Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I wish to share time with Deputy Funchion. Ba mhaith liom comhghairdeas a rá leis an dá Aire Stáit atá anseo agus ar ceapadh le déanaí.

I will speak to the nature of the overall discussion around mental health in recent years. Recently, depression has become somewhat synonymous with sadness or a prolonged sense of sadness. I fear we are beginning to draw closer to a place where mental illness is almost synonymous with depression or anxiety. Social media has presented us with an opportunity to share our thoughts with the world, whether it is a light-hearted joke or opening up about our personal struggles. Tá na meáin shóisialta tar éis an tslí ina roinnimid eolas faoinar saol pearsanta a athrú go hiomlán agus i slí a bhíonn tionchar aige ar an tslí ina smaoinimid go léir ar ábhair tromchúiseacha ar nós sláinte meabhrach.

Due to the stigma that surrounds mental health, people tend to open up in a way that is protective of themselves and their immediate family. Combined with a simplistic analysis by elements of the media, sometimes this dynamic can result in a somewhat simplistic view of what may be a very complex situation. Conversation and public discourse has become somewhat generalised. We then overlook the greater topic on a whole, as this somewhat simplistic version is presented as a microcosm of what is a significantly more complex topic. This takes nothing away from those who choose to tell their story, for whom it makes a big difference in dealing with their own issues, which takes significant bravery. Ba chóir an gníomh sin a mholadh sa tslí go cuireann sé chun cinn caint mar slí chun cabhair a lorg.

Talking, however, is not always the answer. There are many cases where talking will go a long way in helping deal with the issue. Alternatively, there are also many illnesses or conditions where talking will not resolve the issue or where it is only part of the solution. This is a place to which we must take the discourse. With mental illness, the conversation is relatively new to many people and us, and as a result the conversation has yet to begin to develop. Mar reachtóirí, tá freagracht orainn a chinntiú nach dtógann an proiséas seo na blianta, sa tslí nach dtiteann daoine tríd na bearnaí.

Ms Fiona Kennedy, a blogger and journalist who regularly writes on mental health issues, put it much better than I could begin to articulate in two separate articles in broadsheet.ieand The Irish Timesin the past month. She speaks of her own experience with borderline personality disorder, coupled with bouts of depression, and how she has become fed up by the constant media hype and sanitisation of mental health and its portrayal within sections of the media. She made a valid point in how we view mental illness and the use of the term mental illness being a condition in and of itself, rather than getting into the intricacies of the diverse complexities that the umbrella term represents. It is a valid point of concern.

She went further to look at the term "physical illness", how it is never deemed to be a sufficient diagnosis and that it covers such a broad spectrum. She stated:

We have come up with a way of talking about mental illness that separates it from physical illness, and I believe this is making it far more complicated than it should be. For starters, there is the fact that we are using the term "mental illness" in the first place. We would never say "I have a physical illness". We would say "I have the flu’. Why should any of the many and varying mental health conditions that people live with be treated any differently?

She continued:

We want mental illness to have parity with physical illness, but at the same time, we are setting it apart. The two go hand in hand and should not be separated. When we are physically unwell, it is difficult to have a positive and upbeat outlook. When we are mentally unwell, it is very difficult to physically do the things that we know will help. One feeds into the other, one cannot exist without the other.

Is tuairimí tabhachtacha iad seo agus is dóigh liom gur chóir don Rialtas iad a thógaint san áireamh. In the same way that we should aim not only to deal with physical illness, but to promote physical health promotion, whether that is exercise or good food in our schools, we should aim to promote good mental health.

In the past I have used the services of a counsellor and would do so again in the future.

I see that as no more remarkable or noteworthy than getting a check-up from a GP. The public should have greater access to counselling and psychiatrists through the public system-----

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