Is There an Impetus for Founding a Paranoia Hotline and/or Paranormal Institute?
*** Discussion includes talk of paranoia***
Another idea I have had along the lines of paranoia is in consideration of whether or not any aspects of paranoia are based on “the truth.” What if my six-year-old child within has access to paranormal thoughts or heightened intuition like a blind person may have exceptional musical abilities? What if other people with mood disorders or developmental disabilities have access to paranormal thoughts or heightened intuition? What if there exist bits of truth, albeit highly fractured, that are hidden in paranoia? Even if there is no paranormal thought pattern for behavioral health or developmental disabilities patients, what if we were able to develop a “Paranoia Hotline”? People who have paranoid or paranormal (if they exist) thoughts would have a place to discharge and release or let go of these thoughts.
As an example, consider if 25 people call in with the same fear (this is a fictive example) that the water supply in Augusta is not safe. The sheer number of people with the same paranoid thoughts may be enough to signal authorities that there is in fact some tangible threat to Augusta’s water that needs to be addressed.
In this example, consider a man living in Minneapolis-Saint Paul who is telling his therapist that he envisions a strange color in the water in some US city. Consider that three people in Boston call in with the fear that there is a strange odor coming from the Augusta water supply. Consider two people in Newark call in reporting that Augusta is unsafe from terrorists. Consider that one person has indicated a criminal who lives on East Woodland Road and is targeting the Augusta water supply. Alone any one of these thoughts could be considered paranoia. But putting these stories together possibly, possibly may mean there is an underlying element of “truth” to the paranoid perceptions. Perhaps the threat to the Augusta water supply is clear in the aggregate of these reported thoughts in a way that would not be the case for any individual report of paranoia. If these paranoid perceptions have at their root a real concern or a real threat, perhaps that threat can be identified before harm sets in. If this were to be the case that aggregate accounts of paranoia or paranormal thought allow crime prevention, a Paranormal Institute would more than pay for itself.
This should be a “win-win” for everybody. The behaviorally or developmentally ill have a place or a person specifically designed to listen to the dynamics of paranoid thoughts, review them or at a minimum unload them. This creates a great sense of relief for the patient just in the downloading of the paranoid thought. First Responders could create a database of all the reported paranoid thoughts and track their various data attributes. If there were data trends in the data attributes, it may be that the information reported could prove helpful in preventing some sort of security threat or breach to society. First Responders ideally might get more accurate and earlier aggregate data on various threats.
Such a Paranormal Institute if found to be warranted may more than pay for itself in a matter of months or years. The extra funding that may develop as part of this Institute could be designated to making the Cohort Model and Graduated Reentry Model discussed in an upcoming post a reality.
Even if the data shows that there are no “paranormal” aspects to paranoia, such an institute may still be of use. The discharge and letting go of paranoid thoughts to a concerned party at a Paranoia Hotline may allow the patient relief from a life-threatening episode. Even if my hopes of uncovering paranormal data trends from paranoia do not bear out, there still may be great value in a Paranoia Hotline. The Paranoia Hotline would ease the minds of the person reporting his or her paranoia. Meanwhile First Responders may be provided extra time to assess and address what could be the precursor to a society-threatening event.
All in all, I am not in a position to know if paranormal thoughts are a portion of what makes up paranoia. I alone am not capable of making that assessment. But, First Responders with a database of reported paranoia could readily research the data and make that determination. Whether the data bears out for a Paranormal Institute or a Paranoia Hotline, either way the patient and society win.
Mental Health is Health 