I don't doubt for one minute that Dwight Lewis, editorial page editor for The Tennessean, has his heart in the right place when it comes to mental health, homelessness and education.



However, I don't believe the mental health system in Tennessee, or in this country for that matter, faces a severe crisis. I base this on the fact that defining what a "mental health system" is remains not only subjective, but driven by politics and money. Add to this, there's no longer a stigma attached to those who seek mental health services.

Lewis has his heart light on when he writes, "The mentally ill shouldn't have to want for care." But does this mean anyone labeled mentally ill should never be without pills? In terms of who the mentally ill are and what mental illness is, the jury is completely out. Despite passage of the politically driven Mental Health Parity Act, a huge difference exists between treating a broken leg and treating symptoms of depression.

According to Peter R. Breggin, M.D., author of Your Drug May Be Your Problem, "Many psychiatric drugs can lead to depression, involving a loss of enjoyment of life, feelings of gloom and hopelessness, and even suicidal feelings or attempts.'' If we're actually to believe government statistics and advocacy groups like NAMI, we're as mentally ill as we have ever been or thought to be.

I take serious issue with NAMI on a variety of issues. Their 2009 report pushes the same misguided statistics we've heard for years. It's simply not true that "One in four Americans experience mental illness at some point in their lives." And it's not based on honest science or objective reality.

Right now, we've got a problem. NAMI isn't the only voice for mental health. According to Kelly Patricia O'Meara, author of Psyched Out: How Psychiatry Sells Mental Illness and Pushes Pills That Kill, from 1996 to 1999 , NAMI "received financial support from 18 drug firms." How much, you might ask? Try $11.72 million.

Color me silly, but there's a clear connection between mental-health advocacy groups and false government statistics. This is where the severe crisis rests in any examination of what ails our mental health system.

The mental health system as it is defined in the mainstream media makes the mental health crisis primarily fiction. It's like a sponge that won't completely dry. No matter much money you spend on it, we just stay soaked.

It's time to find the sunlight.