

In Nellie Bly’s “Ten Days in a Mad-House”, the audience is shown how mental illness was thought of and treated in the late 1800’s. During this time period, a large majority of multiple were subject to inadequate care and mental and physical abuse in state in sponsored mental health institutions. Caretakers took advantage of the feeble-minded patients in these facilities. Mental health is a very serious issue and is now treated with the multitude of therapies available to patients. The current focus on mental health now helps many people to receive excellent care, which prevents many instances of self-harm, as well as harm to others. There has been exponential progression and serious attention towards mental healthcare; this can be shown through the evolution of treatment plans in mental health institutions and hospitals. 

The past treatments and therapies are very different from those accessible to the public currently. In the past, patients were treated, but rather abused as shown in Nellie Bly’s “Ten Days in a Mad-House”. The conditions at the Blackwell Island Asylum, as described by Bly, indicted that patients were beat and mistreated by the medical staff in the institution. For example, this is illustrated when Bly and the other women is forced to take an extremely cold and uncomfortable bath without any consideration towards them. A further example of the inhumane treatment of the women in the asylum is the “long cable rope” and “belts locked around the women’s waists”. This hints to the comparison of the women being treated like prisoners, because someone who is being treated and helped would never have an experience like this, which appears to be a punishment. The physical abuse towards the women is shown Miss Mayard was “pinched until her face was crimson”. This physical act had a negative impact on her rather than a positive effect, because “she suffered a terrible headache” and “grew worse” after. There was also verbal abuse the occurred in the asylum, when a patient who is suffering is told “Shut up, you hussy”. This demonstrates the lack of compassion and care for the patients, which is also shown when Miss Mayard is first admitted to the asylum without a solid explanation. Furthermore, the journal “The History of Mental Illness: From Skull Drills to Happy Pills” by Allison M. Foerschner, describes the brutal physical punishments used on the patients. One of these treatments was the use of the electric, which was used as a treatment for the patients. This supposed treatment, did not really help patients, but it caused them serious physical pain. The journal also describes how untaught staff in asylums in was used, which is very problematic because they did not know how to cope and work with the mentally ill. In the journal, it states that in the past mental institutions were used as form of punishment, instead of a place to help mental patients surpass their diseases. The mental torture of having no visitors allowed as described in the journal is horrific. The patients had zero visitors, which meant the had experienced extreme isolation. Another physical punishment mentioned in the article was the submerging of the mental ill in hot or cold water to cure their illnesses. A further form of physical abuse in the article was the use of threatening verbal tactics towards the patients, which was very cruel and harmful. The present treatments for mental health are far kinder and helpful than those in the late 1800’s. The “Draft National Health Policy 2001-III: Mental Health: Serious Misconceptions”, by Bhargavi V. Davar, presents the known mental health treatments for patients. These new treatments have various mental health professionals that assist in treating the different aspects of the patient’s health, with a specific plan. These plans don’t just help the patient’s psychological recovery, but also give the patient strong mental growth and allow them to become more independent, responsible individuals in society. In the article “Modern Asylum” by Christine Montross, it is mentioned “that people should receive treatment in the least restrictive setting possible”. A restriction-free environment allows the minds of these patients to ease and concentration on the tasks they are performing; even when professionals step in to assist, restraining patients is avoided. This behavior towards the mental health patients sharply contrasts from past behavior towards mental health patients, as described in Bly’s writings.  

The treatments of mental health back when the text was written are now considered very barbaric and traumatizing for the patients. They appear to do the opposite of aiding the patients throughout recovery. There was little to no regard to the patient and their stability. This shapes text by portraying a hostile and violent living environment, instead of the perceived notations and beliefs about the environment of a mental institution. The historical context of the text evokes a strong of feeling of sympathy for the audience. This is because the situations presented in the text compared to today’s standards appear to be sub-par. The abuse of tactics used in the past are now frowned upon today, because they are seen as being very counterproductive in helping mental patients recuperate from their illnesses. The historical period of the text indicates the misconceived perception of mental illness during the time that the text was written. This is demonstrated by the abuse experienced by the women in the asylum. The gap of understanding mental illness has started to close, because physicians and the general public are now viewing it as much more serious. This is pertinent, because many people that suffer from  mental illness are able to receive the help they need. 

Mental health is a very important issue that needs to be dealt with in today’s society because it effects the lives of large array of people. The progression of mental health techniques has benefited many people and will continue to do so. Also, as time progresses, mental health treatment will continue to improve not only the lives of mental health patients but also their friends and family. The awareness for mental health is currently what is leading all of the progression and advances in mental health. Therefore, we should continue encouraging mental health awareness in order to keep benefiting our population. It is also important to raise awareness for mental illness, because it still a very misunderstood disease. This misunderstanding is what leads to the physical and verbal abuse of people who suffer from serious mental health conditions. Therefore, if awareness raised many will become educated and more sensitive to those who suffer of mental illness. In the past, mental health was not taken very seriously, which meant many people suffered inhumane treatments that caused more harm than good to them. Currently, it is society’s duty to help the mentally ill as opposed what has been done in the past. When this is done, many will be kept from suffering and inflicting self-harm. This will help in having a more physically and mentally healthy population as a whole. Society being healthy as a whole will have a positive ripple effect, that can lead to advances in the way that people’s lives are lived.
