Mental Health Funding

To stop sufferers of mental care is overly complicated. Different illnesses. The misplacement of these illness from slipping services are provided by all of the people results in patients not getting through the cracks, the government should rework states as well as different federal agencies. These federal agencies minister a plethora of different the help they need. According to USA Today, due to fewer hospital resources and useless the confusing and neglected programs and different social community services, about 590,000 government-funded mental services agencies in each of the people with mental illness wind health care system. states. So while some states may offer up in jails, prisons, city streets and many services for those with mental homeless shelters. THIS EDITORIAL REFLECTS THE illness, other states may offer little to Consequently, the displaced VIEW OF THE LE JOURNAL STAFF. no services. persons are not only deprived of EIGHTEEN OUT OF 22 VOTED IN According to the Department of treatment, but they take up room SUPPORT OF THIS VIEW. Health and Human Services, there and money in the institutions they aren’t any practicing psychiatrists, are assigned.

The media is notorious for psychologists or social workers According to the federal Agency exaggerating things. Whether it’s available in half of the counties in the for Healthcare Research and Quality, an “unbiased” news station or a United States. 5.5 million people end up in hospitals gossip magazine, sensationalized Services need to be available each year because of mental illness. press is consumed everywhere and and equally as beneficial in every This is approximately four percent of in all outlets. It can be written on state for all individuals with mental all hospital visits. just about anything. Knowing this, illness seeking help. The issue of misplacement it’s understood that media outlets According to USA Today, about would be solved for the mentally ill hyperbolize topics like mental a million Americans with mental and for the institutions that care for health, among others. illness are ignored in today’s system them if the government made an

Sensationalist press expresses of government-funded mental effort of ensuring that the mentally stigma towards those with mental health care. ill had the opportunity to receive illness. Consequently, mental illness has a bad connotation in “The complicated system treatment. The government needs to society. According to Psychologytoday. prevents individuals from create and establish a nationwide system in which they clarify com, it’s possible to split mental health stigma into two types: perceived and social stigma. receiving the help they need, and the government where an individual should go to receive help and make sure patients end up in places that Perceived stigma is defined as a person with mental illness needs to simplify it.” will be beneficial for them. If the government would subjecting themselves to solve the seemingly never discrimination, leading to shame. The complicated system ending problem of individuals not Social stigma, defined as prejudice prevents individuals from receiving receiving the help they need, and of and intolerance aimed at people with the help they need, and the the mentally ill ending up in places mental illnesses due to the negative government needs to simplify it. like hospitals and prisons, where connotation given to them, is The government ignores the they just cost those institutions more responsible for the tainted views on fact that the current funded mental money, the misplaced persons issue mental illness in today’s society and health care system isn’t working, and would be solved. in the media. by ignoring their own system, they Finally, the government needs

Due to the negative undertone are negligent to all of the sufferers of to educate the public on mental of mental illness, many individuals mental illness incapable of receiving illness. In a society in which with mental illnesses don’t seek help care and treatment. Once those stigma towards mental illness is or treatment. individuals seek help for their illness, so prevalent, education to counter

According to Healthline.com, it’s important that they end up in the that social stigma would benefit approximately one in four Americans correct facilities. not only the public but those with have a mental illness that could be As reported by USA Today, mental illnesses. With less stigma, treated, yet three out of four of those many times people with mental sufferers of mental illness would be individuals don’t pursue help. illnesses wrongly end up in places more likely to receive treatment and

The current system of that aren’t meant or specialized to ultimately would live easier, happier government-funded mental health cater towards those with mental lives.

20%

20 percent of children 13 to 18 years old have some type of mental illness, defined as disorders that affect an individual’s mood, thinking and behavior.

Approximately 50 percent of individuals with mental illness between 8 and 15 years old didn’t seek treatment last year.

50%

61.5 million people in the United States discover that they have a mental illness in a given year.

25 percent of mental illness sufferers felt as if they were supported by the people they surrounded themselves with, rather than experiencing stigma.

In the past, I have found my resolutions to be difficult to live out, but this year, I have finally chosen to stick to it.

BY KATHLEEN WATZ REPORTER

It is about this time of year when I typically look at those promises I made with the arrival of January 1-commonly known as New Year’s Resolutions. Throughout the month of December, I take a hard look at myself and try to figure out what I need to do in order to make myself a better person. This usually includes getting more exercise, eating better and spending less time binge watching an entire series on Netflix in 24 hours. In the past I have even resolved to try and be nicer to my brother, which means avoiding any contact with him at all in order to succeed in keeping my resolution.

In previous years, the results of my actions have been less than stellar. By the end of January, my workout clothes, which I wore religiously every day since the celebration in Times Square and have yet to get even a single drop of sweat on them, suffer a lonely existence wadded up under my bed. (My theory is that if I can’t see them, I don’t need to exercise.) The theory has proven quite nicely actually.

Before you think my efforts completely useless, I was able to increase my heart rate as I ran into the kitchen for a slice of pizza during a break of Netflix binge watching, which gives you an idea of how successful the rest of my resolutions were. My Netflix watching was increased to 48 hours straight because of all the pizza breaks, I count that as a success. It is not that I intentionally sabotage the promises I made to myself; I really do want to succeed. It is just that I start to develop a vision problem: I don’t see the need to change the lifestyle I have perfected over the past 18 years. Why mess with success? I’m still here, and I can still see my toes, exercise is not the key let me tell you.

So this year I tried a new approach to the whole New Year’s Resolution thing. My 2016 New Year’s Resolution was to not to make another New Year’s Resolution. So far I am doing pretty well!

Toy Industry Overlooks Sexism

Purposeful exclusion of the has gained attention. According to female character in new Star Wars movie exposes sexism in the mainstream nydailynews.com, fans in the Disney Store have been told that they don’t stock Rey’s merchandise in stores. Director of the movie J.J. Abrams toy industry. has openly reached out to Hasbro, BY LUCY STOFER REPORTER advocating for Rey’s addition to the game, and the strange exclusion of the main character in the movie’s

Since the release of Star Wars: The merchandise has drawn attention to Force Awakens, there has been Star the clearly sexist industry.Wars swag everywhere. Clothes, legos, American Girl, on the other hand, even sleeping bags lined the aisles at continues to become more commercial any store. Among this overabundance and move farther away from its original of “The Force Awakens” themed message of female empowerment. items, one item Star Wars fans noticed When the dolls first came out each doll missing was the heroine of the movie, used to come with six books entailing Rey’s figure in the “Star Wars: The the problems the girl encountered Force Awakens edition of Monopoly. in their lives which covered issues of The game included Finn, Kylo Ren, race, class, slavery and child labor, Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader now sells dolls with only one book but noticeably left out the film’s main and a computer game. This company female character. was known for featuring strong-

This exclusion exposes the issues willed young girls who were figuring in the modern toy industry and the out life in these hard situations. The lack of toys made to inspire and headstrong girls the dolls used to encourage young girls as well as boys. embody inspired young girls to take

Fans are outraged because Rey a stand for what was right and taught is the main character, and the title them about history through the eyes of of the movie is named after her a girl their own age. The original dolls “awakening the force.” #WheresRey confronted some of the most heated had been trending to bring attention issues of their times. to the confusing issue. Luke Skywalker Just a few years later, One of and Darth Vader figures are both the most popular dolls, Mckenna, included in the game and according struggled with the fact that she was to nydailynews.com, one of them has reading below her grade level in school zero lines in the movie, and the other is and wasn’t doing well academically. not even in the movie at all. Hasbro toy The problems that the modern company claims that they left Rey out American Girl dolls are faced with purposefully to keep from spoiling her are light hearted in comparison to role, which makes about as much sense those of the original dolls. They are so as including characters who aren’t in extremely different that they highlight the movie. the fact that though American Girl

Monopoly hasn’t been the dolls were once a character-building only obvious exclusion of Rey that toy, they have fallen onto the same mainstream level as other dolls that the toys they play with for the majority they are competing with on the market of their day so their parents should Instead of emphasizing intelligence put more thought into the toys that and perseverance, storylines like they give to them and how it could Mckenna’s only glorify small problems affect them. High school students may in today’s society when not have the widest more pressing issues such as body image affect young girls today. BET YOU influence on children and the toys that they play with, but you can American Girl needs to focus on these issues DIDN’T choose to buy your cousins, siblings, etc. and continue to use their dolls to teach and KNOW... toys that will encourage them to want to be inspire young girls as opposed to covering 42% of leaders and embrace their individuality. Also up more pressing 1st-3rd don’t let boy children issues with non grade think that they can’t confrontational stories girls play with a girl action that don’t teach girls anything other than that their education want to be thinner figure because that kind of attitude is what started the whole isn’t as important as In 2013 #WheresRey debacle. making the gymnastics Disney Toy companies should team. Barbie has previously been ridiculed for giving sold Avengers t-shirts for take note of Barbie’s progress and catch up with society’s progress and start making toys to young girls unrealistic girls with the slogan inspire children again expectations for their “’I Need a Hero” and as opposed to leaving bodies, now is breaking an Iron Man T-shirt out a female character’s barriers by prominently for boys that reads action figure in fear featuring a boy actor in their commercial and “Be a Hero”. of boys’ rejection. Debacle. Progressives making a commercial Girls like Singh and now portraying the idea that girls can do anything they want to. It features young girls doing as young as five Barbie have changed the game in the mainstream toy industry and are promoting self their dream job and report acceptance and are is supposed to inspire weight showing young children young girls to aim for concerns and that real girls don’t have the top and not give up express a desire to to look glitzed and on their dreams. The minds of these be thinner. glammed all of the time and that it is perfectly children are shaped by fine to just be you. LE JOURNAL February 2016 7