Imagine Mental Disorders As Houses: What Does That Look Like?

If we picture mental disorders as houses, depression would be the loneliest house. Fear would look like a suffocating prison. The house for insomnia was inhabited by clocks without hands for time would stand still there.

At least that’s what Federico Babina thought. Babina is an Italian architect. He wanted to show the world what it would look like if our minds suddenly became prisons.

Anyone who has ever suffered from one of these mental disorders will undoubtedly recognize himself in his interesting but impressive work of art. In fact, you don’t have to experience it yourself to understand it. After all, everyone will understand if they have ever come into contact with someone with Alzheimer’s, schizophrenia, autism spectrum disorder, a phobia, chronic insomnia and so on.

It is not uncommon to apply this metaphor. Mental disorders are then presented in the form of places where people become trapped, isolated or lost. Most people may find this obvious. Yet there are still others who do not see it and do not understand it. Whether we like it or not, mental disorders are still a taboo in our society.

Every person’s mind has thick walls that keep it separate from the world. That’s what Federico Babina believes. He wanted to use his art to represent the difficulties of these mental illnesses and disorders. He named this project ‘Archiatric’. It’s worth checking out.

The representation of mental disorders as houses

1. Depression

First, we look at depression. It is one of the most common mental disorders. The World Health Organization considers it an epidemic. They expect it to be one of the most widespread causes of disability in the next few years.

Many people do not know that a person with depression is more at risk for heart problems, diabetes and even substance use. So it is a serious reality. In addition, it greatly affects a person’s quality of life and takes up almost everything…

2. Fear

For Federico Babina, fear is a house in chains. It is surrounded by barbed wire. In this way it traps the inhabitants and suffocates them. As you can see, the artist also presents fear as a house without windows or doors. Fear locks you in and leaves you no way out…

3. Schizophrenia

The next house represents schizophrenia. This is a serious mental disorder in which there is a progressive psychological decline. Skills associated with reasoning, processing information, diminishing perception, willpower, and emotions.

The mind is fragmented and disorganized. In an irreparable and terrible way, the mind begins to disintegrate. Federico Babina presents it well in his image. You can see the resident hanging from a crumbling house.

We should also not forget that schizophrenia is also more or less a premature form of dementia. In addition, there is one more thing that many do not know. People with this disorder usually die prematurely.

4. Alzheimer’s Disease

Alzheimer’s disease is one of the saddest mental disorders. It has a huge impact on the patient’s family. In addition, no way to reverse Alzheimer’s has yet been found. If this affliction were a house, it would be a building in disrepair. A house that was once beautiful but now has cracks. It rots and dissolves slowly…

5. Autism Spectrum Disorder

The last disorder we are talking about is Autism Spectrum Disorder. This is a neurobiological developmental disorder. As medical terminology shows, every patient is at some point on the broad spectrum. No two children or two adults have the same characteristics. Each individual will exhibit somewhat repetitive behaviors, but their intellectual potential and use of language differ widely.

Many people on the autism spectrum have one thing in common: social isolation. So if we imagined this condition as a house, it would actually be a house in another house. It’s actually a psychological maze.

As you can see in the work of Federico Babina, a person can exhibit mental disorders in many different ways. However, they all have one thing in common: suffering and isolation. The people with these disorders, individuals who have names and personalities, sometimes find that the walls of their own homes enclose them.

If readers want to learn more about this architect’s works and his ‘Archiatric’ project, they can watch this video.