Dinah Miller, MD, is a psychiatrist in Baltimore, Maryland, and author of “Committed: The Battle Over Involuntary Psychiatric Care” (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2016).
Though there may be no advocacy groups led by patients who advocate for easier access to involuntary care, there are many individuals who assert that involuntary care helped them. The recognition that involuntary care is sometimes necessary seems to be more culturally accepted in Europe where some patients openly acknowledge being sectioned on their social media pages.
As pointed out by Dr. Kay Redfield Jamison, one reason you seldom hear from people who benefited from voluntary or involuntary care is because they move forward with their busy lives and careers. Those patients who advocate most strongly against involuntary care are not a representative sample of psychiatric patients—they overrepresent patients who have not responded well to treatment or have otherwise had a negative experience. The symptoms of their illnesses may even contribute to paranoia and anger about experiences they may recall inaccurately—my son used to speak positively about his involuntary care as a youth, but his story has become far more negative as his psychotic illness has worsened.. Opponents of involuntary care are also more likely than others to be unemployed or employed part-time due to the chronic nature of their illnesses, leaving more time for them to spend on advocacy.
Though there may be no advocacy groups led by patients who advocate for easier access to involuntary care, there are many individuals who assert that involuntary care helped them. The recognition that involuntary care is sometimes necessary seems to be more culturally accepted in Europe where some patients openly acknowledge being sectioned on their social media pages.
As pointed out by Dr. Kay Redfield Jamison, one reason you seldom hear from people who benefited from voluntary or involuntary care is because they move forward with their busy lives and careers. Those patients who advocate most strongly against involuntary care are not a representative sample of psychiatric patients—they overrepresent patients who have not responded well to treatment or have otherwise had a negative experience. The symptoms of their illnesses may even contribute to paranoia and anger about experiences they may recall inaccurately—my son used to speak positively about his involuntary care as a youth, but his story has become far more negative as his psychotic illness has worsened.. Opponents of involuntary care are also more likely than others to be unemployed or employed part-time due to the chronic nature of their illnesses, leaving more time for them to spend on advocacy.
From today's NYT: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/02/opinion/compulsory-mental-health-care-medication.html