Tony Blair says we need a national conversation about MH as its costing too much

[B0xes]

Tony Blair said recently on Jimmy's Jobs of the Future Podcast (clip available on youtube) that we need to have a national conversation about mental health. Why are we spending so much on it. Why are people self diagnosing. He believes people are being encouraged to view everyday challenges we all face as mental health issues.

Is he being unreasonable? In one sense, I'm inclined to agree to an extent, in the other, I believe he led the charge for so many of the social changes that have made us less resilient and many of these issues are due to individualism which led to atomisation and loneliness and being encouraged to see the market as the entity that fulfills our needs rather than strong families and robust social networks.

YABU - Blair can do one.

YANBU - He might have a point

Health care provision that educates or trains, like mental health therapies do, is actually special educational provision. Therefore, it should be in F, even if it is also mentioned in G.

@Alexandra2001 au contraire.

Many parents can't understand how to meet the emotional needs of their children there fore churning out frustrated angry children who don't feel validated.

👍

We are all different. I am unable to work, but I can go on holiday (is a little caravan one with my mum), and I go to the pub with my boyfriend a couple of times per week. None of that means I can work.

I don’t think luck has much to do with it

They might need financial support to pay for therapy that isn't available on the NHS. A few weeks of CBT isn't helpful for people who need longer term therapy.

I do get what your saying but your use of the word mental health is wrong, everyone has mental health some have good some have bad.

This, plus people also need to realise what a postcode lottery health services are.

If CBT is even offered. A lot of it is online now. Some people need to see a person, and it simply is not offered anymore. My local IAPT just offers online CBT now.

I don't agree if you are able to go on holiday and up the pub twice a week there is no reason you can't work a part time job

Absolutely - I lose the plot at work when people can’t understand why x has been in jail for 30 years on and off (for example) when you then read reports that x left school at 12, x was repeatedly truant, x was repeatedly expelled, x repeatedly changes school, was in care, parents dead or abusing or using, patterns of violent relationships, gang violence, no stable friendships or adults to emulate normal patterns of behaviour.

Life becomes about survival so people learn the laws of the jungle, steal to survive and take drugs to block out the mess.

How do you set someone in this position up to fail? Take them to court. Very few people in court will fully understand what’s being said, let alone have the ability to comply with any of it.

So we’re now back in jail, access more drugs, violence, gangs.

Drugs inevitably cause psychosis because they’re fucking dreadful mixes, or they get a whack over the head by someone, or they attempt suicide, or get hypoxia via OD - bang, now locked up in the psychiatry system. Same shit, different curtains.

How do you get them out? How do you make them recover to a point of lasting meaningful recovery? You try, and try - but where do they live? Who cares? Professionals, and precious few others.

With women it’s even worse, it’s just endless endless stories about male inflicted violence. It’s horrendous.

How could that have been solved? Learning to communicate?! You have to start young or you may as well not bother.

We can try and solve it by opening up education for children by not forcing phonics on them.
We can open up education from a young age and get them in not lock them out and give them labels.

A part time job is a commitment. A holiday and a few pub visits are not. I have cancelled both holidays and pub due to not feeling able to go.
I would love a part time job, but no one will employ me due to various MH/ND and I have a criminal record, no qualifications past school, and no references. And getting a job will mean I my benefits will be stopped, and if my job does not work out, I will end up starving
My mum goes on holiday with me, and my boyfriend takes me to the pub. Neither of them can go to work with me.

🤣😂🤣😂🤣 Do explain the science behind your reasoning.

Also completely agree.

it’s really interesting that the comments in this thread differ wildly to the actual voting results.

I agree with Tony Blair. We are making normal emotions into something bigger. Having said that I don’t think modern life helps. Hard work and exercise have a lot to be said for it. I’m a farmer and have often employed people with (admittedly mild) mh issues who stay for a long time as they say they are happier than they’ve ever been

Yes, but we're not talking about disabilities though, we're talking about people who crumble the minute life gets a little bit tough. This isn't about people like your children.

Couldn’t agree more. I often speak to my husband about how we build resilience in our kids.

I really despair at the amount of people who seemingly can’t work because of mental health and have no resilience. I also think that demeans those who have clinically diagnosed issues who genuinely can’t.

Its too easy to say “my mental health is suffering so I can’t” rather than saying “I’m having a hard time but I know I will get through it…”. People want to blame their feelings on a label of mental health so it isn’t their fault or something they have to deal with.

I think that does come back to understanding neuro development, neurodiversity and trauma etc - these things will always exist as part of humanity, so it’s about changing the way we teach children. It’s better nowadays compared to when I left school 20 years ago but it’s still not perfect.

In an ideal world we’d accept people as they are, and support genuine debilitating illness and disability - my mum’s in a care home with dementia at 58 years old, I’m the last person to say people don’t need benefits - but we have to change something, and a good supportive workplace following treatment genuinely does help I think.

But are we?

My children have autism and adhd. Both have CPTSD, anxiety and depression. All conditions have been pulled to bits and decried.

100% this.

Parents are too quick to jump in and try to fix everything for their kids instead of letting them learn that disappointment is a part of life. This site is full of those posts and if you dare suggest resilience the OP gets very angry that you aren’t being kind.

Have you tried applying for jobs. I work part time i am unreliable as im in and out of hospital and months at a time where I can't leave the house but my job has a lot of staff so there is a lot of flexibility. I claim pip which isn't effected by working and uc lcwra and this fluctuates month to month with my wages but I never end up worse off. I only work 12 hours a week but it's the best thing I ever did for my mh. Some weeks I work more some weeks I work less. I obviously wouldn't expect you to work a 50 hr week but your making a lot of excuses for not being able to work a few.

My daughter probably has more resilience in her little finger than you have in your whole body. She still can’t work.

That was not how it was written at all.

Absolutely this.

"One size fits all" is not the way to go.

Because if you can leave the house and be around others then you can work a few hours a week. There are lots of options, working from home, working in a non public facing role, outside jobs, flexible working. There are options to many people say nope can't do it so won't try when it's one of the best thing you can do for your mh