[cashart10]

This is a post I shared on Facebook...just some thoughts, potential trigger:

I watched a special on the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum in West Virginia. This was an insane asylum that was created to be revolutionary for the mentally ill and to be like a safe haven for them. However, it became so overrun with people that they would have to sleep on the floors and lived in nasty, terrible conditions not long into it’s existence. It started to house not only the mentally ill but also the criminally insane so there was murder and lots of crime happening often. Many rooms were like jail cells and thousands of people died there before it closed in 1994. There were countless barbaric lobotomies in the 1940’s and 1950’s and most of the patients there were never released. It was a life sentence. I often speak out about mental illness because it is so misunderstood and even largely feared still today despite the fact that mostly it’s the mentally ill who are victims. However, after watching this, I have come to realize how blessed we are to have been born now when it is better understood by psychiatrists, when there are no longer such barbaric practices, when we are mostly treated humanely, at least by the medical field, and most importantly, when we have medications available that allow the mentally ill to be just as healthy and mentally stable as any neurotypical person. I do pray for continued progress, especially in society, and that those who suffer feel comfortable reaching out and that they are able to quickly find a treatment that works well for them.

[Daonnachd]

Thank you for sharing this. I was unaware of that facility though of other, similar sites, yes. Sadly the TALA was not unique.

We've come a long way, but still have a long way to go.

Definitely mental healthcare has improved greatly since the time you referenced, but sadly since deinstitutionalization, there are many mentally ill who soon after became homeless and/or eventually "housed" in jails and prisons. That includes some (or even many) who shouldn't be. I guess those of us that are not should consider ourselves lucky to have the support (and financial resources) that we do. Without loving friends and family, and access (funds) for psychiatric care, some people with serious mental illness still suffer.