Hi Alison,
Your last email was so interesting and you've hit the nail on the head. You are
right we do often go to doctors for help in eg with cancer and want their
treatments. I think with Mental Health the position of power is so much more
problematic as people are in a weaker position and mental health has so much
stigma and is often seen as a longterm illness rather than a more quick fix
cancer treatment. There in lies the problem as you rightly says its so complex
to unravel. The medical model does to good but it would be great to have
alternative models avalible that are given as much support and power as the
medical model. I think patients often feel disempowred and afraid to ask about
their health because of that power. I really identify with:
It is not, I personally believe, just down to this unjustifiable politcal power
that some individuals experiencing distress find the framework a relevant one
to describe their experiences although it is because of this power that an
individual cannot use a medical discourse to describe their experiences
without becoming disempowered and dehumanised in the process.
This is so true. I had the workshop yesterday and brought up some of the
things many of you have said in reply to my email to stimulate discussion. I
still feel I am not doing the group I work with justice as I find it so difficult to
bring about group conscientization and developing new alternative discourses
that will challange this power and develop into action and change.
Emma (c:
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