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

I agree completely, I definitely wouldn't accept it from my daughter.

I don't know what the answer is: the problem is that wages are so low that claiming out-of-work benefits becomes for many people a sensible option.

Without a universal basic income, I don't know how people are now going to be incentivised to work.

We had a young woman take a month off work with mental health issues due to having mice in her apartment....
I didn't get paid extra for that month and my mental health suffered from the additional work load.

parents who do this are harming their children so much I honestly don’t see what their plan is, heaven forbid they die and they’ve left a child or children completely incapable and essentially ‘disabled’ them. How does that child (now adult) function? It’s so unbelievably short sighted and it’s fucking neglectful parenting.

If someone wants to improve / manage their condition then they NEED a diagnosis ( to be able to access medication ) as well as counselling . I am talking from experience here - I want to function / be productive !
It is better to try and improve a situation than just struggle on /potentially get worse.
Perhaps he is talking about those who want it as a 'get out of jail card' - BUT he can't tar everyone with the same brush!

Yes but these are situational reasons that quite understandably might cause depression or feelings of anxiety. I think the issue is with the sheer number of people who are experiencing these feelings in ‘normal’ or privileged circumstances. Why is this so high nowadays

I’d be bloody furious if I was the mum too! (Poster said she was the step mother).
listen, we’re not here to be our children’s friend. Sometimes they’re going to ‘hate’ us, but so is life. The world of work isn’t going to accommodate a rude youth who ‘turns her headphones up’ when she doesn’t like something. The mind boggles, honestly.

Alzheimer’s is a physical disease that attacks the and destroys the brain. It really shouldn’t be lumped together with mental health at all.

I didn't say it was. I hate the tories.

I said he's never used a food bank - a comment on his privilege.

Good grief.

I'm so thankful that my children's school view resilience as the number one skill to learn.

'If at first you don't succeed, try, try again!'

Unsure how wanting to reduce child poverty is divisive but hey ho. Sure Start should never have been axed. If it started again now, we would not have to wait 15 years to see the benefits. They would be instant. Being a new mum and getting support, advice and forming friendships with other new mums would be instant. Learning how to care for your baby, feed your baby, read to your baby, play with your baby, potty train, look after your baby's teeth, and look out for signs of illness and how to prevent accidents has immediate benefits.

That is absolutely correct.

Whether it is defined as an out of work benefit or not, the result is exactly the same. Instead of getting money from an employer, the claimant gets it from the state.

A rose by any other name and all that.

I think he has a point - but you're right about the causes of our lack of resilience and I wish he would state this very clearly - the rise of a consumption society and the move towards individualism that goes along with that is absolutely at the heart of both our loss of resilience on the one hand, and the rise of polarisation (and therefore populism) on the other.

I would like him to take responsibility for the aspects that he was responsible for - but to be honest I'd be happy for that fact to be clearly articulated by someone who has his kind of profile.

Yes all my school aged children know kids like this, living half a life enabled by the parents

I hope someone’s asking him for his views on the mental health problems of the people you mention. If any of us make decisions, or behave in such a way, as to affect the mental health of others, we should take responsibility for that and (at very least) show some empathy.

There is a severe lack of personal responsibility amongst society today for both mental and physical health. Very few people are willing to actually put the work in and do the things that are known and proven to help improve their condition(s) and avoid the things that are known to make things worse. They just want a magic pill or hcp to instantly ‘fix’ them.

You often see people on here urging posters who have understandable and normal grief following a bereavement or relationship breakdown to see their GP and get antidepressants. Antidepressants are not intended for normal grief and GPs are very limited about what they can offer that will help.

Yes they are reactive to their situations but it's a partial explanation as to the increase in MH problems - foodbank usage is through the roof and due to the cost of living crisis many people have found themselves in that position that they never would have previously.

It's bound to impact on MH figures.

Absolutely spot on.

Nor have I. Or anyone I know. It’s not a measure of privilege.

Of course it is entirely possible that many people with disabilities don't bother to claim PIP until they find themselves out of work because of their disabilities, thus skewing the stats.

I'm genuinely struggling to understand your point. I've put it all out there for scrutiny? You complained about it being an unknown blogger but it seems quite well backed up consisting exclusively of interview exerts from Blair himself (referenced) and texts by very reputable authors. I honestly don't know what you're taking issue with

And apply for PIP!

@anniegun

Are you seriously saying that Alzeimers Disease is a mental health condition.

For fucks fucking sake-it is a physical disease that calcifies the brain.

I don't know if you are a shit stirrer, a dope or a shitty person but I can't see an alternative title for you.

capitalism as a system also needs a rethink because capitalism itself focuses on the individual rather than the betterment of society as a whole