According to some reports, every fifth Russian needs the help of a psychiatrist. At least a psychotherapist. And the number of mentally ill people is growing steadily …
And it is growing because during the time of perestroika and the formation of democracy, amazing laws were adopted, according to which it is forbidden not only to treat forcibly, but even to examine. Until a person has committed a crime. For example, he crippled someone, or better - he killed. Then you can examine. And even isolate - by court order. And nothing else.
Meanwhile, abnormal, sorry for the everyday term, full. Both in real life and in the virtual space, where they feel especially comfortable. Complete anonymity, the ability to share crazy ideas and throw out aggression. For a start - verbal. It has long been known that crazy people are dangerous not only by their deeds. There is such a concept - "induction". Simply put, delirium is contagious. And an insane person, oddly enough, is often very convincing.
About two hundred years ago, doctors in an insane asylum for this very reason delegated their powers to the stalwart nurses. The doctors, you see, began to go crazy. Especially those who showed humanity and devoted a lot of time to talking with patients, communication and personal therapy. Chekhov's story "Ward number six" is just about this.
TWO SIDES MEDAL
Since ancient times, society has puzzled over the question of how to deal with the mad. Even in cruel and bloody times, people understood that it was just about the disease. And there is nothing to punish for. On the other hand, everyone felt the danger posed by mentally ill people. And they acted accordingly. The quiet ones were not touched. The "blessed", the holy fools and the feeble-minded even enjoyed the patronage of society. They were credited with mystical abilities, fed, pitied. Everything, up to the bloodthirsty kings like Ivan the Terrible. But the violent ones caused fear and confusion. In the fifteenth century, a burgomaster discovered in his city a naked madman who ran, shouted, waved his arms. The burgomaster acted wittily: he ordered to put the madman in a boat and send him to the opposite bank, where another city was located:let the burgomaster-neighbor figure it out. And the famous "Ship of Fools" by Bosch was written based on the real practice of the Middle Ages: madmen were put on a ship and sent to sea. And compared to the horrors of the Middle Ages, when people were quartered and burned alive, this was a rather humane way.
Then the mentally ill were kept in locked cellars, on chains. And on weekends, respectable townspeople could visit insane asylums for a small fee. Terrible times, terrible attitude towards the sick. Then some humane doctors began to release the sick, removed their chains, and allowed them to play with animals. And some of the patients even recovered - a historical fact. But other cases are also known: in some hospitals, the mentally ill, enjoying freedom and humane treatment, killed all the staff …
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MASKS OF INSANITY
Recognizing a madman is not easy, I assure you. Of course, if a person behaves inappropriately, shouts, dances naked or does something like that, everything is immediately clear. Or when there are external signs. "Wax facial expressions" - smoothed, frozen facial features. Or, conversely, a tendency to grimace. Laughter for no reason - idiotic jokes, giggling, cackling … Strange clothes. Disregard for personal hygiene. No wonder psychiatrists have an expression "the smell of schizophrenia."
But there are very few such patients, and they, as a rule, do not pose a danger - precisely because they are easy to recognize. Many mentally ill people appear to be normal enough. They communicate adequately, even rub into trust, convince them that they are right.
Not all mental illnesses lead to a loss or decrease in intelligence. Many patients are able to carefully and cunningly hide their illness. Then to strike a decisive blow. Madmen are dangerous, unpredictable, and their crimes are incredibly cruel. And they are often directed at strangers, whom the mentally ill considered "persecutors". The madman kills and attacks precisely because he thinks the other person is a dangerous enemy. Voices in his head tell him this. And close observation …
Psychotic disorders are precisely insanity. Such a patient can be identified by judgments about the hostility of the world. About secret enemies who bother him and follow or even read the thoughts in his head. If the person expresses such ideas, stay away from them. Otherwise, he may include you in his "picture of delirium". Decide that you are his main enemy and pursuer. Sometimes such patients express "overvalued" or crazy ideas. They say about conspiracies, great discoveries, extremely important information. These are dangerous people.
On the Internet, they are easy to recognize by their desire for political discussions, the expression of "fateful" ideas for reorganizing society. And yet - to reason. "On the one hand … On the other hand …" - and so on ad infinitum. Tedious fruitless reasoning. And, of course, a sure sign is aggression. When a person shows rage and anger for little or no reason. Expresses vicious hatred in comments. There is no need to communicate with such characters. Delirium does not lend itself to dissuasion: this is the main tenet of psychiatry.
And one more thing: the mentally ill are especially annoyed at a hint of their diagnosis. Which they already once put. Or they vaguely assume it at home - such people are often smart and read a lot. Especially specialized literature. And psychiatrists are hated. Well, psychologists at the same time.
The real madmen are psychotics. And the number of crimes they commit remains at about the same level.
But there are more and more psychopaths. I will not go into subtleties, a lot has been written about psychopaths. But their main feature is a complete lack of conscience, compassion, and remorse. They have the so-called "repression": the psyche simply ignores everything unpleasant. And self-esteem remains high, no matter what. "They brought me to this!" - typical words of a psychopath. The so-called transfer of responsibility to the victim. The psychopath treats other people as insects that interfere or inconvenience him. And he has no doubts that he is fighting for truth and justice. Because the measure of truth and justice is himself. For the time being, psychopaths behave absolutely normally, like ordinary people: as long as nothing annoys them. Anything can serve as a "red rag": someone's article, clothes, political views,behavior is not important. The stimulus is often negligible and the reaction is terrible. A psychopath can be identified by reaction to criticism, to a trifling remark. Only sometimes it is too late to determine - a former decent man pounced on his opponent with a howl. Or he began to write such that you almost fainted from horror. Communication in such cases is meaningless and dangerous. And it will hardly be possible to put such a character on a ship - this is not a quiet madman, with whom you can somehow agree, if you do not contradict delirium. And it will hardly be possible to put such a character on a ship - this is not a quiet madman, with whom you can somehow agree, if you do not contradict delirium. And it will hardly be possible to put such a character on a ship - this is not a quiet madman, with whom you can somehow agree, if you do not contradict delirium.
Pay attention to the manner of expressing yourself: pretentiousness, mannerism of speech are signs of a mental disorder. Or the so-called "telegraph style" - cut short phrases that have no connection with each other. "A jump of ideas" - when the interlocutor extremely quickly switches from one topic to another, not having time to logically complete the thought. Or sluggish, little intoned speech, without emotion. Inclination to scholastic disputes, lack of logic: "there is an elder in the garden, but there is an uncle in Kiev." Don't communicate. As in the unforgettable Hound of the Baskervilles: "If reason and life are dear to you, stay away from the peat bogs." And from dubious strangers who crave companionship.
I sincerely advise you to be careful and immediately cut off all contact if the person's behavior or statements cause you bewilderment or anxiety. Unfortunately, there is nothing we can do about it. We do not even have the right to take a mentally ill person to a doctor if he does not want to. So you should think about yourself and your safety. In real life and on the Internet.
Psychologist Anna KIRYANOVA