MovieChat Forums > Girl, Interrupted (2000) Discussion > Committed for being Ambivalent?

Committed for being Ambivalent?


So she was sent to a mental hospital all because she was ''ambivalent'' about what she was going to do wither her life. I know she overdosed once but the overriding theme for her being kept there was because she was unsure of what to do in terms of a life plan. I saw not an ounce of mental illness in her. Is this how they treated people back in the 60's when they didn't want a cookie cutter life?

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Yes

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Yes. The mental hospital system was widely abused, back in the day when a person could be committed on the word of a family member. If you wanted to get control of a family member's money, sieze custody of the kids, have an affair in peace, or if you were just sick of dealing with your kid's shit, you packed them off to the nuthouse!

Of course, now we've gone from one bad extreme to another, and there are no mental hospital beds available to those who really need them. Because the people who need mental hospitals the most don't have the money to pay for care.

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