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When bad things go good
Sep. 12th, 2006 05:09 pmA tale of two people:
One person has psychotic episodes, seeing things, hearing voices. Never harms anyone. Never gets help. Still psychotic after all these years.
Another person has similar episodes, attempts suicide. Gets help.
While I'm thrilled that the second person got help, I'm baffled by why it takes harming yourself or someone else before help happens. What are family/friends/bystander's obligations to force others to get help? I simply can't convince myself that I know what is best for another person. So, for me, until that person tries to harm themselves or others, I don't feel that I can judge what is right for them. But, maybe that is a short-sighted view?
Maybe this is harder for me because I believe in the possibility that reality as I know it isn't really real. I acknowledge that this whole world could be illusion or computer simulation or whatever. So, I find it hard to say that someone who is hearing voices really isn't hearing voices. Maybe they are. Maybe I'm the one with the problem -- I'm deaf to those voices.
Maybe I shouldn't judge the first person as being in a bad state, just because they are classified as psychotic.
And if we take all of this stuff on face value, why do bad things sometimes have to happen for good to come out of it? Is that a way to run a universe?
One person has psychotic episodes, seeing things, hearing voices. Never harms anyone. Never gets help. Still psychotic after all these years.
Another person has similar episodes, attempts suicide. Gets help.
While I'm thrilled that the second person got help, I'm baffled by why it takes harming yourself or someone else before help happens. What are family/friends/bystander's obligations to force others to get help? I simply can't convince myself that I know what is best for another person. So, for me, until that person tries to harm themselves or others, I don't feel that I can judge what is right for them. But, maybe that is a short-sighted view?
Maybe this is harder for me because I believe in the possibility that reality as I know it isn't really real. I acknowledge that this whole world could be illusion or computer simulation or whatever. So, I find it hard to say that someone who is hearing voices really isn't hearing voices. Maybe they are. Maybe I'm the one with the problem -- I'm deaf to those voices.
Maybe I shouldn't judge the first person as being in a bad state, just because they are classified as psychotic.
And if we take all of this stuff on face value, why do bad things sometimes have to happen for good to come out of it? Is that a way to run a universe?