What We Talk About When We Talk About Mental Health

I was going to post a very nice anecdote about a conversation Kara and I had on sunday and you were all going to get warm feelings and aww over the story, but I've decided to do something a little different today as I feel very strongly about this particular issue.

As A Disclaimer: If you are extremely opinionated about topics such as gun control and mental health, please click away and choose not to read this.  I am simply sharing my thoughts on a complex and very confusing issue.  I am not trying to say I know what is best, I am merely using the internet as a platform to convey my opinion on a particular subject. And also, I know that I've had another blog post with this same title.  Lets call this part two, okay?

So this past friday, on the 23rd, in Isla Vista California, a man went on a shooting spree and killed and wounded people (I do not know the exact specifics of victims and everything).  And apparently, this man was mentally unstable and was clearly mentally unstable and there were more than a few red flags that pointed this out.  At the same time, this man owned three handguns.  By this token, he was able to kill.

I'm going to go ahead and say this is not the first occurrence of someone being mentally unstable and then, through what I believe is a flawed system, were able to purchase a gun or guns.  What I am talking about here, should be very obvious.  I'm talking about Sandy Hook and Adam Lanza, I'm talking about Jared Loughner and Tucson, I'm talking about James Holmes and Aurora, CO.  These definitely are not the only occurrences of mental illness being the reason behind mass killing, but these are the most well-publicized.  In all of these cases, these people were able to purchase guns based on the fact that the background check required to purchase a firearm merely encloses an individuals criminal history.  You could be extremely mentally unstable, as these people were, and walk into a gun store, as these men did, and buy an entire arsenal of gun paraphernalia and then go out and kill a bunch of people because the damn voices in your head told you to, easily because of the system.

Now, make no mistake.  I am not placing the blame solely on gun policy here.  I fully recognize that these men all had active parts in the destruction they created.  They were most certainly at fault, and in the end they were the one to pull the trigger.

What I am trying to shed light on here, is what I feel is the real issue.  Because this can not just be a conversation of "depraved individuals" and what could have gone better anymore.  While I see some things being done, at this point it is too late.  The simple fact is that this needs to become a conversation about mental health.

Simple fact- in all of the aforementioned cases, mental illness is the common thread.  To fully check an individual and make sure that they are a proper candidate for gun ownership, mental illness needs to be a factor.  Checking someone's mental state needs to happen, because if not, tragedies will keep occurring and people will keep saying, "Something needs to be done."

Part of the problem however, is the concern behind what entails checking a person's mental state.  I fully understand not wanting every thought in every therapy session being disclosed simply for the purpose of gun ownership eligibility, as I have been in therapy.  However, if simply checking for a few red flags in the mental department, by any means possible, could have saved the twenty-six lives of the small children killed in the Sandy Hook shooting, wouldn't you agree to that simple check?

Another part of the problem is that mental illness is not a comfortable topic.  I will say it- I have anxiety and have been depressed.  I am not fully comfortable talking about that, and I know it makes others uncomfortable when I do talk about it. Bottom line- I understand that, as a society that strives to be the best, talking about the worst parts of oneself, or one another, is not a highly sought-after conversation, but again, if it could save lives, wouldn't it be worth it?

So the extremely convoluted point I've been trying to prove here, is that mental illness needs to be talked about, because, as of now, I have seen no improvement.  In my lifetime I have seen senates shoot down laws that would make purchasing a gun become harder, I have seen thousands of people get on the news and give their opinion, I have seen children and adults alike die by the hand of another, I have seen bombings and hits ordered on leaders, I have seen mass revolution and I have seen a man get on the news and scream about the loss of his son.  As of yet, I have not seen many talk about the mental illness component of the problem.  We need to talk about this, because if not, nothing will change.

I write this with a heavy heart in the wake of another tragedy.  I look back, and after all the tragedies this blog has been around for, I've written sad posts.  I am pretty sure I am not the only one who feels this way, and who would like to do something about this. I recognize that as a person who has not done anything concrete to help this problem, I am a part of the problem as well.

But I would like to and am willing to help get mental illness on the minds of others, to have it become part of the conversation about gun control because as a member of humanity, I am tired of hearing about tragedies that could be prevented, and am tired of waiting for someone to do something.  Because it is not okay anymore, nor has it ever been okay.

Here is an article which I found to be well-written and interesting:
http://www.buffalonews.com/20130407/mental_illness_is_common_thread_in_mass_shootings.html

Thanks you, for those who persevered to this point of my rant.