If you think mental illness is funny, think again.

[uppityperson]

If you think "someone should have made" a mentally ill person get help, it isn't that easy.

If you have been affected by mental illness (not just yourself but by someone else who is mentally ill), I commiserate with you.

Mental illness has affected me through family member, ex-partner, and now a stalker. It isn't funny for anyone and it is not an easy thing to have to deal with.

More accessible, affordable, non-stigmatic mental health care is needed. But EVEN with all that, there will be some who will not get help because, after all, THEY are not the problem.

[cbayer]

1. K & R

[hlthe2b]

2. help in most communities, means jailing them...

where they get no treatment.... Appalling society we live in currently, isn't it?

[truedelphi]

112. And then when these people act out, they get shot

And killed.

Just read last week - neighbors in a San Francisco neighborhood, called the cops because someone "known to all" was once again acting out and this time wielding a machete.


Cops shot and killed the man. Why not netting him, or tasering?

Many times all that needs to happen is for the cops to simply back off and observe the person until they calm down. (Sometimes in as little as ten minutes.)

[Bluerthanblue]

3. it's not a joke-

I'm sorry for what you are going through.

It sucks from all sides.

:grouphug:

[uppityperson]

9. Thanks, the stalker is in jail for violating someone else's protection order

Seems to be a habit of that person.

[Bluerthanblue]

4. dupe delete nt

[etherealtruth]

5. Mental illness is just about as funny as cancer

... and the effects have the potential to be as life threatening and destructive. I can't imagine anyone thinking mental illness is funny.

[Juche]

65. You can't?

You're lucky.

Its not that 100% of people are decent 100% of the time. You just have to find that minority who are competent and decent and seek them out when you are sick. But when you are sick, that is a tall order. Illnesses that damage the brain don't make it easy to make good decisions or engage in constructive social interactions.

[Skittles]

6. I think the worst illness on earth does not kill you

it makes you kill yourself - or others

[mopinko]

7. hopefully soon this artificial construct will die. neurological illness

is a better way to describe. it is no different than epilepsy, in fact many psych drugs started life as epilepsy drugs. and disorders like fibromyalgia are pretty clearly neurological, but fall in the grey area between for a lot of docs.
the pity of it is that there is quite a wall, institutionally, between neurologists and psychiatrists. that wall cannot fall fast enough, if you ask me.

yeah, it is no joke. there are so many barriers.

[Cleita]

20. What makes you think that there is a wall between neurologists and

psychiatrists? All of our neurologists in my area are also psychiatrists and practice both disciplines simultaneously. The big problem is the uninsured and underinsured that can't avail themselves of their services and have to go to community health services instead if they qualify.

[elocs]

48. As I mentioned in post #43 that my goddaughter did not receive good care in Chicago

even though her mother has good insurance through one of the largest hospitals there. The big problem was that she had to go where there was an open bed and not necessarily where she was last hospitalized, so there was virtually no continuity of care. It was hospitalize, medicate, send home after 2 weeks and making as much money as possible. Wash, rinse, repeat, over and over. Also, her mother did not have the option of sending her daughter to wherever she liked, but to where her insurance company allowed her. Then halfway through the year my goddaughter was cut off since her mother had already used up her mental health coverage for the year.

In all of her hospitalizations my goddaughter never got a catscan or an MRI to find out whether or not her schizophrenia might be caused by a brain tumor. Neither were any other possible causes for her problem investigated or tested in all the weeks she spent at different hospitals. Pretty much they warehoused her, collected their money, then sent her home only to end up back in another hospital in 2 or 3 weeks.

[Cleita]

54. This is why insurance needs to be gone, period.

Talk about who is between you and your doctor? It's the insurance companies who can dictate from the actuarial offices just where people can get care and what care they will allow. If your goddaughter had been on Medicare she would have been able to go to the doctor and hospital of her choice. When I started getting vertigo and fainting spells, my PCP immediately sent me to an ear specialist, who sent me to a neurologist, who is also a psychiatrist. I got not only an MRI but an MRA like that week, but I'm on Medicare and Medicare is operating on an antiquated fee schedule and yet it performs far more superiorly to private health insurance. Imagine if all the health insurance money that gets funneled to the business sector was actually used for health care by extending an improved Medicare to everyone, how differently things would be done, especially since everyone would be on the same plan so they would be insisting on quality care, just like Medicare recipients have in the past.

[mopinko]

69. i've never heard of such a thing.

not calling you a liar, just saying that i have never heard of a double specialty of that sort. even one.

[Cleita]

85. You are calling me a liar and there is such a thing. So look

up some stuff before you make accusations. Here's a link that might enlighten you.

http://www.meridianhealth.com/index.cfm/PhysicianReferral/Specialty/Psychiatry%20%20and%20Neurology.cfm

[mopinko]

101. here's another link

http://www.abpn.com/public.htm

i had no idea. although they do seem to be more toward the psyche side of things, from the few other things i looked at. they are indeed out there.

thanks for teaching me something new.

my comment does stand, tho. there is still a wall between the practices until such time as there are a lot more of these around. i found them, but i didn't see evidence of oodles of them. holes in the wall, thankfully. but still a wall.

[RobinA]

115. I Went To a Guy

who was a neurologist and a psychiatrist, it's not particularly unusual.

[uppityperson]

87. Indeed, have a family member who would benefit from a local great psychiatrist, unfort

insurance won't pay and family member can't afford to pay. We are getting new insurance soon, will need to look into which specialists are on their preferred provider list.

Not to get into the discussion of insurance companies practicing medicine or anything.

[varelse]

66. I agree with you on the terminology

The term "mental" has so many connotations which tie it to will and personality. The term neurological disorder does not carry the freight that "mental illness" does - it focuses attention on the condition, not the person.

[tomp]

86. a woefully biased account of mental illness.

if i'm reading you correctly, you have completely dismissed the purely psychological/psychoanalytical aspects of mental illness. it's all just faulty neurons.

that's just plain wrong. if you haven't come to terms with unconscious processes you're....well, unconscious, and that's being generous.

you sound like you've completely bought the bill of goods sold by the proponents of the dsm-3, who pretty much threw out the psychoanalytical baby with the bathwater in favor of the biological model of mental illness.

psychiatry is not simply a subspecialty of neurology. mental illness can have neurological contributions, and neurological and other somatic conditions can be caused by mental illness. it's nowhere near as simple as you're trying to make it.

[uppityperson]

88. There are biochemical and psychiatric components to psych issues

Some are more biochemical, some more (I don't know the word beyond psychiatric, but that isn't quite it. Mind? Emotional/thinking combo?). Having someone who understands and can work with both areas seems a good thing.

[mopinko]

98. yeah, i wholeheartedly throw the freud baby out with his hocus pocus

bathwater. how's that? i think the things that injure the psyche do so because of the particular vulnerability of that particular. not because they are so inherently powerful that anyone would be damaged by them.
i think that most freudian based therapy usually works like going to church. distracts you from your troubles, makes you feel valued, hopefully gives a nice placebo. in the meantime, you heal yourself.

i'm not saying that the outside world does not effect the brain, i'm just saying when you are talking about medical treatment of the brain, and imbalances in the brain, that separating those into mental and somatic conditions is archaic and stupid.

[tomp]

124. you can try and throw out freud , et al, but...

..neither he, nor the unconscious, will go away, and you can bank on that.

that being said, i think mental illness has to be considered multifactorial. of course individual vulnerabilities come into play, but to conceive of it as simply neurological is just plain wrong.

we use medication because people need some sort of "correction" now. psychological work generally takes so long and is difficult, but cure is possible via this route and never with medications. and if there is any hocus pocus going on it is in the theory of how psychiatric medications work. nor can we neglect the huge tradeoff with medication side effects.

we also need to consider the concept that the emotional problems come first and alter the brain, in essence train particular neurological pathways, like water wearing a rut in the earth. treating the brain for this problem may be necessary in the short term, but is essentially swimming upstream against lifelong neural adaptation to root psychological problems.

your views on psychoanalysis are pure philistinism ("hocus pocus", indeed!). all psychotherapy is about healing oneself. that doesn't mean it necessarily can happen in the absence of a trained professional, freudian or otherwise.

as for the division between mental and somatic: one is hard pressed to find one. just as one is equally hard pressed to locate the dividing line between psychological and neurological.

anyone trying to cast off one for the other doesn't know what they're talking about.

[Terra Alta]

8. as someone with a mental illness...

I thank you for your post.

People are afraid to get help because of the stigma that is attached to mental illness. That is why people need to be educated about mental illness, and how it affects others.

I finally got help in 2007.. and I'm glad I did.. I had finally reached my breaking point. I am doing much better now than I was three years ago, and with therapy and medication, I hope to continue doing better.

[GreenPartyVoter]

10. Sometimes I am comfortable talking about my illness. But there are times too that I have refrained

from mentioning it. I work with kids and the last thing I need is for someone to start asking around if it's ok for me to be doing that. :(

[Terra Alta]

14. I don't mention it in my workplace

except with a few(very few) close friends I trust 100%.

I'm not really comfortable yet with broadcasting it to everyone. I have opened up some since I started getting help(before that, I wouldn't talk to anyone, about anything, and had no friends) and that has helped a lot.

[Juche]

68. I've got a work history gap due to my mental illness

Four years where I didn't work or go to college because I had severe psychosis. And when I graduated college in my late 20s I was terrified employers would find out my true age and refuse to hire me due to the work history gap.

It sucks. You get sick and people make fun of you/are afraid of you rather than help you. Then when you get better and try to be normal, you fear people will punish you for being sick.

It is miserable how backwards things can be.

Anyway, PM me if you want. I know how bad things can get. Ironically I started seeing a therapist in 2007 about my issues and made huge progress by doing that. The symptoms (for whatever reason) had gone away before then, but the emotional effects were still there and it wasn't until 2007 that I started working on them with a therapist.

[Terra Alta]

79. 2007 was my turning point, too.

I started seeing a therapist that year, and now see her every two weeks... it's helped a lot. I found out one of my co-workers sees the same therapist, and said co-worker and I are now the best of friends.. at times I feel my best friend and my therapist are the only ones who truly understand what I am going through. I have been mostly fine since 2007, except for a minor setback last October(October is always a rough time of the year for me) and everyone around me has noticed an improvement, as well.

[uppityperson]

11. I think some people joke because they are uncomfortable, others

are just asses. I am glad you got help. It is difficult to do so, to take the chance that others might know and omg you.

Hoping your life continues to improve.

[Terra Alta]

23. thank you!

I have been taking things day by day, but overall things are really improving. I am a totally different person now than I was back in 2007... you wouldn't have even recognized me back then! It's been that much of a difference.

[badgerpup]

12. Deal with it meself...

...it's like fighting fog while tapdancing on quicksand sometimes.

And yeah...it is farkin' REAL. :nuke:

[Terra Alta]

24. just remember

You are not alone :hug: Hope you are getting some help, dealing with a mental illness without any kind of help is horrible, I did it for years...

[badgerpup]

96. Thank you...

:hug:
I do have help.
Not a lot of familial support :nopity: but I'm very fortunate in my MD and counselor.
Makes me feel as though I've got some backup (i.e., somebody's got MY back) and that can make all the difference sometimes...

[Raschel]

50. Was thinking about this the other week. This really needs a new label.

I think the term "mental illness" adds to the stigma.

Like a lot of people, my family is dealing with it as well.

[scarletwoman]

13. Brava. Thank you for posting this. k&r nt

[timeforpeace]

15. Probably every person has been touched by mental illness, be it with family, friends, co-workers.

[apocalypsehow]

16. Call out threads always get an automatic UnRec from me, regardless of the content of the OP. n/t.

[uppityperson]

19. A thread in support of getting more mental illness help is a call out?

No, just a reaction to having dealt with mentally ill and seeing the need for more help. Thanks for the kick, I don't care about recs.

[Hekate]

55. Interesting profile you have. I get it, you really DO set out to be an *hole. TY for the heads-up.nt

[apocalypsehow]

71. And you fit the first three sentences to a "T". n/t.

[uppityperson]

80. These 3 senteces? "Hi profile troll! (*waves*)..."

"Hi profile troll! (*waves*) PM me if you want details of my private life to use against me in forum debate. Now, piss off, turd."

[Bluebear]

92. Scintillating, ain't it?

[Zoeisright]

106. Gee, how... myopic.

And kneejerk. Buh bye.

[Cleita]

17. Yep, it's just as hard on the people who have to deal with family

or workplace members as those who are mentally ill. I do think having access to mental health professionals, like if we had a national health care plan, would pull in a lot of the mentally ill into a safety net than what is happening now. It might keep a lot of the untreated mentally ill from seeking public office too and turning our country into a dysfunctional mess as well.

[uppityperson]

21. Mental illness affects many people in many ways.

This came up while having had a conversation with one who knows my stalker.

[Mopar151]

93. Mental illness can be contagious, in a way...

Especially in the blue collar world. A boss/foreman/manager with some personality disorders can spread anxiety & depression like Typhoid Mary.
I wasn't kidding when I posted here last week that we would do well to spend some stimulus money on screening and repairing/retraining American management. You need a license to drive a forklift, but there is no such requirement to supervise other people. The consequences of this have cost me a couple jobs, big stains on my resume, and way too much time on anti-depressants. And I was lucky - some of these goobers will take chances which can have deadly consequences, to save 2 minutes. Does the DSM have a diagnosis for "Misplaced sense of urgency, and failure to understand consequences?" I've had to ask an engineer, with a stratospheric IQ "What part of graveyard fuckin' dead don't you understand?" He and his henchmen got their revenge by setting me up and firing me - they had to reneg on my employment agreement to do that, but that's not a problem for those who lack empathy.

[Pithlet]

18. K&R

:kick:

[endless october]

22. mental illness is not funny.

it's a struggle. and sometimes, it's terrifying for the person suffering.

[emilyg]

25. k/r

[Forkboy]

26. I was thinking about blowing my brains out last week.

Nothing real funny about it, as it's been all too tempting. x(

Thanks for your post.

[uppityperson]

27. hey

I've not been on Du much recently, but read about you in the last few days. Sometimes it just sucks. Hoping you are ok-ish.

[Forkboy]

30. lol...I'm afraid to ask what you read.

;)

I am exactly ok-ish. Hope you're doing better, and thanks for the kind thoughts.. :)

[uppityperson]

33. was it you with a parent who was failing? If it wasn't, sorry, confused here

[Forkboy]

35. No, that wasn't me.

But I still appreciate the thread and the thoughts. :)

[uppityperson]

41. Huh, wonder who that was. Oh well, best wishes to you also.

[Forkboy]

45. Don't you hate that?

There's surely someone more deserving of your good wishes, someone on their death bed or something, but you get me... :D

:toast:

[Bluebear]

49. You need all the help you can get.

As you know.

:hug:

[Forkboy]

52. LOL...is that you, dad?

:rofl:

:hug:

[seabeyond]

32. ahhhhhh.

i am sorry. my mom committed suicide. i have been there with a loved one. it is so hard for the person depressed. i hope things get better for you.

[Forkboy]

37. I have some very mixed up feelings on suicide.

I won't ever share them here.

I'm very sorry for what happened to your mother and you. I still don't know which side of the issue is right or wrong, or if both sides are right or both sides wrong. Still sorting through the options.

[seabeyond]

44. .

spend a long long time, really long time, sortin.....

[Forkboy]

46. I've spent about 25 years worth, and I'm coming to some conclusions.

And like I said, I'm not sharing them here.

Thank you for your thoughts though. I honestly do appreciate them. Seriously. :hug:

[seabeyond]

47. i wouldnt either

lol, it is du after all.

:hug:

[Odin2005]

60. Oh Christ, Forkboy!

Please don't do it! :cry: :hug:

[Forkboy]

75. Been a tough stretch.

I doubt I need to tell you anything that you don't already know or suspect. Thanks. :hug:

[Terra Alta]

78. omg

I know those thoughts too well...

You are not alone :hug:

[wickerwoman]

94. I'd miss you a lot, FWIW.

I always look forward to your comments and think you have an amazing sense of humor.

:hug:

[Krakowiak]

116. damn, I'm sorry for what you are experiencing....

I'm not going to sugarcoat this life thing here - obviously it looks like you have given it a great deal of thought, and it's your decision to make. That said, from my personal experience, I find that at the times that I am in the deepest hole, I sometimes forget what it is like when things are better. I am thankful that I have not been successful during those times I attempted to leave this earth.

I am not familiar with the details of your situation, Forkboy. From a selfish perspective, I can tell you that you are one of about 10 names on all of DU that I find myself scrolling through the comments to get your insight on threads, and that reaches far beyond your considerable sense of humor. I know that many many others feel the same way. I understand that merely having others appreciate you, does not take away the suffering you are experiencing, and it is not your duty to keep on for our mere sake.

All I can offer is that your pain is unique, and while I can not feel it directly, I know what it feels like to suffer, and I am so sorry that you find yourself here now.

I'm no professional of any sort, but if you ever wish to talk about it, PM me, and I'll send you contact details. I don't say this casually, I mean it. This is a community here.

[pipi_k]

28. Actually, joking about it is the only way some of us can deal with it

although I do agree that anybody who doesn't have a mental illness shouldn't be thinking it's funny.

I've had panic attacks since 1962. I was ten when they first started. They progressed to Panic Disorder, and then Agoraphobia. Generalized Anxiety, Social Anxiety, Depression, and Seasonal Affective Disorder. All diagnosed by doctors.

Life has not been easy all these years.

I belong to a couple of online support groups.

We sometimes joke amongst ourselves about various things...like, for instance, what new "disease" we have this week. Who's embarrassed themselves the most in public. Things like that.

But we're allowed to laugh because if we don't have a sense of humor about it all, we'll fall deeper into the underlying depression that haunts us each day.


It's like a private club, and we make the rules. We can joke. Nobody else can.

[Forkboy]

34. "It's like a private club, and we make the rules. We can joke. Nobody else can."

I hope we get to the day where others can joke too, but without the meanness or mockery that comes with it. There ARE some funny things about it, in a gallows humor type of way, and I'd love to share that with others who don't deal with it. Not even close to being there yet though.

[uppityperson]

36. That is what I mean.

Of course people in a group make jokes, and of course people affected by mental illness (either themselves or others) need gallows humor. BUT I am meaning the meanness, the mocking, the nasty "but it was ONLY a joke" bs.

[Forkboy]

40. Slowly but surely I'm seeing that less and less.

In fact, I actually exspect a backlash against it soon as bipolar disorder and other mental illnesses becomes more accepted. Especially in a tough economy where we're looking to make cuts. The media does a wonderful job of pitting poor against poor, ill against ill. People like us should just pull up our bootstraps, right? If only...

[pipi_k]

61. I'll tell you what really made me feel like shit...

It wasn't so much the "jokes" people made as much as it was being called names.

Like "sicko"..."psycho"...etc.

And that was from people who said they "loved" me.

One guy I lived with had similar issues...panic, depression, etc. He was on meds...I have a morbid fear of drugs of any kind, but was doing OK with meditation. A lot of stress built up that I couldn't handle, and I had a severe setback. Well...this guy...someone I would think would understand...he was afraid he would somehow be infected by my anxiety disorders.

There's just no winning sometimes.

[Forkboy]

82. Sometimes, those who claim they understand the most understand the least.

I don't blame them in my case. I don't make it easy on those who wish to know me better. But there's been more than a few times when those I think would get it don't get it, even including a couple of people who have been there themselves. I've decided to be alone from here on out. I'm done trying to get others to understand, and I don't mean that as a knock on anyone else or they're lack of understanding. I can't even figure it out myself. How can I expect anyone else to get it?

[pipi_k]

59. I know what you mean...

never mind joking with others who don't deal with it...sometimes I can't even talk about it. Like there's something shameful about it. Like people will think I'm weak.

Which some of them will do anyway, but I guess those are the ones who don't, and never will, understand, and they don't matter.

[Initech]

29. I'm with ya. Nothing funny about it at all.

In fact I get fucking pissed when people call liberalism a mental disorder. That's one GOP talking point that really gets under my skin. :grr:

[cliffordu]

31. They just replaced my shrink with a nurse to monitor

my meds and see me in person - so now I don't have a real shrink paying attention to my - uh - issues........

So it's up to ME, (who is never wrong about my state o' mind) the family and a friend to haul me to the land of the massive downer if I get sick.


The care gets harder to get, and less comprehensive every day.


My favorite line when cranky and arguing with a family member is when they say, without a trace of irony:

"Well. Did you take your meds today?...."

Which, of course invalidates any feelings I might really have....

But that's another story....

[fascisthunter]

38. K&R

[me b zola]

39. K&R

[Posteritatis]

42. Between those problems and the political ones, it's definitely a blood-pressure spiker for me. (nt)

[elocs]

43. My 18 year old goddaughter was diagnosed with schizophrenia last year and went through hell.

Thirteen hospitalizations at 7 different hospitals. They would keep her for a couple of weeks, medicating her, and since she was where she could not get into trouble they would cut her loose and send her home with meds. Since she was hallucinating and hearing voices and had no follow up as to how her meds were working she would get in trouble and be sent back to the psych ward again at whatever hospital had an open bed. So there was no continuity of care or doctors or medications. But everyone made sure they got their money.

Then in June her mother's insurance company informed her by registered letter that she had used up the ration of her mental health benefits for the year. Her mother is a professional at one of the largest and best known hospitals in Chicago, but her insurance would not pay for her daughter to be treated there. Her mother has nearly gone bankrupt with all of the hospitalizations and paying for medications and counseling for the rest of the year.

Thankfully this past fall my goddaughter had the lightbulb go on for her and on her on she came to the realization and acceptance that she does have schizophrenia and will need to stay on her meds no matter what. Fortunately for her she has a family and people who care for her and love her and will help her along this long path she will have in life. She is an intelligent, talented, and beautiful young woman and we can only hope that she can be the best that she can be.

[G_j]

51. agreed, I work with people with various forms of this illness

for an agency who helps people who otherwise may not be able to live in the community, by supporting them.
We practice "person centered thinking". It's a good approach.
It is no small task, and can be very difficult.

"Mental Illness" is really still an incomprehensibly complex mystery, even while so much as has been learned.
Most of us have versions of depression, panic, paranoia, etc., but cross certain thresholds, and these things can literally destroy people.
A multitude of variations of subtle brain chemistry can make the difference between heaven and hell, and so can the way someone is treated who has an illness. Every single person is different, developing a sense of compassion is a key that's not always easy.

Sometimes there can be great tragedy surrounding this illness, no, it's not funny.

[pipi_k]

67. That threshold...yep

It's a mystery why someone can have panic attacks for years yet never develop panic disorder itself...never have it progress to agoraphobia...even within a family.

Some of us in the family have panic attacks without the accompanying panic disorder, and without agoraphobia...which, BTW, can exist even after panic attacks are no longer present, or not very frequent.

It's one big mystery story...

[Ardent15]

53. Kick and Rec nt

[Joe Fields]

56. I don't know anyone who thinks mental illness is funny.

[Hekate]

57. My late mom used to "joke" constantly. Only as an adult did I realize how bone-scared she was...

... of losing the only thing about herself that she thought had value: her mind. Nor would she seek help for depression--that would be admitting some kind of moral flaw, some personal weakness.

Anyhow, that's where her self-directed "humor" came from: a place of fear. Others, I suppose, really are just insensitive jerks.

Hekate

[undergroundpanther]

58. Mental illness hurts

Having it myself I know. Anyway people like to pretend there is a thing called"normal".So, if you ain't normal you get a social death sentance.A social death sentance comes from being labeled crazy among peers who convinced by the labeller that you are 'crazy'.It means no one has to take you or your points seriously and that is part of what hurts. A social death sentance means being made invisible("ignore them they're crazy") and made voiceless("because they are crazy, nothing they say is real or important to anyone else"). Mentally ill people become non persons to others who all are'normal' enough.


I say what I say because to me it's worth saying,and sometimes I am told by others reading it,it makes more sense to them than some of the ramblings of the"sane" commenters trying to diminish my words by calling me crazy..Our whole culture is so cold,heartless,selfish, callous and mean.To a sensitive person it's like you cannot breathe here, or speak your mind or heart,lest someone who is bored or just mean, sends an evil word your way and encourages others to do the same..

"Why can't I touch someone who doesn't strike back?
A question I searched to answer in vain.
Each time I opened the depths of my heart,
I ended standing alone with more pain."

psychopathy on the other hand is not an actual mental illness, it is a personality type.http://www.angelfire.com/zine2/narcissism/antisocial_sociopath_psychopath.html

psychopaths by personality alone really can cause mental illness in those unfortunate to live,work or exist around them.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x5631332
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x5609545
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x1743046
http://everydaypsychology.co.cc/?p=18739
tfromwithin.org/html/onbeing.html

[Odin2005]

62. The stigma of mental illness and psychiatric disorders is alive and well in this country.

If you have Schizophrenia or are a male with Bipolar you are assumed to be violent and need to be locked up. If you have ADD you are assumed to be a slacker who is making excuses. If you are a high-functioning autistic it is assumed either that you are "deliberately misbehaving" or that you have no soul. If you have Depression you are told to "buck up" and "quit being lazy". if you have an anxiety disorder people tell you it's "all in your head".

[HipChick]

70. There are many cultures where it is seen as taboo..

or worst..the result of someone putting an 'evil' eye on you..stays hidden and is never treated..

[raccoon]

97. Yep. If you've never heard of Thomas Eagleton, google him. nt

[varelse]

63. K&R

[Juche]

64. Mental illnesses rob you of your ability to know you need help

Pure evil. At least with diabetes or cancer you can know you are sick. Cancer doesn't fuck with the part of your brain that gives you a frame of reference to know that malignant cancer growth is bad or unnatural.

Its going to take generations to really have a decent level of mental health care.

[Odin2005]

76. Psychotic disorders are only one kind of mentall illness.

People with anxiety disorders like OCD and Panic Disorder and people with mood disorders like Depression and Bipolar generally know that something doesn't seem right.

[Terra Alta]

83. Exactly!

I have anxiety/depression and social phobia... I knew for years something wasn't right, but was just too afraid to get help for it... finally I hit rock bottom and had no choice but to get help and now I'm glad I did; I'm a much better person because of it.

[Posteritatis]

107. Even with those crossing the "something's up / I need help" line can be challenging

My sister is bipolar, and spent about a year denying anything was up (though she was in one of those horrible "mental illness as social capital" environments) and most of another thinking it was just an attitude problem or some other intrinsic failing before she finally got herself looked at. She got that something wasn't right but it took awhile, and I've had friends with depression issues drag it on for years without really considering the idea.

You're definitely right in that not all of them are Total Breakdown Of All Sense Of Reality type situations, though, even though just about all of them involve breaking that at least a little bit.

[GreenPartyVoter]

109. Your sister and I shared similar attitudes. :^(

[GreenPartyVoter]

108. Actually, I would amend that a bit. A lot of bipolar people don't think they are sick when

they are euphorically manic.

Heck, I went most of my life thinking my mood swings were a result of a character flaw and not a chemical imbalance. :( Sounds crazy, but it's true.

[Okie4Obama]

72. My OCD started twenty-two years ago. I still have people tell me "just stop obsessing."

People don't understand why my house isn't perfectly clean.

People will say, "Oh yeah, I am so OCD about getting my bills paid on time." or "I was so OCD about my boyfriend."

OCD isn't an adjective or a cute personality quirk. It's a severe mental disorder that robbed me of my happiness for over a decade, until I finally got the right help to manage my illness.

It sure as hell isn't funny.

[Odin2005]

77. To be fair, I am diagnosed with OCD and I do a lot of self-deprecating humour involving it.

Though my OCD isn't as bad as the "constant checking and hand-washing" stereotype. :hug:

[flvegan]

73. I can't help but notice the certain absence of a number of douchebags

that were previously mocking mental illness earlier tonight.

Things that make you go...hmmmm *cough cough*

[uppityperson]

81. Maybe we're all on ignore.

[flvegan]

84. I think that it's one of two things

1. Douchebags are sleeping it off; or,

2. Douchebags aren't stupid enough to do it twice in a day.

There's probably a Master's Thesis in finding that out, though.

[Starry Messenger]

90. This. n/t

[pipi_k]

102. When stuff like that happens, I always think that

said Bags de Douche probably found out that someone they LIKE has a mental illness, and they realized they can't mock people they don't like without being hypocrites.

;)

[donheld]

74. No it should NEVER be made light of

[justabob]

89. I happened to catch a great series on TV today - This Emotional Life on PBS

The program covered various disorders and how they are treated, how brains work, the struggles that people with severe depression, and PTSD go through, happiness, friendships/relationships/bonding, and so much more... it was on all afternoon. It was fascinating and I am so glad I stumbled onto it. Others in this thread may appreciate it.

http://www.pbs.org/thisemotionallife/series

I have struggled with mental health my whole life. I have PTSD along with some kind of severe depression that shares many symptoms with, but isn't, bipolar disorder. There is no name for what I have... "NOS". People just don't understand what is like. I am doing fairly well now, finances aside, but for the last couple of years I was in a terrible place. It got so bad I lost the best paying job I ever had because I couldn't cope... last September when the economy imploded. Friends didn't know what to say or do, family didn't understand....It is shameful that mental health is so neglected in this country.

[tavalon]

91. Because I have a number of close family who have mental illness

I make the distinction between crazy and mental illness. One is a choice, the other is a difficult burden, not only for the person afflicted but everyone around them.

[Mopar151]

95. I had a very interesting discussion with a psychologist friend

And his son, at the time a tour bus driver/road manager for a rock band. - On the subject of self medication. I knew a truck driver - uncle of a friend - who had been self-medicating for anxiety for decades with hard liquor. He took a job driving a tractor-trailer into the Boston area, and was drinking quite a bit to handle the stress. "Is Uncle crazy? Not really - anybody sane would want a couple under their belt to drive into that fuckin mess!" Son had been there with the band bus a couple weeks before, and nodded assent. "Misguided, and inappropriate behavior? Oh, yes - but self-medication in that circumstance is at least rational."
He went on to explain that understanding self-medication better, and the newer medications, had really been a breakthrough for "the trade" "It used to be that counseling for an alcaholic was a long, hard road - it was pretty much a given that you were going to have to go through a lot, for a long time, to get some inprovement. Now, we can get them some releif from the cause of the self-medication, and get them back functional while they work stuff out."
And "Uncle"? He's quit drinkin', and seems pretty happy driving locally for a septic service. He's still kinda skeeterish at times, and he's a piece 'a work - but he gets by.

[Jennicut]

99. I have suffered from depression since I was a teenager.

It never goes away, it is always there. If I don't take my meds, the suicidal and depressive thoughts come back. I am lucky I have health insurance to treat it. I have diabetes on top of it and there have been some studies that correlate the depression with the diabetes. For a 34 year old, I take a lot of different meds.

[pipi_k]

100. Same with my daughter...

She's been on meds for a number of years, and a few times she's tried to stop, thinking that she's somehow been cured of depression.

It never works.

I know she doesn't like to hear it, but I tell her all the time that she'll probably be on meds the rest of her life.


My own depression isn't severe as a rule. I mean, I know it's there year round, but it's not that bad and I've lived with it so long that it's become my "norm". The only time it gets really bad is in the winter. Actually it starts in September and gradually gets worse until around mid-March, when it turns around and I get the extreme anxiety for the summer. The past couple of years I've upped my Vitamin D, and it seems to be working well enough for the depression part.

:)

[Jennicut]

103. My official diagnosis is Premenstrual dysphoric disorder, or PMDD.

It is always worse around my period. Plus, having the diabetes can make you depressed in general and I got that after I had been on depression meds since I was 20. I have managed to take a small dose, 10mg. But I doubt I can just be off of it completely.

[Ex Lurker]

105. I wish my friend could fine a med that works

she's tried just about everything, and nothing helps.

[Ex Lurker]

104. I have a dear, dear friend who has suffered with depression off and on since adolescence

the latest episode has lasted nearly three years. Some days are better than others, but she never feels "good." She has run the gamut of medications, and so far nothing has worked. No, there's nothing funny about mental illness.

[greiner3]

110. I've been in and out of treatment since the age of 12;

And now, 4 decades later, I'm 'fired' by the local mental health facilitator because I have Medicade and they won't make as much money off of me. This is up north so I guess I'm 'lucky' because in the south I would have died in my teen years; or life without parole, same thing.

God damn america!

[Javaman]

111. Who here thinks it's funny?

did someone make some half assed joke?

[LibDemAlways]

113. Last year about this time my 86-year-old father started exhibiting

signs of dementia and seemed to be going downhill fast. My mom took him to a GP hoping for a referral to a neurologist. She was given a list of doctors to call. Most wouldn't see him for weeks - some months. I finally got an appointment for him, but before we could get to the doctor dad had a middle of the night episode,and, in desperation, my mom took him to the local hospital emergency room. They were not equipped to deal with his issues, and ended up shipping him to a hellhole psychiatric hospital for evaluation. There he caught some sort of virus which turned into pneumonia, and he died at home of respiratory failure and a heart attack a couple of hellish weeks later. He was fully insured, but it didn't matter. When he was first admitted to the hellhole, I called UCLA Medical Center, which has a geriatric mental health in-patient unit, but I couldn't get him in. They apparently have a huge waiting list, and there are no other decent psych facilities in the area. I really feel like I let my dad down, but at the time I was doing the best I possibly could.

LA is a major city and mental health care for dementia patients is absolutely non-existent or very difficult to come-by. This is a national shame.

And, no, there's nothing funny at all about neurological impairment. It's a nightmare for the patient and the family.

[Krakowiak]

118. I'm so sorry about your father, LibDem

Mental health services in general are so hard to come by, and for dementia patients, this must be even more so. Very sorry for your loss.

[LibDemAlways]

121. Thanks for your kind words. The doctors at the local hospital advised my mom to

simply "put him in a home." Easier said than done since Medicare will not cover the cost of a home until you have depleted your life savings.My mom is in good shape and will probably live a long time. There's no way she was going to part with what little she has now only to find herself destitute later on.

There are no easy solutions for any of this, but no one should have to go through what my family went through last year. It was an eye-opener.

[rem3006]

114. You also can't involuntarily commit

someone to a mental institution for treatment unless it's proven that they are a danger to eith themselves or someone else. That was a court ruling in the very early 80's. Mental hospitals were pretty much emptied and their patients ballooned the homeless population.

I was once married to someone who was diagnosed as a sociopath and can tell you it's not fun.

[mdmc]

117. too bad MH isn't covered by the new hc"r" bill

:(

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

119. How about, If you think mental illness is funny, you are a moronic, dirtbag piece of s&$%!

I think your post would have a more positive overall influence. Although I have certainly wanted to use mine on many occasions.

[PatrynXX]

120. I've had severe depression or whatever you call it since at least June 2009

about a month after I got diagnosed with that (after losing my job in Oct 2008) dad threatened to put me in the nut house. That didn't help all that much. I'm at one of those points where I've been told in depression one doesn't seriously look for a job. I'm just trying to keep my head above the sand. Without pulling a knife and cutting my arms. (Just to feel real pain) because depression doesn't actually show any pain :(

Big problem is when I switched from BC/BS to Wellmark (same thing I thought) they hit be with pre existing condition because of my OCD and denied coverage. I ended up getting covered with help from my parents, but it won't cover mental health. So I go to a free one and really isn't the best people in the world. Sometimes get free prescriptions, but Ritalin LA I have to pay for and now dads in a bad mood and wants to cut off the network so cya l8r..

[live love laugh]

122. I struggled with depression some time ago -

I prayed for rain and cloudy days, I was agoraphoic.

Thank God it passed. I savor every day now.


My heart goes out to anybody who is dealing with mental illness.

People have no idea how terrible it can be.

It's true when they say if you have your health you have everything--that definitely includes mental health.

[Skip Intro]

123. Too late to R, but can K. I've been there. Still battle anxiety. Have seen deep depression

in myself and other family members.

Surely others have seen worse.

Definitely no laughing matter.