I was looking at the basic gun laws for each state and noticed NY says you can’t buy a handgun if you have ever “suffered any mental illness”
Does this mean a 28-year-old woman wouldn’t be allowed to own a handgun because she suffered from postpartum depression when she had a kid at 18?
Does this mean if someone, as a child, is diagnosed with the popular ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), which occurs in up to 10% of the population according to the National Institutes of Health, they’re not allowed to own a handgun in NY?
Does this mean if someone suffers from one of the many anxiety disorders, such as Acrophobia (fear of heights), Claustrophobia (fear of confined spaces), or Arachnophobia (fear of spiders), that they’re not allowed to own a handgun in NY? A study by the National Institute of Mental Health found that up to 18% of the population suffers from these types (phobias) of anxiety disorders and are the #1 most common mental illness for women, and #2 for men over 25.
Gypsy Girl: ADHD is unique in that everything about it is heavily questioned. Its vague list of symptoms which allows its diagnoses to be extremely subjective and inclusive (the fact that this life-long illness is present in up to 10% of the population (according to the National Institutes of Health)) seems to support), its treatment, to whether it is in fact even a disorder. It’s not like schizophrenia or some such where nobody (except anti-psychiatry people) really questions it.
mainah: The National Institute of Mental Health says phobias are the #1 most common mental illness in women of all ages, and #2 most common in men above 25. So your claim that phobias aren’t considered mental illnesses isn’t supported by reality. And it doesn’t say “if (you’re dangerous/have lingering symptoms/etc) “. It says “…ever suffered any mental illness”. Ever.
Larry: I wouldn’t mind a *supported* answer to any of those.