Depression - myth, reality, or a little of both?

Which is vastly different from stating as a fact that most parents in the western countries medicate their kids and throw them into the system.

Reg medications - there is nothing wrong in considering meds or having the child in a more restrictive environment if that's what all parties agree upon. If the child is showing self injurious behavior or harming others or even better with certain meds - parents choose that route, regardless of the country. It's a hard choice and I empathize with parents who have to go down that path and I certainly will not use words like medicate the child and throw into the system loosely.

Like I said - I was talking in terms of the social stigma in terms of accepting an issue and labels etc. Its not there here. People with issues have challenges everywhere. If what I stated made it feel like life is a bed of roses for people with MH issues in the west, I'm sorry.
Sticking to the topic of social stigma and societal pressure and acceptance - all better outside India - that's what I meant.

By acceptance here you mean "placement". All of the above is related to funding especially for inner city Vs suburban schools. It's an issue with funding for FAPE. Not a social bias towards people with MH issues.
Btw - ARD process is long and placement determination is laborious. Doesn't mean it's discriminatory. Dropping services because milestones are met is included in the IEP which is a legal doc. It's something that you sign off on when you sign off on the iep. It's a list of legal jargon and is why you take your advocate with you.
Yes, the mandatory three day notice for ARD requests sucks but that's the rule and I get three days to prepare for the ard meeting. And placements change. All of which are annoying but isn't a societal bias.

Private schools? Yes unless they have trained staff they won't accept the child. And one person isn't enough. They need a team. Sucks big time.
Btw - no it's not because a child isn't true blue white that they are waitlisted in ones that accept sped kids. It's because they have a ratio of 1:3 and openings are hard to come by for anyone Caucasian or not.

I meant in a school that charges an annual fee of INR 15L the sped was segregated. No inclusion with gen ed peers. Why? Most kids with mild to moderate issues can tolerate gen ed for a part of the day, at least.

Which is the same everywhere. And that's how it should be. I'm glad you are finding the help and are working against the bias. I just felt it was more of a challenge when there wasn't a skeletal support system in the first place. I really admire your tenacity and strength. I couldn't have done it and kudos to you.
And - apologies if I inadvertently hurt you in any way. The last thing I want to do is hurt someone on the same journey as me. I'm sorry for all the struggles and biases from within and outside but I can see that with a parent like you, your kid is going to get all that he/she needs. I hope you have the right family support and the right social structure. This is a tough journey for everyone.

 

Did you mean "placement" here too?

In a small town in the right state, we do get services. It's not yet a federal mandate so let's all vote for the right president -in case anyone is still on the fence about this. Funding for sped services are the first to be cut if there is a cut in overall funding.
Inner city schools are the worst when it comes to services. FAPE funding is hopefully something all of us are looking at before picking our next president. Even if we don't use the public school system, it's an important aspect in how a country progresses.

Some states have a state mandates that make it mandatory for employers to cover private therapies etc. Some states have Medicaid benefits regardless of parent income for mh issues in kids. Some states provide state mandated therapies - they have the money. Look at the blue states if you are ever considering a placement.
The newer healthcare, mental health and FAPE laws that are proposed by the democrats aim at lessening this discrepancy. There is also a move to decriminalize any crime committed as a result of MH issues and to look at treating and supporting the mental well being of the person. The Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act has the potential to make it mandatory to cover mh services life line without an age limit. Same as with what happens with other health conditions now. And when it's a federal mandate, it's all across just not selected states.

No the mental Health support in this country isn't where it should be either. Let's all think before we cast that ballot in November. Sigh I live in a deep red

 

@Sparkle - busy day aheadbut just checking in. Not talking about academics and stress etc. Wondering what is wrong about kids with sped participating in games, art etc with other kids. The school had both reg and sped and had a very good iep for academics.
My issue was also that outside of school we get good support in terms of advocates for school, support groups for parents and siblings, availability of community activities - in my case, my son is aware and wants to participate. Keeping him away will only make him aware that he's lesser. All of that put together we have a good system. Didn't want to rock the boat.
Reg, dropping services or lack of services, we don't have one on one for my son at all. I got a volunteer advocate to go go to school and sort it out with me. That awareness in the community is what I was talking about.

Brings me to my point, why don't you start a league with parents so kids can play something together. There maybe parents who have typical kids who are willing to participate. That way even when the kid is in a sped school, peer availability outside of school is there.
Oh and it's a myth that the education system is better in the US and there is no stress on academics or pressure. After a certain grade level stress of academics and focus on grades is there everywhere. Personally, I feel my older one was better off in India where things like IB isn't as stressful as the IB program that she currently is in. Up till 1;00 am doing homework last night.