21 11 / 2012
I have spent hours looking through stumble upon, its so addictive and the fantastic photography that is on there amazes me. I absolutely love photography and would love to have a go at it, see if i was any good. For now though, i think il just admire the photography of others such as these.
25 6 / 2012
12 years yesterday my grandad died, aged 59. “cherished memories of devoted husband, dad and grandad David Leach who passed away 24th june 2000 aged 59 years. Dearloy loved. Sadly missed” miss him loads. The best grandad in the world. :)
27 4 / 2012
Bedlam
In 1337 the hospital Bethlem Royal Hospital opened however at the time it was referred to Bedlam which is where this phrase originiated from. By the 14th century the hospital was treating the ‘insane’, patients didn’t often stay for more than 12 months and although they recovered they were treated very badly and it was renowned for its cruelty and inhumane treatment. Ex-patients were referred to as ‘bedlamites’, the hospital remained small for a long period of time and there were no more than 24 patients in 1620. The patients were seen as ‘insane’ and the hospital use to guarantee a large amount of visitors to view ‘madness’, the patients who were seen to be violent and dangerous were restrained with iron manacles and chains to the wall or floor however at the time Bethlem Royal Hospital was the only institution for those suffering from mental illnesses, the only other options were madhouses which were open till the 18th century. There were certain behaviours and ways of living that were seen as ‘madness’ and ‘insanity’ including homosexuality. Psychatrists views were that homosexuality represented a mental disorder and the evidence that created this idea was largely based on theoretical considerations that believed that homosexuality was a negative outcome and therefore there must be a pathological cause of this. Gaw, A, (1993) Much of the early research based around this ignored women and even today it can be seen that research and discussion focuses on male homosexuality, this suggests that there is even today there is an inequality based around gender regarding mental illness. However since the 1970’s there has been great change in views concerning homosexuality and although there is still negative attitudes towards gay and lesbian individuals, it is very unlikely that the sexuality choice is seen to be a form of mental illness. The views on mental health were so negative and incorrect many years ago and even though there is a small amount of individuals who see mental illness in a negative light, society, science and psychiatry has grown extensively and attitudes have slowly began to change.
