Tags
bipolar, expoitation, Instagram, mental illness, mentally ill, paranoia, photography, schizophrenia], substance abuse, time
This morning my husband handed me a copy of the February 12th issue of Time magazine that he had opened to a story. “Read this and let me know what you think,” he said. The title of the article is, “Her Mother’s Mind.” It is about a photographer, Melissa Spitz and the pictures she takes of her mother and posts on Instagram (apparently she has over 14,000 followers). Melissa’s mother has the diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression and substance abuse. Melissa has posted over 6,000 pictures of her mother online, the account is called, “You Have Nothing to Worry About.”
I haven’t seen the Instagram account, but I assume Time magazine tried to pick some of the pictures they thought were representative of the project. There are six photographs in total. The largest photo is the photographer in the mirror with her mother. Her mother has clips and rollers in her hair and is putting something on her bare face (lotion, or something). The photographer is slightly in the background with her camera. Two of the pictures are of Deborah (Melissa’s mother) smoking – one in a car and one in a chair with a blanket full of what I can only assume are cigarette burns.
Let me just say that I hate this project. I find it exploitive in every way. First, I think Deborah looks like an average woman; except one image where she is in what appears to be a hospital bed with her arms stretched toward the ceiling. People can disagree with me on this, and I’m sure some do, but I think this is the worst form of sensationalizing mental illness. I had some pictures of me when I was psychotic, and they haunt me. I look lost, I look far away, and I look ill. Is that how I look today? No. Would I want those pictures posted online for everyone to see what a “crazy” woman looks like? No.
The article says that Deborah occasionally asks Melissa if the photographs are really helping people and Melissa tells her yes. There is a quote in the article from Melissa, “This is my way of coping, of making art out of chaos.” It sounds to me like the project has more to do with the photographer and her wants, dreams, desires, etc. than it does with Deborah whose most vulnerable and intimate states are made public.
It’s easier to distance yourself when you put things behind the lens of a camera. I feel sorry for this woman’s struggle, but I feel worse for her mother. When I was psychotic I became convinced that my mate was filming me without my knowledge to put on a reality TV show. What a horrible thing to know that this is actually true.
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I would hate it, too.
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I have no problem using my own pain and mental illness in my ‘art’ to help myself or others. But exploiting someone else… I would consider that to be wrong.
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I love hearing/reading/seeing people use their own stories for art. I write about my mental illness all the time.
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I agree whole heartedly with you, Rebecca.
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My response to it was anger. 😦
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Mine, too. I keep thinking of the time when someone asked to see our daughter’s artwork to share with a psychology class at the university. Our daughter said no. She said she would let her see her artwork at our home but she could not share it with the class. As it turned out, the person who made the request seemed disinterested once she saw that our daughter’s artwork was, for the most part, very colorful and hopeful. There was nothing frightening or macabre about her art.
I’m so glad you wrote this post. Again, I fully agree with you.
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I had a look at the Instagram page, and it certainly made me feel uncomfortable. It seems to capture both good times and bad, without overly focusing on either, but I would certainly not feel comfortable having my illness visually laid bare for all the world to see.
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Thank you so much for checking it out and telling us what you saw! I’m not on Instagram and could only go from what was printed in Time. I appreciate that you searched it out. Thanks!
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As a caregiver I could never imagine doing this to my son. Some things are personal and private and are not ours to share as a caregiver or family member.
It brings attention to the writer, but clearly at her mothers expense. I suppose it could be her way of coping with everything (I don’t know her story), but once online it is open for the world to see and judge.
Seems sad to me to capture vulnerable moments and then share them for all to see. I just know this is not something I would ever chose to do to my son. There are other ways to heal, help, cope etc. I think it is the use of photos that is bothersome to me.
Thanks for posting.
Diana F.
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How horribly sad. I hope you send this to Time magazine!
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That is so sad,Rebecca! It upsets me.I would hate for someone to do that to me or you.
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