Mental Illness In Colonial America

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The year is 1615 in Colonial America. Colonists face several different problems: war with natives, rivalry with Spain, inability to adapt to the new climate...and, for Colonists suffering from a mental illness, there was the very real fear of being killed or thrown out into the wild. During this time period (and for many thousands of years before), the explanation for mental illness was simple--clearly a demon had possessed their soul(Leupo). As time progressed, stigmas around mental illness progressed as well. Sometimes for the better, sometimes not so much. Nowadays, while most scholars agree that treatment has drastically improved, there is heated debate over what rights mentally ill persons can and should hold. Such rights include the enforcement of unwanted treatment, …show more content…

If you do not reach any of the requirements stated above, you will not be supported by employers nor will you be compensated for any ailments (Office of Women’s Health). However, even if you do meet one or more of these requirements, there’s no promise that your employer will accommodate you anyways, as they have the right to claim they don’t know about your illness, so they don’t have to help you. Public secondary schools tend to have more lenient programs to help mentally ill students thrive. Speaking from personal experience with the 504 program, I don’t think I would have passed any of my classes most of my senior year if I hadn’t had teachers who were legally obligated to help me. In the 504 program, students with any disability that could impair their ability to learn are offered more opportunities to succeed in school. While it isn’t a perfect program and not every teacher respects it, it’s definitely a good thing to be implemented in

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