The Mental Health System – A Call for Change | Nora Blum | TEDxZurich
Nora shines a light on the realities of the mental healthcare system. She contrasts the medical treatment expectations for those in physical pain with those suffering from depression. Can we start to re-frame the perception of mental health needs, and their solutions? Nora’s experiences give us a positive affirmation.
Nora is the founder and CEO of the startup Selfapy, an online psychotherapy program,which gives people suffering from mental illness the chance to get help immediately. Prior to founding Selfapy, Nora studied Psychology at the University of Cambridge. She worked in psychiatric hospitals, clinics and the company builder Rocket Internet. It is Nora’s goal to reduce the stigma associated with mental illness and eventually create a world in which people think differently about mental health.
This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx
35 Comments
….5 months…sadly she was lucky. I was waiting almost a year and half just for a 1st appoint. Take a guess how many mental health doctors are in New Hampshire…..1. just 1 doctor. Soon to be 0. He has leukemia and can no longer help. I had 5 appointments to get in and each time my appointment was pushed back due to him being unable to make it because of his health and in 2 months is done. Theres not 1 person to replace him. So after waiting well over a year for a apointment. To then get it and told they're gone in 2 months and since they are that they don't feel comfortable to start any treatment since they are leaving and can't build a relationship to see what the best plan for treatment will be and can't just give info to another doctor and even if they did try to start medications it can take years for medication to take effect cus they have to start with the lowest dosage and gradually increase dosage. Which is no guarantee it works at all. So you can spend a year or two just to find out you need to start another one and do the same thing. So if I'm lucky, by the time I'm 90 I'll finally find a treatment that works for me…..
If the depression itself wasn't bad enough. Pretty much being told theres no hope. I'm not rich and can just move somewhere else to find a doctor. I wish I never even bothered to go in cuz at least I thought there was some kind of hope. I don't wanna sound like a negative Nancy. But it is what it is. It's pretty crazy going to set up an appointment and originally was 3 months for the next available opening…there's that many People out there with mental health issues. What does that tell you
Thank you for speaking up and everything you've done💕💞
They'd just give her meds anyway. Feelings are no longer listened to. No understanding.
The difference between a toothache and depression is that one can be easily resolved the other in some cases can never be. This is the toll the mental health system. For every unhealthy individual who really should be supported by their family / friends they have to saturate the healthcare system that does not have enough time/ people to help make up for the loss of community.
I feel like the mental health systems in most societies need to be expanded on, reformed, and have an increase in funding. It feels like it's a crisis being mishandled by a system in its early stages.
Excellent presentation, thank you
This is idiotic to me, psychiatry ruined my life I wish i never saught help.
Yeah and the change should be if a person is only a danger to themselves and they don't want the help. DO NOT FORCE THEM INTO A MENTAL HOSPITAL. ESPECIALLY TO SUFFER THE FORCED DRUGGING AND ABUSE AND ASSAULTS. LIKE TF
Mental health is Health
Living in a city with adequate public transportation so that I could get where I needed to go; work, self help programs activities with other people etc. When I had that I was able to get myself well because I could meet my needs. Lack of mobility and opportunity causes social isolation and that causes mental illness. We need to treat the causes of mental illness. USA doesn't care about that.
Okay this talk would be excellent except for the fact that she's only talking about anxiety and depression like that's the entire list of mental illnesses it just ends with those two things it's like saying the only problems in medicine are cancer or aids there's no other medical problems except cancer in AIDS but that is not true. And one of the greatest diservices a lot of mainstream organizations do is only talk about anxiety and depression and not even hit on the other stuff like schizophrenia bipolar behavior problems and other issues like they're outside of the scope of Mental Health. And so it doesn't paint an accurate picture for somebody who is dealing with something other than those two things. It really upsets me when people only talk about those two things. they might be more common among more people but it's certainly not the end of mental health problems. If that was the case the DSM would not be as thick as it is and if you don't know what that is that's the diagnostic Bible that they use to figure what criteria a patient fits under So they know how to diagnose them.
I know two corrupt officials names in the state of NH USA: Dr. Alexander Denesdera and a woman named Maria Thyng; they deserve protestors on their front lawns at the very least.
You don’t need to take it seriously you need to loosen up they got free will if you live in the USA we got free will it says in our constitution we are called the home of the free and the brave and the free means free will and without limits
Sadly this is an Ad, not a quality ted talk. I have wasted 6+ minutes so she explains that mental illness has long waiting lines, and Nora's solution is video therapy. It makes me sad this is what mental health is coming to.
Dr Igudia on YouTube medication really works and cure diabetes disease, I’m go grateful to have come across him on YouTube in curing my Diabetes disease with his herbs medication
So wonderful how i was able to beat my Diabetes disease with the help of Dr Igudia on YouTube herbal medicine. God will reward you Doc!
Just finding mental health care with Medicare is near impossible. You may have to travel two hours after waiting months. Insurance advantage plans sale insurance stating they have enough providers, but when investigated most are no longer contracted. I nearly lost my life over this mess.
I am watching this video for a class. Coincidentally, I am going through a mental crisis as I am learning about mental illness in my Public Health class. My husband says he wants a divorce. I told him that I have extreme anxiety, which leads to depression and I also have some form of ADHD (undiagnosed, but I believe I have the symptoms of ADHD), and I have some OCD. He doesn't care what my excuse is. For him its me me me. You push me away. You don't hold me…etc. I tell him that my anxiety gets to me, especially at night, and I get bad restless leg syndrome, so I sometimes get out of bed and don't go back because I don't want to wake him. I wish I could make him understand.
Nowadays mental sanity is an actual skill.
Mental healthcare is modern day snake oil. The presenter is a snake oil salesman and she got a free 10-minute commercial for her company on Youtube.
A very big appreciation to Dr Igudia on YouTube who cured my Herpes virus with his natural herbs medication which I got from him and I also encourage my fellow Americans who suffers from Herpes virus to contact him on his YouTube channel for a permanent cure.
none of us care.. we like to be our own islands.. the field wont change we'll all die alone.. well mainly men.. but yeah there is no help for people at all. costs tons of money too. we're screwed. cbt or therapists and psychiatrists are treated as a cure all and if you say it doesn't work they blame you instead. it's abusive and traumatic, and is the reason why so many off themselves
“What do you people need to take mental health illness seriously?, What do you need to finally treat depression as a proper? – 4:42 – 4:50
“It’s time to change, it’s time to change the way we think about mental illness, it’s time to change we treat mental illness – 5:58 – 6:07
They give you a pill, when all You needed was a caring human to speak with..
You are overlooking the physical symptoms creating the mental symptoms. Psychiatrists only see psychosomatic . They do not recognize somatopsychic—the reverse. I had a physical illness, pain, etc., creating depression and anxiety from which I had never suffered. I fixed the physical illness and that eliminated the depression and anxiety. I’m talking about mold toxicity, Lyme disease, and mast cell activation. We need fewer psychiatrists and more healers of the body. I speak from experience.
when i get depressed, i feel sharp pain in my heart :/
DM ME, i am started a buisness for Mental Health Research & Resources, i am starting out as a referral partner for Counselors, helping them find clients.
This system is terrible. Stop calling it mental health. Call it "I need to break to get my thoughts together and decide what's next". People don't need handholding…they need evolving and that's a very personal thing. Hearing Diagnosis, disorder or words that affirm why you can't do something doesn't help.
5 years later, still nothing happens
Mental illness is made up. It doesn’t exist.
It is ethically astounding to think that Ms. Blum’s friend was denied care by doctor after doctor for over 5 months due to no one acknowledging that she had a mental illness. Could it be summed up to the idea that potentially the doctors didn’t know how to appropriately care for her illness, so they just sent her on her way? While doctors are not required to know how to treat every condition, they are ethically required to do more than send a person on their way in hopes of them finding someone who might know how to help. This is widely considered a “shot in the dark” for lack of a better description of these circumstances. This demonstrates a clear lack of professional competence given that there are many mental health resources available that a doctor could refer a person to. Also, given that mental health is now a widely accepted issue and affects arguably nearly everyone at some point in their life, practitioners have a now obligation to be competent in recognition and now treatment of mental health issues and disorders that are very common such as depression, anxiety, etc. Ms. Bloom is clearly advocating for the concept of ethical justice for her dear friend which did not receive mental healthcare in a timely manner that may have changed her life for the better if she was taken care of. Her next point that mental health is a largely neglected field in the world of healthcare is not surprising, but is very sad considering healthcare in general so highly values the principle of non-maleficence which essentially means to do no harm. Wherein the reality is is that not acknowledging mental illness, not learning how to recognize it, and not knowing how to treat it can do incredible amounts of harm to people that are experiencing mental illnesses. As she stated, over 600 milllion people in the world which is nearly 10% of the population struggle with this illness, so why isn’t it taken more seriously? Especially considering the economical impacts of mental illness which as Ms. Bloom states costs the world trillions of dollars each year. I’m not sure I agree that technology can be used to solve issues people have with depression and anxiety, however it could be used quite well in collaboration with doctor efforts and be a great asset to care. Online courses in particular ignore how ethical treatment must have respect for diversity wherein these types of courses are typically designed to work for everyone no matter what background they may have. This completely ignores bias, culture, and social justices.
This is a big job and long long way to go ! Your speech is excellent. In a years time I met 7 people with mental health. Depression, Attempting suicide, mania, anxiety, ADHA, Parkinson and Alzheimer . This is really seriously globally. societies really needs to put effort forces this ILLNESS. as a 73 years old student hope I have time to join the team to serve.!
Ironically, sadly, the very meds Big Pharma provides for mental health have great potential for aggravating the mental issues.
Sadly, after 6 years, things have changed. It’s gotten worse 😢