Woah, buddy.

[moogie]

I worked 1st shift yesterday, which I don't usually do, and i realized that this is the time when the crazies get let out of their homes.
A man walks into the store, seems completely normal, until he opens his mouth.
I don't even remember what he bought because the entire time I was dealing with him my brain was screaming silently in anguish.

Me: Me
CG: Crazy Guy
NC: Normal Customer


Me: Hi.
CG: It's not very nice outside. I have to wait for the bus. The bus leaves at 8:30 in the morning, that's the first bus. I'm from worcester. Mumble mumble mumble. I like to take the bus out here. HA HA! *eyes all crazy huge when he laughs*
Me: oh.... that's good...
CG: There is nothing out here though, I like worcester, there's friendly's ice cream, dennys grand slam breakfast HA HA! I take the bus from auburn to union station then here but now I found a bus that just comes right here! HA HA! Denny's grand slam! HA HA!
Me: .. O_O well that's good that you only have to take one bus.
CG: Yeah I used to have to wait for mumble mumble I once took a girl out for grandslam breakfast HA HA! Friendly's Ice cream. *turns to look at NC who is putting his stuff on the counter for me to ring up* We had GRAND SLAM BREAKFAST HA HA!
NC: Are you talking to me? Cause I missed your whole story.
CG: Yeah HA HA gotta take the bus don't like taking it from union station HA HA Friendly's ice cream grand slam breakfast mumble mumble eggs, sausage, pancakes..
NC: Yeah we used to go there when i was a kid.
CG: ...........Hash browns, eggs, pancakes Grand slam HA HA!
*me and NC exchange *woah* looks, I give NC his change, he leaves*
CG: Mumble mumble GRAND SLAM! HA HA!
Me..... ha ha? *leave register and go hide in back room and peek around the corner to make sure he's gone.*

I'm so glad this guy wasn't driving, but seriously, shouldn't he be supervised??

[MercenaryMuffin]

Sounds to me like you just met Phil from Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law.

HA-HA!...stupid customers.

[smileyeagle1021]

Sorry Moogie... one of my guests escaped... I'll be sure to keep a better eye on them in the future

[Seshat]

but seriously, shouldn't he be supervised??

Don't be silly, Moogie. Proper mental health care, provided to all who need it, costs money. It looks a lot cheaper to let these poor people run around hearing voices and seeing monsters than to treat the treatable and supervise the rest.

.... and the rest of what I want to say on this is for Fratching. So I'll just say

[moogie]

Don't be silly, Moogie. Proper mental health care, provided to all who need it, costs money. It looks a lot cheaper to let these poor people run around hearing voices and seeing monsters than to treat the treatable and supervise the rest.

.... and the rest of what I want to say on this is for Fratching. So I'll just say

I live in Massachusetts, which is a "welfare state" meaning that anyone that can't afford proper health care is provided health care by the state at no cost. I don't understand why many people who are obviously seriously mentally ill don't receive the care they need. I don't know if it is because they have no one to advocate for them or if it is an internal failure within the state, either way, it's not acceptable.

[friendofjimmyk]

I don't understand why many people who are obviously seriously mentally ill don't receive the care they need. I don't know if it is because they have no one to advocate for them or if it is an internal failure within the state, either way, it's not acceptable.

There are many, many reasons why many people who are mentally ill do not receive the care they need.

The two reasons you have mentioned are the bigger ones. Since care for such individuals was given up by the states, i.e. - state run mental health facilities - in favor of having the community care for them - there have been fewer places for them to go. There are some states who still have facilities...but they are not everywhere and are often too full and understaffed or staffed by individuals who are, themselves, not suited to care for the mentally ill.

Many of the families of these people have abandoned them. Since the state has no place to care for them and most communities do not provide enough or proper care for some individuals...families do not know what to do...so a lot of mentally ill individuals are abandoned and live in homeless shelters or on the streets.

Then, there are always the mentally ill individuals who refuse help. They have it available but do not want to be part of the system or want to take care of themselves.

[ditchdj]

And what's totally ironic is that I see there's a city in that area called "Braintree"!

Perhaps most people there could really use a few of them if they really existed.

[Buglady]

I don't understand why many people who are obviously seriously mentally ill don't receive the care they need. I don't know if it is because they have no one to advocate for them or if it is an internal failure within the state, either way, it's not acceptable.

A third aspect: consent. Many people with severe mental illnesses will not consent to treatment; unfortunately, this is because part of their mental illness is an inability to recognize that they do in fact HAVE an illness. To someone with schizophrenia or in the manic phase of bipolar disorder, treatment is unnecessary at best, and outright persecution at worst. Their perceptions are so distorted that they are unable to recognize that people are trying to help them. Unfortunately there is little provision in US law for treating people without their consent, even when their capacity to make decisions is so badly impaired.

It's a mess, and there's no easy answers, I'm afraid.

[Dreamstalker]

And what's totally ironic is that I see there's a city in that area called "Braintree"!

I used to think that there was a huge tree full of brains in the center of town. Seriously.

Now I think some people hang their brains on said tree and leave them there before coming into Boston.

[wagegoth]

Around here if someone is not considered a risk to themselves or others, they leave them alone. If someone gets arrested, they may get evaluated and placed for 72 hours, but then they're often right back out.

[Hyndis]

I live in Massachusetts, which is a "welfare state" meaning that anyone that can't afford proper health care is provided health care by the state at no cost. I don't understand why many people who are obviously seriously mentally ill don't receive the care they need. I don't know if it is because they have no one to advocate for them or if it is an internal failure within the state, either way, it's not acceptable.

Its the paperwork.

See, in order to apply you have to be competent and able to fill out all the paperwork. Usually if you need help so badly that you are unable to support yourself, you are also unable to fill out the paperwork.

Its a nasty catch-22.

[KellyHabersham]

Around here if someone is not considered a risk to themselves or others, they leave them alone. If someone gets arrested, they may get evaluated and placed for 72 hours, but then they're often right back out.

It's like that here, as well - not going to get into detail out of respect for their privacy, but my sister and her husband went through a lot getting proof that his mom needed to be in a mental health facility, and she was back out on the street the next day.

[Akasa]

Here they have advocates that will fill out the paperwork for you to help you get the care you need. Sadly they have made it so that the case workers get 3 hours a MONTH with a person. Some people will be fine with that much, but others need much more time with a case worker.

[Basher]

Not a psychiatrist here, but I am a former social worker (small-time grunt footsoldier level) who heard and saw a lot. Basically, as it was explained to me by my superiors, in the USA we once had broad involuntary committment laws, and people got put away often. Now, in the interest of greater civil liberties, the involuntary committment laws are gone, abolished, and it's exceedingly difficult to commit someone against their will.

I really don't know how I feel about that. I'm all for freedom...but I saw some really freaky shit when making case calls that probably indicated the need for committment to an institution.