We have a number of posters that have admitted mental health issues. Some of these issues range from severe depression, Alzheimers, autism, to schizophrenia. Many of us who have interacted with these posters over time, recognize these self started threads as never ending rabbit holes, where rational discussion, thinking, etc. is thrown out the window. But it is sometimes frustrating to see well meaning posters, who are obviously unaware of the OP’s history and condition, struggle and eventually well up in frustration over the lack of understanding of the OP’s condition. And sometimes it can be downright hilarious.
But should there be a required disclaimer that a Mod, attaches to the OP of these threads to advise other posters of the minefield they are about to enter? Now the practical application of this would be cumbersome for the Mods, but they don’t get paid for doing nothing.
This is more of a rant, than a true suggestion, but if a mod thinks this should be moved to the ATMB, forum, let it fly!
First of all, autism is a neurological disorder, not a mental health issue.
Second, no. We shouldn’t stigmatize posters like that. People will find out on their own, and really, how hard is it to make a few unnecessary posts in the name of discovery.
Third, other posters probably have mental health issues too, very serious ones, but it doesn’t preclude their making intelligent posts. What you really want is not a scarlet P for the psychos, but a warning for the ones who make threads that are dead ends.
Fourth, there are people who probably do NOT have a diagnosable mental health issues, but do have pet theories, and put up “rabbit hole” posts. Should we warn people about them as well?
All things considered, I’m going with “Live and let live.”
NOTE: I should have stated at the beginning that I suffer from chronic depression. I also have Type 2 diabetes, aortic stenosis, spinal stenosis, peripheral vascular disease, insomnia, seborrheic dermatitis and mild cat allergies. Sorry that you’ve read so far, without having been alerted to these relevant facts.
Since when is it only posters with acknowledged mental health issues who turn threads into minefields?
Mental illness does not necessarily imply that a person is stupid or irrational. There is no more need to flag threads with information about the mental health of the OP than there is to flag them with any other background information about the OP. All posters participate at their own risk (subject to enforcement of board rules, of course).
(I’m going to omit any efforts at ripping you a new one about exactly how dumb, offensive and draconian such a policy would be, since I bet other posters are going to do a better job of it than I would.)
If we had slightly better AI we could probably design a “hobby horse” algorithm which determined whether a poster was posting about their one-trick-pony, then you’d simply show an appropriate icon. People could judge for themselves if the poster and/or topic is fruitful enough to read.
We have at times considered establishing a “Mixed Nuts” forum to which certain posters could be restricted. But this is at most wishful thinking.
But seriously, we have many productive posters who may have some kind of mental health issue who make intelligent, rational, and worthwhile posts. We have other posters who have no such diagnosed issues who are utterly unproductive to engage with.
The only real way to see which posters are worth interacting with is to, well, interact with them. Labels would really be useless, particularly on the basis you propose.
I’m a bi-polar with a side helping of the occasional severe depression and I’d be okay with this. Would save me a hella lot of perambulatory typing and others some headbanging, so what’s not to love?
Seriously, I keed. I keed. Well, not about being crazy (although I hope I fall into that “is useful sometimes” category), but truly about stigmatizing others. Because those that suffer from stuff like what’s mentioned, certainly don’t need to feel any worse or shamed about it.
I sympathize. I really, really do. I think it’s impractical and a terrible idea, but sweet baby something, some folks need it. Mostly because I don’t have the self-discipline to stay out of threads.
A serious answer is that “mental illness” is a broad continuum that encompasses a wide range of cognitive function including high levels of intelligence and insight. It may also include obsessions and irrationality, but that’s a pretty broad continuum, too. So it’s probably not a useful label. One should probably be wary of labeling everyone who has hot buttons on certain topics as “mentally ill”, especially on an Internet board!
OTOH, in my relatively short time here I’ve seen some pretty strange individuals pass this way. Fortunately, most have passed right on, some involuntarily, and thank Og and the mods that be for that.
And some still linger. For truly, there’s only so much one can stand hearing about weight loss and belly fat.
What I think would be nice is a label telling you who is on a content restriction, so you don’t accidentally try to engage them on that topic. It could be a badge you’d have to click on to see what it says. And it could be optionally hidden to the poster themselves, so they aren’t tempted to talk about it just because they see it there. Though, at the same time, maybe it could be a reminder so they don’t fall off the wagon, either–leave it up to them to decide.
And I’d like a new house, too–since we’re dreaming.
