I was never in a program. However, I have a deep, personal stake in safe, responsible, quality mental health care. I have a deep, personal stake in seeing that commitment to a residential facility follows a procedure with ample regulatory safeguards for mentally ill people to see that they are being provided appropriate, quality care in the least restrictive setting. I have a deep, personal stake in seeing that mentally ill people are not incarcerated in inappropriate residential facilities by their relatives.
I have bipolar disorder. My daughter has bipolar disorder. Many other members of my family and my husband's family have bipolar disorder or related illnesses. Many of my friends have bipolar spectrum mental health problems--it's common in creative folks.
Many kids who get stuck in Programs and screwed up by them have bipolar disorder or the kinds of related mental health problems that are common in bipolar families.
My whole extended family and larger circle of friends and acquaintances have a personal stake in our grandkids, cousins, siblings, nieces, nephews, and teenage friends not getting stuck in Programs. We have a personal stake in seeing that any of our teens that need mental health care get safe, effective, ethical care in the least restrictive setting.
Idealistic? Hardly.
I'm an advocate. Good advocates play a vital part in the political process by distilling the signal from the noise so their base doesn't have to. Fornits is often one of the best sources for real news--I wade through the crap to find that real news so friends and family don't have to.
Effective advocates can't afford to either be idealists or compromise our principles.
Politics is the art of the possible, but the opposition's politicians, and the opportunists, will always try to get you to settle for form over substance.
It's a fine line to walk, but if it was easy they wouldn't need us. :-)
Julie