What topics/discussions would you like to see on the forums in 2022?

[Daisydreamer]

Loving all these suggestions, thank you so much! Please feel free to keep them coming 🙂 I have noted all of these for our planning for 2022!

[Gwynn]

Maybe even 'how to evaluate mental health information' - although that's more of a lecture topic rather than a discussion topic, surely?

[wellwellwellnez]

Just had thought. Maybe something around advocational organising. We could spend a month brushing up on our allegiance skils. Maybe invite some movers and shakers. Carve out some manifestos. Manifest some destinies. Mental-health-class-awareness. That sort of thing.

It'd be team building and might even lead to an outcome or two.

[Gwynn]

The privileges of recovery ( https://www.psychreg.org/recovery-is-a-privilege/ )

[Gingermick]

I have come to realise some mental health patients are victims of crime. I have proposed to the ndis minister some changes in the psychology funding. The idea was to get a forensic psychologist who studies law to see if there's crimes committed to patients and suicidal people. He can then refer them to a hypnotist as there evidence is admissible in court under strict guidelines and get the people who committed crimes against the victims and then they will have closure and get on with the rest of their lives. The ndis minister said he's taking it on board. As mental health departments only want to drug you and try change your personality and are not believing the victims and they are stuck in limbo.  The cost to ndis is the same as a normal psychologist who can't really do anything. Good luck get ndis funding 

[Jynx]

Hi there, @Gingermick, first off welcome to the forums 

I'm sorry that you've had a traumatic experience in the mental health system, and it sounds like you're very passionate about pursuing this avenue of change with the NDIS. I also just wanted to jump in and say that not all mental health organisations/departments operate in the same way. Everyone's experience in help-seeking may be different and finding the right professionals can be extremely helpful. Even medications are something that folks can have a wide variety of experiences with - for some people, they are literal life-savers.

Each and every team and and situation and person is different and I'd encourage you to keep on reaching out to different MH services, to find those who, like us here at SANE, are focused on the person as an individual 

[Owlunar]

A subject I feel would be helpful is for those of us who have already been deeply affected by the suicide/s of people  close to us.

Around the time of the suicide of my son in 1986 I experienced suicide ideation so I do know that that is like but it was against everything I believe in. I have been able to forgive my son - he was only a teenager after all.

My cousin committed suicide a few years ago and I have yet to come to terms with his decision  - it doesn't eat me up but I can't forgive him either 

Death is so permanent and a person's story ends then  - both these deaths are ongoing losses for me - the passing of my family members through age and illness seems normal and proper 

Dec

[Molly22]

I'm brand spanking new to the forum so not sure if this topic has been discussed previously, but as a recently diagnosed autistic person, I would like to see the issue of late (and in my case, very late) diagnosis of ASD has on mental health.  The effect of living for so long with an undiagnosed disability and then also the impact on mental health of dealing with this new identity.

[Owen45]

Topics could include dealing with loneliness, isolation, hopeless feelings.

[chibam]

@Daisydreamer  If your still taking suggestions, a new topic has occurred to me over the past couple days:

* Hope

Hope has, in my view, become something of a contentious issue in recent times. Lots of us depend on it and want others to nurture it for us; but I've struck numerous people that seem to hate it, and apparently view it as being something of a relief when they give up hope and "just accept that things will never get any better." And so they want other people to treat them as if there's no hope they'll have a better life, because the expectations are upsetting for them, or something.

Personally, my experiance has been the exact opposite; I've found it immensely distressing and disheartening when others have indicated that they've decided there's no hope for my life getting any better. It's just another factor in the whole loneliness dillemma - the fact that you are all alone in trying to sustain your hope for a worthwhile tomorrow.

So we (i.e. the "mentally ill", depressed, suffering, suicidal, ect. community) seem to be living at crossed purposes here, with some of us craving hope - especially from external sources - and others of us loathing it.

So maybe we should have a discussion about it and how we can send the general public a clear, coherant message about our needs, and how we can each get the hope, or anti-hope we each need from the people around us?