Exactly. The very challenge of social anxiety, for example, is that asking for help is itself a terrifying experience. They might as well be telling a paraplegic to walk to the doctor.
No, telling someone to seek qualified help is the responsible thing to do whe one is unqualified to help. Providing untrained, unqualified, and anonymous help is both unethical and dangerous.
If Secret staffed trained professionals to provide anonymous help, that would e different. They don't.
>Providing untrained, unqualified, and anonymous help is both unethical and dangerous.
It's also sometimes the only help that people will ever get. Talking to people about their problems can't be declared as forbidden or irresponsible unless mediated by a doctor. That's both unrealistic and it implies an initial unqualified diagnosis over the internet by a stranger to decide that a statement constitutes mental illness rather than a simple sharing of internal states - making an absolute statement like the one you're making self-contradictory.
For example, I'm upset about a discussion that I had with my sister the other day. It makes me sad, and slightly worried. Should I continue to talk about it, or should I consult a doctor? If you answer that question, is it a diagnosis? Should all inter-human communications be routed through mental health professionals just in case?
If you're talking about the usual gripes and daily complaints, then sure, talk to whomever you want.
If you're talking about serious mental illness, which was the entire point of this comment, then it needs to be handled by professionals or at least someone with basic training.
My entire point is that you're making a diagnosis when you say that someone has serious mental illness. It's fine to say that one should encourage people to seek professional help. To condemn people who are not professional and give help is terrible IMO (and not supported by the science), especially considering that experimentally the outcomes of any talking therapy are equivalent regardless of content (from priests to psychoanalysts), and SSRIs generally perform no better than placebo.
That's unfortunate because I didn't make any diagnosis at all. I was reacting to the following in the article (as referenced by the comment to which I originally replied):
[I pick out one of the posts promoted to Secret’s homepage, and read it to Byttow over the phone: “At work I’m being given more and more responsibility. Silently I’m struggling with mental illness.” Does Secret provide enough anonymity for that user?
He turns the question back on me. If there was no Secret, or an app like it, where would this anonymous poster go for catharsis? Where would he share his struggle with mental illness? Facebook? Don’t make him laugh.]
Clearly, the interviewer and CEO David Byttow are talking about mental illness. They are not talking about someone having a bad day or even suffering from mild, common depression. They are talking about mental illness, and I am reacting to their discussion of mental illness. My original point, short as it was, is that someone with an actual mental illness ought to seek actual treatment rather than the faceless world of something akin to Secret.
This isn't to say that talking on Secret (our a diary for that matter) is a terrible thing. However, the assertion by Byttow is that his service provides a legitimate outlet for someone who may need real help and may pose a danger to themselves or others.
Perhaps the meaning of "mental illness" is where we differ in the discussion? How about I reveal a "secret" which is quite true and we see where this goes...
I do not know you, nor do you know me. I do not know if you or people you know suffer from mental illness. You do not know if I or people I know suffer from mental illness. I do not know if you or people you know have injured themselves or others as a result of their illness. You do not know if I or others I know have done likewise. However, I will reveal to you, that I have indeed known more than one person who suffered from serious mental illness. Some of these people have injured themselves and others as a result of this situation. Of this group, some received professional help. Most did not. Those who did not chose instead to keep it to themselves or to talk to unqualified people who had lots of supporting words but had absolutely no idea what they were actually dealing with.
The results? In two cases, suicide. In one case, murder. Another particular person has conducted a lifelong campaign of mental and physical abuse against family members resulting in another person's suicide. In these four cases, could the issue have been resolved with proper assistance? I think so, at least in three of the cases. Would something like Secret help? Unlikely. These individuals needed real help.
So, when I say that it is dangerous, it's because I have witnessed first hand how dangerous mental illness can be. It is dangerous for professionals and lay persons alike. It is dangerous for the individual suffering from the affliction and for those around them. Is this always the case? Of course, not. Perhaps your experience is different. I certainly hope so because it is a horrible thing to witness a person you know suffer in this manner and then cause injury to themselves or others. I wouldn't wish it on anyone.
