This article is actually about parenting, and how we have set up this nuclear family system which puts a lot of pressure on two people to parent. We live in houses with a mom, a dad, two kids, and a dog. This is America. But, in many ways this secular American system, though it looks ideal it sets us up for failure too often. Nuclear families are lost and lonely, struggling to find support in the midst of economic crisis like unemployment, in times of hardship which lead to divorce and in times of illness. When we divide up into little ricky-tacky families we seclude ourselves from society. Behind closed doors we stay connected via the internet, the phone, the TV, but what we forget is that when the time comes we need human interaction to get through the harder times.
I think the mental health profession was created in many ways to support this lifestyle, so why do so many people see mental health work as the end to a means when things are not going well? I say, utilize it! Read my article about parenting and mental health care here.
