General The Use Of Mental Illnesses

[Junberia]

Attention does not help mental illness, professional help does. If they truly are suffering- playing on a Minecraft server is not the proper way to cope and the ban can give them time to reflect and seek help. She did not say to ban people with mental illnesses and I feel as though you are misconstruing her words heavily. Simply, to ban players with mental illnesses in their usernames because they are inappropriate and are not the proper way to convey that you are suffering from something.

I'm not really a good therapist and typer but here's my idea. Basically on people who talk about themselves having real issues and problems and coping through depression, they need to be helped. Yes, talking about them in global may not be a good idea and might result in a warning, but a ban might get too far. From my perspective, they, the depressed ones need our encouragement and comfort. Therefore, we maybe should help them out, instead of banning them. But then you might be asking, how? Well definitely not in global. As in, we could suggest these people on making rps or message us for some support and ways on how to overcome in. Not just to ignore those people and to make them more depressed.

 

[iNeedSpeed]

Attention does not help mental illness, professional help does. If they truly are suffering- playing on a Minecraft server is not the proper way to cope and the ban can give them time to reflect and seek help. She did not say to ban people with mental illnesses and I feel as though you are misconstruing her words heavily. Simply, to ban players with mental illnesses in their usernames because they are inappropriate and are not the proper way to convey that you are suffering from something.

What do you think professional help is? Think before you talk. Also how are you gonna “discipline” someone with a bad username if they had a bad word they would of been banned what do you think she means?

 

[Emviar]

After reconsidering this stuff, I don't think it's reasonable to ban players who have mental illnesses in their names (or force them to change their names) unless the username is blatantly making fun of people with that illness (for example, "AutismIsFunny" or "LolAnorexia").

There's a difference between mentioning something bad and making fun of it. That may be a fine line, mind you, but the line does exist. Not every mention of a mental illness actually crosses that line.

I just hope this server doesn't become a place where the people who need to mention their mental illnesses can't do so. It's already become a place where we can't whisper a hint of religious views (not even arguing over religions) without being warned by staff. We can't just silence everything bad/controversial. Sometimes, real conversations need to happen and having "DepressedCow" as your username might just start a meaningful conversation.

I might not be changing anyone's mind about this, and that's fine. This is just my opinion. I certainly do not stand for anyone making fun of people with mental illnesses. I think it is cruel and destructive. We should realize, however, that there's a difference between mentioning something and making fun of it.

 

[snowopsia]

I feel like it should be noted that a lot of people jokingly refer to mental illnesses that they have as a way of coping. Uses of usernames which are blatantly making fun of or mocking certain illnesses should not be tolerated, but I find it unfair that people cant have those names. It's also important to remember that people with the names "Depressed[name]" aren't always referring to the mental illness, but rather the actual word for depressed, similar to those called "Sad[name]". Same with people like "Anxious[name]", they may refer to the feeling of being anxious rather than just actually having anxiety.

As someone who's also experienced and gone through with different forms of mental illness, I don't really mind people that do it, as long as they aren't blatantly making fun of it like "Suicidal[name]" or something obnoxious. I see where you're coming from, but I just personally don't agree that people should be restricted.

Edit:

Don't agree with the "Anorexic[name]" or "Bulimic[name]" ones, those are just disrespectful and offensive, in my opinion. Nobody should be proud to have a mental illness, especially not eating disorders.

 

[ClockworkFlips]

Maybe this shouldn't be a set rule. Maybe there shouldn't be a set rule for this. I've found lately that there ares many cases on this server where set rules are too broad or just aren't good enough. And since the server isn't the biggest one out there, I think maybe some sort of Special Cases idea should be added. Special Cases as in, things that go above and beyond the rules. Sure, there could be a rule that says "Don't make fun of autism or ur banned", but, then you have people who have their name as something that plays with the word a bit, like Absol said above. It is a coping mechanism, I've seen it first hand. A friend of mine, Jacob, has his name in Overwatch as something I won't say here but it is a play with his mental illness. So, why a Special Case? I believe that the server should trust the staff to make the right call in situations like this. I believe a staff member, if one comes across someone who has a mental illness in their name, should either report it to a higher staff member for their more experienced judgement, or they should just judge the name themselves. Some things simply cannot be solved by just smacking a +1 for another rule and calling it a day, and on a server where I think usernames like this aren't that common, I think this is the best solution. Opinions?

 

[Arujann]

What do you think professional help is? Think before you talk. Also how are you gonna “discipline” someone with a bad username if they had a bad word they would of been banned what do you think she means?

Professional help is not attention, it’s a coping mechanism- putting an illness in your username is not.

 

[Emviar]

Uses of usernames which are blatantly making fun of or mocking certain illnesses should not be tolerated, but I find it unfair that people cant have those names.

I agree - there's a difference between mentioning it and making fun of it. The staff can make a decision as to whether or not the name is making fun of people with a mental illness, but I don't think people should be completely restricted from using those in their names.

I would suggest, then, that a segment is added to the official rules, specifically stating that the use of mental illnesses in a username that blatantly makes fun of people with that illness should not be tolerated, but that users are not completely restricted from using them.

 

[ClockworkFlips]

Professional help is not attention, it’s a coping mechanism- putting an illness in your username is not.

For some people, it can be.

I agree - there's a difference between mentioning it and making fun of it. The staff can make a decision as to whether or not the name is making fun of people with a mental illness, but I don't think people should be completely restricted from using those in their names.

I would suggest, then, that a segment is added to the official rules, specifically stating that the use of mental illnesses in a username that blatantly makes fun of people with that illness should not be tolerated, but that users are not completely restricted from using them.

I'm 100% on board with that

 

[iNeedSpeed]

Professional help is not attention, it’s a coping mechanism- putting an illness in your username is not.

I never said that it was but “attention seekers” do. Also going to get help is bringing your problems to someone’s “ATTENTION” so nice try

 

[Twixela]

I understand where your coming from, it's pretty sad that players have the need to joke or talk about this. But what would their punishment be? Would they just get a good warning? But as a person who have multiple relatives suffering currently I know what you mean

 

[ACqnadianKitty]

Woah. I've gotten a lot of responses to this, and can't exactly reply to all. So I'll add in a few key factors. Firstly; usernames containing anything like Autism and such like that is not allowed. So I feel like slowly we should progress into making Mental Health usernames inappropriate as well. Obviously these will be new rule changes, and so the slow progression into them is much needed. If usernames like such were not allowed, a ban I would think would not be implemented right away. We may ask people to change their user first, within the first month or so of this change in. But after awhile- and people should know the rules. A ban is best suggested. Why? Topics that I've seen in usernames, contain Anorexia, or Depressed. Both of those can start very harsh comments, or even arguments. Their user may be true to the person. But if they feel the need to tell someone about it, putting it in a Minecraft username is not the best idea. If they need to talk to someone, theres many phone lines, but as well as texting lines to talk to. Theres also a few groups I've seen where people can talk to others and get help and advice. There's of course Counsellors, which do wonder. Though, these are not always cheap. But for those in school, most schools do in fact have a school counsellor.

Secondly, the topic over Mental Health can be a very touchy one. I feel like appropriately discussing the topic, is perfectly fine. Its a matter of respect for everyone. I've seen in the past couple days people talking about killing themselves and stuff like that. I feel personally like joking about that sort of issue, should not be prohibited on PZ. Now, they may actually feel that way. And if so, talking on a Minecraft server about it, is not the best solution. I've previously mentioned many ways to get help. But you can also talk to parents/guardians, teachers, or any trusted adults.

Lastly, yes. I saw at some point by banning such usernames, or shutting down topics would be possibly 'shutting out those who need help'. I've stated many times, a Minecraft server is not the best place to get help. The majority of people who you're talking to, most likely do not know you very well, and if something serious was to come up. There's not any real easy way for us to get you help. The ways I suggested are much more efficient in receiving help.

This is all just my opinion, and I enjoy hearing others, as it has changed my thoughts a bit on this. Thank you xx

 

[Aluux]

Can we stay on the topic of the discussion please, Thank you

 

[Emviar]

Can we stay on the topic of the discussion please, Thank you

...? I'm pretty sure we are on topic right now

 

[Aluux]

...? I'm pretty sure we are on topic right now

It wasn’t aimed at everyone, there were just some people who were drifting off the topic of having them in your usernames

 

[Hclly]

Mental illnesses shouldn't be joked about and i believe a rule should be put in place, as it's offensive and respect should be shown to those who are suffering. Completely agree that this should be implemented and should not be joked about at any time.

 

[allykardashian]

People have different ways of coping with their mental illness though? Not everyone is ready to get professional help. I myself am currently suffering with different forms of mental illnesses but am not ready to get the professional help I need.

You can't completely get rid of it but if its used in a offensive way then you should definitely do something about it like banning or warning, but you should not get rid of it completely. I found people on here who have helped me with my mental illnesses and improved me so much throughout it. But if people are in need of help: help push them towards the professional help.

 

[Emviar]

It wasn’t aimed at everyone, there were just some people who were drifting off the topic of having them in your usernames

Oh, okay.

Mental illnesses shouldn't be joked about

You're right, they shouldn't be joked about, but mentioning it in a username doesn't always count as joking about it. See the conversation above for more examples.

People have different ways of coping with their mental illness though?

You can't completely get rid of it but if its used in a offensive way then you should definitely do something about it like banning or warning, but you should not get rid of it completely.

Yep, I agree.

 

[Hclly]

Oh, okay.

You're right, they shouldn't be joked about, but mentioning it in a username doesn't always count as joking about it. See the conversation above for more examples.

Yep, I agree.

If they're clearly joking about it, then something should be done about it.

 

[Emviar]

If they're clearly joking about it, then something should be done about it.

Of course; if it's blatantly making fun of people with mental illnesses, then it shouldn't be tolerated.

 

[Turtlehh]

I completely agree with you. Also, no names with swear words, or anything that could disturb other people should be allowed (I don't know if they have already implemented that, but I once saw a username with the F word in it).