Following that, if the person says that seeing a doctor isn’t going to happen because feeling excruciating pain is just a normal part of healing, is it harassment to continue the argument that a professional’s advice should still be sought out?
Witnessing is allowed, but nothing protects it. Posts that argue or show facts countering the content of the post are allowed. Posts that veer into attacking or insulting the poster are of course not allowed. (except for in the Pit).
I think so. I believe it is within Pit rules. But then again I never read the Pit. Ask a moderator for clarification.
A moderator already answered that one.
Outside the BBQ Pit, what about telling people they should seek professional help if they report something that sounds as if their mental health seems endangered? Are they to be treated differently than if their problem involves physical health, or the same?
I don’t know. Would you object if I were to say it to you?
Yes, and also remember that, when someone is under emotional stress and impulsively starts a new thread or posts to an established thread, it is a snapshot in time, and it is a time that may very well not be a true reflection of their overall, day-to-day emotional state.
This board isn’t about me. Would you mind answering the question?
BTW, damn right you should tell me that you think I need to see a medical professional if you are actually worried about my mental health. My nephew Christopher might still be alive today if there was a lot less tiptoeing around that supposedly delicate subject.
A physical ailment can also be a “snapshot in time” and not representative of the overall health. Do we treat mental health differently than physical health on this message board, or not?
I don’t think we should treat it differently but, unfortunately, that is not often the case.
I am asking what board policy is (or should be), not what people tend to do.
Ah, sorry. Well, when it comes to a message board, physical and mental illness doesn’t come across in the same way. As far as physical illness is concerned, and unless the poster wants to share, we don’t know if he is a candidate for Mr. Universe or terminally ill. All the sharing and any questions asking for opinions/advice are definitely in the poster’s court.
Unless a poster shares his mental/emotional illness, we might suspect something to be remiss, but it is only a feeling that is not based on any facts. In a case like that, I would refrain from making any assumptions/posts hinting at such based on what I can only term as a factually unfounded feeling.
I am not asking about making a diagnosis.
I am asking about suggesting that a medical professional be consulted.
If “consulting a medical professional” means, “Damn, you need to see a shrink!”, then the answer is unequivocally, NO. That’s insulting and hurting the poster and is the total opposite of helpful. One sensing severe depression, for example, might ask the poster if he has shared his feelings with anyone IRL and, if not, has he considered that it might be helpful.
No, that is assuming an insult where none is actually made. Far too often a call to seek professional help is mistranslated as a diagnosis of “You called them crazy!! You insulted them!!”.
At this point, I think you have to view the specific post in question based on the thread context in which it was made. My view is to definitely to err on the side of caution as I illustrated in my example. How Moderators view the situation is up to them, and I feel we have to respect their judgment if we want to keep this Board the great place it has been.
Stupidity is no more a moral fault than mental illness is. Neither are the fault of the person concerned, but because both are ‘bad’, they are commonly used as insults. The only difference is that mental illness is often treatable, so there is a justification for bringing it up which isn’t there for mere lack of intelligence.
Still, several of the responses here seem to me more along the lines of “this person is crazy and we should be free to say so” than “this poster appears unwell and needs help”.
Please point out those responses, because I would also like to condemn them.
Minimally bordering on and if persistent definitely. Also of no point. Saying it once is fine; arguing about it with them - no.
If I say I don’t need to see a doctor for my ankle pain then leave me the fuck alone
Psychosis even more so as it is the very experienced reality which is at dispute. Convincing them that what they experience is fictive is improbable. Maybe help for the discomfort and dysfunction. Maybe. Depression? Anxiety? A few tries but yeah, they say no they don’t need help then let them be.