My Opinion on a Newspaper Article regarding Mental Health in Nova Scotia -November 1, 2016

http://thechronicleherald.ca/novascotia/1409879-premier-calls-health-authority-letter-to-mental-health-patients-unacceptable#.WBIfW8sgsIQ.facebook

I am not outraged. I am not surprised. Nothing surprises me anymore. The world could start World War 3 tomorrow, and I would not be taken back at all.

I am not surprised by this article. Not one bit.

In summary, the article is about a mindless letter that Nova Scotia Health Authority sent out to clients. It was brought to the attention of government officials in Nova Scotia.

The fact that a psychologist wrote the letter is disappointing. No wonder there is a stigma behind Mental Health and Mental Illness when we have doctors writing thoughtless letters.

How can we change the general population perception on Mental Illness when the people that are suppose to help us are hoping we 'improved by waiting'?

As it is mentioned in the article, it is no different than cancer or diabetes or any other disease. I am no doctor, and don't have the stats in front of me, but I am not sure how many people got better between treatments for cancer just by waiting. I guess there are some miracles out there.

Unfortunately, there are more questions than answers available right now for Mental Illness. I am just a nobody that is suffering trying to make a difference. I don't have all the answers.

Will this letter mishap provoke more services to become available for the public? Not sure. There were almost 20 appointments per day in 2015-16 in one county alone. That's almost one for each hour in the day. More has to be done. Sadly, at this point, there isn't.

I hate the politics behind it. One leader is calling out the other party to do something. How about this; we are all Nova Scotians, how about we try to work together to solve this very real problem in our province? Just a thought. Maybe, it is a tactic to garner votes for the future elections? We need people that truly care about Mental Health and Mental Illness to speak up. Most of those people are someone that suffers from an illness, or has a direct family member that suffers.

Where do you go in Nova Scotia for peer-support for Mental Health? If I wanted to speak with a so-called 'non-professional', who do I reach out to? Waiting for months to see a professional is absurd. Also, some people don't really need a doctor every time, they just need someone who understands what they are going through so they can talk to them. I have had some nights where I have had suicidal thoughts. On those nights, I don't necessarily need a doctor. I need a fellow sufferer so I can bounce my thoughts and feelings off of them and maybe get some feedback.

I sound like a broken record, but if you do not suffer from a Mental Illness, it is almost impossible for you to understand. The people that suffer are the front line. Many people have reached out to me just to talk. I have talked about everything from types of meds, to hospital stays (bad and good), to family members neglecting them, to people actually believing that Depression means you are possessed by little creature like demons. That's just a few topics. It has been people I have known all my life. It has been people I have met through Facebook. It has been complete strangers. The moral of the story is people reach out to me and we talk because I understand. I have been through the trenches and I can relate my experience to theirs and try to assure them there is a reason to fight and to not take their life.

I am not a health care worker. I am no doctor. I am a normal guy that has an illness, but my experience has been helping people. Some people have even told me, I helped saved their life. I am humbled by this. But I can help. So can others who suffer. Just a thought, but why don't governments, especially here in Atlantic Canada, create Peer-Support Mental Health and Mental Illness worker jobs? Cancer can kill over time. A lung or heart disease can kill over time. A Mental Illness can kill you instantly. If my Mental Illness got to a point where I couldn't handle it anymore, I could take my life the very next minute.It is a choice, but a choice that is persuaded by an illness that is very real.

Oh, and Mrs. Chenhall, I will be sure to inform you if my illness 'improves by waiting'. I am sure you are very concerned.

"Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity"
                                                                                               - Martin Luther King, Jr.

Yours Truly,

T.J. Smith