You Don't Need a Gun

Just when I thought people with mental health issues were receiving empathy and understanding from society, Mr. Trump declares people should be screened for a mental health illness before gaining a gun license or purchasing a gun.

Is this a quick fix to find blame for a problem that needs long term investment to provide better support and education for America's youth? A scapegoat to appease the NRA perhaps?

Imagine a rainbow of many colours and each colour is a mental illness. Some colours are bright and can be identified, other colours are muted and faded and hard to identify, and some colours cannot be seen clearly at all because they do not want to be seen. And so we recognise schizophrenia and bipolar and anorexia, but depression and grieving are not so obvious. These are just examples of many illnesses. How many people with mental health issues like these hurt other people?

Illness affects a person's thoughts and feelings, which in turn will then affect their behaviour. Just as every single "healthy" human being on the planet has thoughts which affect how they feel, which in turn affect how they will behave.

What makes us decide to hurt someone because of how we feel? Sometimes we are not aware of the thought that influences our emotions and behaviour. I believe we all have the capacity to lash out verbally or physically to empty the anger, sadness, and fear out of ourselves and hurting someone else gives us a power that makes us feel better—banishing our feelings of powerlessness.

I am reminded of my own feelings some years ago. I have never felt such anger and loss. My angry thoughts were consuming me. Body shaking, my nerves jangling, there was no space in my head and in my body for any positive reason and then a cold, numb feeling descended upon me. I tried to commit suicide. After medication and therapy when the suicidal thoughts were gone, I would still get flashes of anger and I would self harm. This went on for several years, until I came to terms with the thoughts that were making me angry.

Therefore, I and other people who have depression, anorexia, and other illnesses—we hurt ourselves, NOT other people. We internalise our feelings of powerlessness. And we self harm to bring feelings of power and control back to our body and our lives.

All over the world, countries and people are using guns to feel powerful. Are they all mentally ill? Mr. Trump, Kim Jong-un, Mrs. Teresa May, Mr. Assad, Mr. Putin—they would all deny having a mental illness. The far right groups in America, the ivory hunters in Africa—are they all mentally ill? Should they all have an assessment of their mental health, too?

The new argument for arming teachers is flawed. In their position of carers of their pupils, how tempting would it be to use the gun? As a defence? The chance to be a hero? Mr. Trump believes an armed teacher will be a deterrent from a "sicko." I cannot see how. I can only see more young lives and dedicated teachers dead. The NRA brandishes statements about a good guy killing a bad guy. Like some old western movie. As much as I like those movies, THEY WERE NOT REAL. Yet the NRA seems to suggest a shoot out in a school is feasible...

Which brings me back to being fearful of stigma and discrimination by a leader's imflammatory words to his nation. As an educated, forward thinking society, we should be recognising that these young people who are predominantly male do not all have a mental illness but they have issues with the very society they live in.

The troubled young man from the Florida school shooting seems to have been the breaking point for the American people who want to see change. Students want to go to study in a safe environment and parents want to send their children to school knowing that they will not be harmed.

We cannot always protect our children or every nation from someone lashing out. There will be bullies. But we can protect them from the Gun in any form by simply making laws stricter. I dare to say stop selling them, ban them.

If we need to retaliate, we do it through education, understanding, and funding for the support of those young people who feel angry and alone.

But you know, I am one of those people who in her history had a mental health illness, so what would I know?