_Loo wrote: »

Off yis go without me

Soz looby, feel guilty now.

Terry

LTI, in my opinion, is the place for mental health related problems.

As someone who has suffered with depression for many, many years, I find it's a good place to read about the problems others are having with this illness and trying to help them by relating my own experiences.

When I posted my own story there, I recieved quite a few PM's from others.
They felt that I was quite brave in opening up and telling people what I had gone through.
My own take on it was that I don't like the stigma attached to mental illness and just tried to help by putting myself out there.

At the moment there is a good bit of discussion there about the different types of medication we (those who suffer from the illness) take and their effect on us.
This can be a dodgy subject, but the mods there handle it well.


As for suicidal people looking for help, this is not the place. Too many trolls and complete fúcking retards.

Sorry for the jumbled rant.
It's one of those bad weeks and I'm heavily medicated right now.

Wibbs

Agreed and Terry this is like your other bloody good posts on the subject I've read, so it looks like you're overdosing on the sense tablets anyway.:) Sadly they're not available over the counter..... That's why the muppetry risk is so high with having a forum like this. The current system works pretty well.

tallaght01

We have to ask ourselves what exactly are we trying to offer those with a mental illness?

Let's look at that first, in a completely non narcissistic way, and then decide if we can realistically provide it.