1. Does everyone have a mental health problem at some point in their life?
"Yes but it may be difficult to prove."
"Yes, because of bereavement."
"Yes, because of pressures in life."
"No, everyone experiences stress etc but this is not assessed as a problem."
"Not everyone, no."
"The majority of people do. I know a lot of people who have suffered from it. My niece is a paranoid schizophrenic."
"Yes, everyone has a mental health problem now. Everyone's asleep, people aren't awake to the world."
"Yes, I've suffered from depression and alcoholism."
2. Do people need to be honest about their experiences and society needs to be more open to accepting them when it comes to mental health problems?
"Yes we all need more awareness of the situation and our own mental states."
"Yes, completely. I've just been to a meeting to share my experiences."
"Yes, sometime people don't share their problems because society is not open to it. Mental illness is a label."
"Definitely, from my own experience with depression, a lot of people I thought I could rely on turned away. Even when they work in mental health."
"Yes, with the condition they have good professional help, an accurate diagnosis reflecting the issues experienced and reassurance discussions are dealt with in the strictest confidence."
"Society needs to be flexible and allow for mental health disabilities / recognise it is a disability.
"Yes, I find that people typecast you and want to keep their distance. The public need to be more aware of these issues and accept people for who they are."
"Absolutely, honesty has been the best step."
"People should be more honest to broaden the knowledge of mental health issues therefore improving society's tools to provide support."
"Yes, the more open the better."
3. Do you agree people suffering from depression or other mental health needs need to be safeguarded and not forced into situations against their will?
"Yes but it's difficult. Some people have support but not everybody especially if they've been institutionalised for a long time. For example a lot of ex services are homeless with no one to turn to.
"Yes, people suffering from depression need time to deal with it and being forced into situations could worsen the condition."
"Absolutely, they need the support of an advocate."
"People need to be safeguarded against discrimination."
"Many people have unnoticed problems that need to be accepted when they arise."
"I think putting yourself anywhere you don't want to be when you are depressed is a very bad idea."
"Yes, a lot of the time the professionals may have a lot of knowledge but they come to you loaded with preconceptions due to the label you have of 'mental patient'. They should come to you without prejudice because even when you might be thinking straight and you're just struggling a bit too often you are presumed to be incapable of rational thought."
"Sometimes there's no stopping it. It's still like the situation with the test to see if you’re a witch hundreds of years ago- if you float you're a witch and if you drown you're not. It's a no win. When you go in to hospital they put you on the highest dosage of a drug that paralyses you then wean you off it. No matter if you're unwell or not you're not going to feel well after that."
"It depends whether they are a danger to themselves and others and whether they are suicidal."
4. What do you think to the phrase 'no decision about me without me'? Does it make sense to you?
"Yes, it means professional judgments or diagnoses are discussed with service-users every step of the way."
"It makes sense because there are too many decisions made without the consent of the person being treated"
"I don't know, some people should be taking medicine but might not know they need it."
"Definitely. Doctors say things you don't understand, this is about choosing the treatment best for you and being informed. Just because you're ill doesn't mean you don't know what you want."
5. All mental health problems are particular to the individual and therefore 'personal problems need personal solutions'?
"Sometimes the solution for one person may not work for another so alternatives need to be discussed."
"I agree, they are different to each and every person."
"Yes, people need to be treated according to their own personal differences."
"Yes, group work is not always the answer."
6. Should we show respect to people with mental health problems because of their creativity, intelligence and spirituality?
"Of course but how?"
"If it deems respect, but not more than others."
"Yes, I enjoy making handmade cards even though I have mental health issues. I wish people would focus more on the good instead of the bad."
"Yes, mentally unwell people are usually very talented and this needs to be recognised more."
7. Would you agree that people suffering from mental health issues should have freedom of speech and action without the fear of what repercussions that might have?
"Of course, I do feel that this already exists but the interpretation of this 'freedom of speech' is often misjudged and unbalanced views of what is best can lead to frustration and prejudice"
"People should be able to express themselves without worrying what other people think."
8. Do you believe that it is against Human Rights for a person to be sectioned? (committed to hospital and on drugs against their will)
"Generally yes but if the individual is causing significant harm to themselves or others, it may be necessary for immediate action."
"Six month sections are sometimes in breach of human rights. However sometimes a month's section may be required."
"People should be given medicine if they want it and should also be able to speak what they are feeling without fear of being sectioned."
"Yes, I think human rights should not be violated by sectioning people."
"No, sometimes people are not of sound mind to make decisions for themselves. In these situations people should get the treatment they need but can't necessarily request themselves."
"There should be no drug enforcement- it's a barbaric practice"
"This is about legislation. There are times when an individual needs help but they are unwilling to accept it so it's difficult. We need proper safeguards so their human rights are not undermined."
"Difficult because sometimes people are sectioned when they can't control themselves or are seen as dangerous. There are far too many being sectioned as it's the easy thing to do but sometimes it really needs to be done."
"I don't really know enough about it. It's a tricky one; it's the violent behaviour that's worrying. It has very negative connotations. I need more information on it."
"No. If someone greater than me says you should be in hospital it's not against human rights. if someone's not well enough to make the decision themselves someone should make it for them."
"No. If they are really really upset / depressed then they need help from others as they won't speak up for themselves. Also if they have committed a crime they need to be apart from the rest of innocent / civil society."
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