Insane teddy bear scares mental health organizations
Customized straitjackets complete with commitment papers accompany the "Crazy For You!" bear.
Published Jan. 28, 2005
Teddy bears in straitjackets are not typically associated with Valentine's Day, but this year a company located in Vermont decided to try the concept.
The Vermont Teddy Bear Company is selling a 15-inch stuffed bear confined to a straitjacket. The bear, available in honey fur only, comes with a commitment report that states the bear's diagnosis is "Crazy For You!" In addition, customers can purchase individual straitjackets for other teddy bears.
After reading an article in The New York Times on Saturday about the "Crazy For You!" teddy bear, Timothy Harlan, president of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, said he was appalled at the company's decision to release a bear in a straitjacket. Harlan said NAMI is meeting with the company on Feb. 8 to discuss the bear.
"One of the purposes of NAMI is to deal with the stigma of the illness," Harlan said. "I think this is a blatant disregard for mental health in that it makes light of the fact that someone would need to be restrained."
According to a customer service representative with the company's Web site, called a "bear counselor," the bear is a Valentine's Day product and will be discontinued after the holiday.
Harlan, who is also a member of the Boone County Democrats and was a representative for the 23rd district from 1994 to 2002, requested the Boone County Democrats send an e-mail or letter to the company or speak with the "bear counselors" to prevent the sale of the bear.
Elisabeth Robert, president of the Vermont Teddy Bear Company, sits on the board of the only teaching hospital in Vermont, Harlan said. After the meeting with NAMI, he said he would be interested to see the results.
"If, after all the negative feedback they received and the meeting with NAMI, if they do not remove the bear, I would have an issue with her continuing to be on the board," Harlan said. "I'm worried about her dealing with medical students if she is so insensitive to a topic like mental illness."
Kay Callison, a member of the Boone County Mental Health Board of Trustees, said the bear could prevent people from getting help for mental illness.
"A person who thought they were losing their mind would be frightened by seeing the image of straitjackets, and that could prevent them from seeking help," Callison said.
Although many see the bear as an innocent joke, Callison said, she is worried it might make people with mental illness seem violent, when actually mental illness is manageable.
"You wouldn't see a bear who had Alzheimer's or a brain tumor saying, 'I've lost my mind over you,'" Callison said. "This is no laughing matter because mental illness is a horrible disease that destroys lives and families and in some cases is fatal."