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The figures from the National Institute of Mental Health study are alarming. One of the study’s authors, Matěj Kučera, admits that the researchers were surprised by the results. However, the Czech Republic’s shortage of psychiatrists and its largely neglected prevention are not groundbreaking findings as of October 10, 2023.
This is a problem that has been going on for years and shows no signs of changing. Yes, I see you now, Secretary of War. When you get that box of antibiotics into every family, I’ll have another job for you.
I’m not here to suggest a life-saving solution, but as a patient who has had experience with the difficult psychiatric care system, I want to make a personal plea to the world. Mental health issues are real, we’re not making them up, so trust us.
Having a mental illness is not all that. You have to actively focus on doing multiple disciplines at once. On the one hand, you are dealing with the symptoms of such an illness, but at the same time you are trying hard to prove to the people around you that you are not just in a bad mood because on the outside it is just disgusting. And know that both are equally exhausting.
Would it occur to anyone, upon seeing someone with an open fracture, to suggest that they should not be so dramatic and try to lay them down for two weeks? Would anyone tell an asthmatic to start wearing ceramics, that their worsening breathing would go away on its own? Have you ever heard a diabetic tell someone to not ruin their mood and try chamomile tea instead of insulin?
The same thing also belittles this problem in a post on social network X The Health Ministry has also acknowledged this. Instead of cutesy graphics recommending sleep or relaxation, they could mark World Mental Health Day with a humble acknowledgement that psychiatric care in the Czech Republic is in decline. A little ash on the head never killed anyone.
Well, maybe next time. For now, while we wait a month for the psychiatrist appointment, we’ll go to Pilates a few times and we’ll be fine.
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