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America is always one step behind. We are one step behind in the metric system. We are one step behind in the food industry being the only country that allows MSG in our food and the way we operate. The way we run education is different and other countries have a better fit system. We are whole step back in crime rate, having the highest crime compared to the surrounding countries around us. The one thing we are ahead of the game in is science, the medical field and technology. Even though we are exceeding in the medical field, we lack on the mental medical side of the spectrum.

Mental disorders are different in each individual. There is anxiety, schizophrenia, depression, and autism. In the article Are We Homogenizing the Global View of a Normal Mind? Professor Murali Doraiswamy states that there is as many mental disorder as there is to fungi. Doraiswamy claims that America’s view of mental illness is the same. The purpose for presenting the idea of out of fungi’s subspecies, scientist have only classified about five percent is to create the point of the overwhelming different types of theses disorders. As the years progress so does the multiple different categories of metal disorders.

Studies have shown America to view mental disorders in a different perspective compared to one’s in Britain. An experiment took place with a set of people who simply had an alcohol problem, mood swings, and hysterical paralysis of one arm. Sixty-nine percent of American’s classified this as schizophrenia while British labeled six percent. Metal disorders exists, but how do we differentiate a poor habit by an actual mental illness. The perspective America has on mental disorders is flawed in a various different ways. As soon as someone receives a hint of different behavior, that individual is attached with this label. We label the problem of an individual based off the symptoms without getting to the core of the true problem. It is disturbing to think of the people who have been misperscibed in the past. I have experience in my own life where I have seen this gone out of hand.

The other side of this argument can be seen as the affects mental illness has had on our society. Mental illness can be compared to a fungus other ways as well. Doraiswamy made the comparison of mental illness, this was not his intentions but are highly accurate. Theses two things oddly have much in common. Not because a person who has mental illness should be seen as someone as abstract. Like fungus, mental illness can that takes the life out of something else. This is exactly what depression does, it attaches to someone, grabs the negativity energy it needs to keep someone in an isolated state until that person reaches their breaking point. It slowly sucks things out, takes opportunity away and emotion. Some people’s breaking points are taking their own life. Some people have an out break of anger. My own mother when I was a junior in high school. Depression is a fungus that grows in your brain. Depression, along with all mental illness is a pesticide.

Many people don’t understand the concept of depression, anxiety, and schizophrenia because they ignorant or ignore it’s existence. It is hard for people to understand that metal disorders exist. Some people have never personally experienced it. Depression can portray as someone who is extremely sad and overly sensitive. The fact people are unable to the see physical disability in someone opens the mind for people to firmly believe it doesn’t exist, but it can impact someone physically. A person experiencing a serious season of depression may only eat, sleep, and watch TV. This individual could be seen to have an actually physically disability if they were doing the same thing, but just in a hospital bed. Mental illness is extremely visible. It is evident in someone suffering from schizophrenia. People with this disorder often are seen talking to themselves or to the point of screaming random thoughts.

Fungus is a parasite, and so is mental illness. Someone  that has schizophrenia see’s the side affects their whole life. Someone who is clinically depressed or has anxiety is effected in every day-to-day life. Much like someone who is going through a tremendous surgery or serious injury, the evidence that they are in pain is because of their inabaility to go places, in a setting of a hospital, on the couch and having people bring them what they need. There seems to be a sense of sadness to the event that took place to make someone be in this position. It is the same for someone experience a mental disorder. People think that a person who is sick with illness is placing their own self in the situation that they are unwilling to try and be better. If people would understand that mental illness is chemical. Than who would dare say this to someone suffering with depression, autism, schizophrenia or anxiety? They can not help it.

The point to understanding the ugliness to mental illness like fungi is if our society is able to have a better understanding, then we would be a step closer to properly treating it. Can you imagine what it would be like to treat someone with liver cancer like they have brain cancer? Any misdiagnosis is harmful to our bodies, mentally and physically. This known fact applies to mental illness as well. My own mom was misdiagnosis over the span of two years. Her medication reacted with her body from projectile vomiting, emotion breakdowns followed by memory loss, and a numbness to herself that kept her in depression. The opposite of what this medication is suppose to be made for. If my mother hadn’t been misdiagnosed or if a doctor cared enough to deeply understand what she was experiencing, all of this could of been prevented. Our society needs people to start caring more, and not throw a prescription pill at the fist person they see.

Mental illness is so prevalent in our culture that we have even found Prozac in America’s water supply. Who's knows how many of these piles were prescribed inaccurately. It seems like our drug industry is just giving out pills left and right to who shows even a sign of “suspicious behavior.”

The solution to our problem in this fearful society is to study more how groups and individual brain work. Grasping the idea of mental illness can be a solution to many problems we face through out America's culture. Anxiety and worry begin create problems within problems that we are losing sleep over not worth losing. In Systematic Thinking About How We *Package* Our Worries by Mary Catherine Bateson, she discusses topics of issues that we are facing in our country, but the bigger issue being how we approach the problems we face.

One topic Bateson focuses on is global warming. The word global warming itself  communicates a far too comfortable meaning to people, and words of “extreme climate change and conditions" is what really grabs people's attention. Bateson states that seriousness of global warming may cause us to enter a nuclear warfare, and even this still is not society true concern.

Global warming, or extreme climate change solution does not start at surface level. The concern and tactic that needs to be done to help people understand the serve danger of these events taking place in our lives is to psychologically understand how individual's brains function. The simple answer to solve global warming is to take action steps to reduce our waste, turn off lights, use more efficient light bulbs, manage the water supply and the list goes so on. Bateson states in order for our society to be able to take these action steps, there needs to be an understanding of social psychology. Our country runs off of fear. The reason our society does not understand the significance of climate change is because fear has not caused anyone to act. These steps will not take place until our society understands the seriousness of them. Bateson makes the point of the word global warming itself being too nice of a word to enable someone to take action. Once it is worded differently to rapid climate change and severe weather conditions, does it begin to capture people’s attention. It is saddening that our society has become fear driven.

For example, the fear of terrorism has created our culture to react to the point of banning Muslims and making plans to do so.  The fear of the over population of our country and immigrants stealing jobs has produced the idea of building a wall. The core to the reaction of our society is fear. Once we understand the social psychology of fear and anxiety, then we will be able to tackle our problems. The reaction of culture to band Muslims rather than make a difference in climate change is a prime example of this. The reason one is more instilled in our society than another is because fear has created an illusion in the eyes of our society. It has created an irrational problem bigger than the other that is actually is the real issue.

The fact of intense climate change is evident. 2017 is reaching the point to be the second-hottest year. The temperature is raising above the average as years go by, and what Scientist thought to be a natural increase and decrease of temperature is only increasing. On the other hand, Since 9/11, Muslim-American terrorism have taken 33 lives in the United States, out of more than 180,000 murders committed in the United States during the same time period. Even in the mist of these facts, the response of Americans remains. In society's head, terrorist is what we should be making laws against and global warning is just a “hoax.” This fear has enabled people groups to retaliate.

In the Article The New Age of Anxiety Gary Klein argues that we already have to many worries to worry about that keep us up at night. The problem is not internal but external. The reason he believes this is because the Media and Science drive our worry. Everyday science creates this new list of fears, then the media is happy to generate it to our society. The problem is the media is highlighting the wrong things. It sounds terrible that we have to control our society by using fear to grab the attention of the audience, but this is what times have come to. People no longer listen to facts but listen to the producer. Klein states in his article that even a good hint of news is glazed with fear. We finally get rid of a terrible disease, but the media places back in our minds that terrorist are going to come into our country and bring it back. Fear is what grabs the attention of the audience. Fear and anxiety about situations is what drives people to make decision. We decided a safe place to live. We do not Muslims in our country because we want to be safe. We want stricter gun laws so more people can be safe. We want to protect the traditional marriage. The motive behind America is ultimately safety. The way to enforce people to make the right decisions, is to use fear for our good. Klein wants there to be no fear at all, but just like someone can use stress as a source of motivation. Our society can use fear as a factor of change.

Fear and anxiety is what drives us to make decisions and be motivated to make a change. Once we understand to communicate what our society should be fearing, this is when progress will begin to take place. This will cause a shift in action. Fear and anxiety often blind individual's to what the real problem is. This can happen even in the mist of facts being laid directly in someone's face. Denial is inevitable to happen because each human in embedded with the human nature to believe that there way is the right way. Once our society receives a better understanding on how to communicate facts with fear, instead of attempting to shove facts down someones throat that is set in there ways, this is when people will grasp the understanding of the true reality. Like most things in life, to find the solution to a problem it starts at the core. We have to understand the way our society thinks in order for there to be a change.

What are you worried about? The annual Edge.org question for 2013. As usual, some interesting answers.