10/25/2022
Caption: Man talking and sitting across from female therapist who is holding clipboard.
Behavioral health focuses on changing behavior, and it’s what the mental health field is currently based around. But behavior is a malleable and intangible measure of health.
It often only measures the health of a person's environment, not the person. Victims of abuse are often referred to mental health services instead of the practical solutions they need to leave their situation. In these cases, attempting to change a person's behavior without changing their environment is often unethical as it is an attempt to change physiological responses that are appropriate based on the situation.
Behavioral health doesn't address the needs of anyone who has severe symptoms that does not impact their functioning, regardless if they are stoic or severely dysfunctional in ways that are socially acceptable.
People who frequently go to the hospital for symptoms they don't cover up know how to act to get out of the hospital, and many go right back to the behaviors that landed them there in the first place. By a behavioral measure, they are fit to leave the hospital. That's why behavior should never be the measure.
So what's the alternative?
Healing health. Focus is placed on the most healed state that a person can achieve regardless of what behavior presents at the most healed state.
Healing is both tangible and consistent, as jagged as it's upward direction goes.
The goal of treatment would be to resolve symptoms or have a good quality of life with symptoms.
Behavior would only be discussed if its relevant to improving symptoms and quality of life. There would be no place for covering up symptoms or adhering to social or cultural norms.
Other behavior would only be addressed if it is illegal, abusive, or toxic to other people.
In a healing health model, victims of abuse would be directed to appropriate solutions. Health insurance would pay for basic survival needs a person would need to leave their situation- rent, utilities, internet, transportation.
Things like rent, caregiving, and even fun activities would be taken seriously as ways for people to recover from their symptoms or prevent chronic conditions from getting worse.
In the United States the healthcare system, legal system, and social services are a disaster even with progressive research and data. And this wouldn't be a barrier to healing health treatment. Therapy sessions could be spent helping teenage clients graduate from high school early, become emancipated, or apply for education programs they can live on-site. For adults the time can be spent helping clients apply for work-stays, live-on-site education programs, and other practical means.
Because this is outside the scope of traditional therapy, a public, easy-to-navigate website could be made listing different solutions for different situations.
Holistic treatments would be prioritized, as well as positive psychology. There would be no single "correct" treatment since everyone's path to healing is different.
If hospitals removed human rights abuses and started using a healing health model, the majority of hospital traumatization would be removed and hospital structure would be completely changed. People would stay as long as they needed. Normal actions wouldn't be clinicalized or judged. It would be sensory friendly. There would be more sunlight and green spaces. The interior would look like a home. People would have greater access to internet and phones. There would be eastern medicine practitioners. Some groups would be facilitated by clients, if they felt that was empowering to them.
Educational requirements for mental health workers would look different. Before starting any education program, there would be a required number of hours of shadowing for people to find out if working with patients is what they want to do. Those who intend on working with patients would go through a competency based program- they would need to understand psychology concepts in order to graduate. Students with narcissistic personality disorder would not be allowed or would be removed from educational programs that involve working with patients.
Say this idea was fully implemented tomorrow. How would things be different?
There's a large amount of unhealthy environments. Initially there would a huge shift of people exiting situations, healing, and entering the world empowered. It would be chaotic, in a good way. Abusers would scramble over losing control.
With human rights abuses being resolved, homeless people would be allowed to receive care from hospitals. People would stay longer, and staying longer would improve their health instead of damaging it. People with extremely severe health issues would not be kicked out. In the short term it would cause a severe shortage of hospital beds. Between a new hospital system and health insurance coverage, in the long term it would significantly reduce homelessness and crimes associated with homelessness.
With healthcare-based trauma being significantly reduced, more people would seek and participate in treatment. There would be less suicides, overdoses, and addiction rates.
How can we move towards implementing this in our current system? Are there better ways to do so?
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