Mental Illness and Community Integration

[dragon wench]

Today a grey blanket of cloud hangs over the West Coast city I call home... There is a cool, slightly humid, warmth to the air... Somehow conditions such as this usually cause me to fall into a reflective sort of mood, so after dropping my son off at school earlier I slipped into one of my favourite cafes where I watched the world go by as I sipped a potent, caffeinated brew. While I was there a man came in... he was shouting, swearing and generally behaving in a disruptive manner, and it was obvious he was suffering from some sort of mental illness.. probably schizophrenia or something similar.

As he ranted, and as the people working there tried to talk him down.... I found myself wondering just what can, and what should, be done for people with conditions like this. A number of years ago our then provincial government moved towards reintegrating the mentally ill back into communities. In many cases they were placed into community group homes, halfway houses or low-income housing. This was done out of compassion, and the sincere belief that the mentally ill would do better in a non-institutionalised environment. The result, however, has been that frequently these individuals, left largely unsupervised, will forget to take their medications.... and often there are also high rates of substance abuse and addiction problems amongst them.. further compounding what is already a serious social issue. Often they can't take care of themselves, and sometimes they can pose a danger to others. Frequently, people like this have nowhere to go and they drift about from location to location... all too often ending by a drug overdose in the back of an ally somewhere.

Yet, it is also inhumane and wrong to place the mentally ill into institutions....

So my question is, what should be done?

[Chanak]

Disorders can assume a variety of forms. It's such a complex issue, DW, it leaves me feeling ambivalent. Schizophrenia itself has been largely misunderstood...it's symptoms might surprise you. Apart from delusions, hallucinations, hearing voices (or experiencing them in the mind, often both), most schizophrenics can be identified with. They desperately want to be happy, have friends, have a life, etc...but the circumstances beyond their control (the disorder itself) torment them, and often set up their lives for failure and institutionalization. It's fortunate that advances in medicine can now enable the majority of people with bio-chemical disorders to live "normal" lives, and be contributing members of societies.

I think the term itself - mental illness - conjures images in the minds of most people that paints the worst possible picture of people suffering from these disorders. I definitely despise Political Correctness...there's nothing wrong with the term "mental illness" itself. Rather, I think it's a matter of educating ourselves on the matter. The people themselves are not their disorder. Unfortunately, the disorders some people suffer leave them ripe for purely psychological problems, which is not surprising if you stop to consider the hell that people who suffer from these disorders go through, often on a daily basis. The family members who don't understand...the career or job that cannot be coped with...the loss of relationships and possessions due to the debilitating effects of the disorder they find themselves paired with...it all adds up. It's a cycle. That's what leaves me feeling ambivalent, because it doesn't have any simple solutions. Realization of the disorder is the first step...medication is the next...then on to therapy. Beyond this, I'm lost.

I strongly recommend the book An Unquiet Mind by Kay Redfield Jamison, published by Alfred Knopf. An excerpt from her book can be found on the website www.bipolarhome.org/kay.html. Dr. Jamison suffers from bipolar disorder, and is a Professor of Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Her story is riveting, and tells the tale that so many of us are unable to relate to others. As many reading this might have guessed by now, I was diagnosed bipolar type 2 earlier this year. The years and years of suffering that lead up to this breakthrough in my life is a tale in itself that I'm not ready to tell right now. However, suffice it to say, it speaks of my stubborness, thick-headedness, and mistaken concept that life was supposed to be like that for me. My fiance is also bipolar...and the strength of our relationship might surprise you. Anyway, I strongly recommend Dr. Redfield's book.

[dragon wench]

Originally Posted by Chanak

My fiance is also bipolar...and the strength of our relationship might surprise you.

I'm going to respond to the rest of your post later on.. but I wanted to say congratulations on the engagement.... *hug*

[Chanak]

Thanks DW. We even take the same medication.

[Luis Antonio]

My ex GF is bipolar. Tryed to marry her, had a very hard time (told that ya, dontcha, DW?) and became kinda bipolar myself, but the simptoms have gone away for some months now.

I took no medication, but felt it under my skin, felt the pain of the loss of my companion mind every time and felt my own control slipping. Then, I tried suicide, on my very worst moment. 6 months depressed, trying to find my way to life alone.

Yeah, Chanak, congrats. I will be very happy to be with my ex GF, but things worked out so bad, I couldnt handle that anymore.

[Chanak]

Originally Posted by Luis Antonio

Yeah, Chanak, congrats. I will be very happy to be with my ex GF, but things worked out so bad, I couldnt handle that anymore.

I understand Luis. Most people aren't aware of the reasons behind a bipolar person's desire to commit suicide. It has nothing to do with cries for help, desire for attention, etc. Rather, it is that life has become so unbearable, so miserable, and so exhausting that one instinctually seeks relief from the hell they live in. Suicide naturally occurs to the mind, and in a rather frightening and coldly logical way, it makes sense. My first attempt at 17 was nearly successful; fortunately I was discovered before the mess of pills I had taken could do their work on me. Later on in life, things would become so horrid I would nearly do it again (3 more times), but I often would simply endure the depressive cycle and ride it out, gritting my teeth and losing myself in writing, fighting the persistent urge to end my life. I never did turn to what is called "self-medicating" (that is, booze or drugs). Many do, though, as DW described in her post above.

I've been bipolar my entire life. I spent most of my life unaware of it. When I passed into my 30's, it seemed to become more severe than it ever had been before. A psychiatrist has since told me that the disorder often worsens with age...but with medication (I started taking it earlier this year), I don't suffer from the mania and depression like I used to. I still experience those things, but they are much more manageable now, thanks to my happy pills.

[Nightmare]

For some reason, mood pills are given a bad rep. by the media and some people (at least, from what I've noticed, and that includes my parents). I underwent therapy after being on/off depressed for the better part of two years, and got on Zoloft. I recently got off them after being on them for about 4 or 5 months, and I'm starting to scale back therapy, too. They really made the whole difference in the world for me, allowed myself to get a girlfriend whom I love, and now I no longer wish to rid myself of this world, as I can see the things I have to live for.

My condition was a probable dysthymia, which has major depressive episodes, just less noticeable symptomes (no insomnia or appitite loss, etc.).

[Kalashnikova]

I believe it depends on your mental condition, and the cohesion of your state of mind whether or not you should be placed in an institution. I believe it is inhumane for everyone else in a community to have a complete phsycho running loose, skipping his medication, and grabbing the nearest weapon then destroying an entire family behind his instability. do you get my point? its hard to tell if someone can be helped with meds and therapy, and continue to lead a normal life without becoming a loose cannon. you have to remember that people who are insane dont know it, and thats a problem all in itself, they could forget their therapy and to take their medication, and someone who's whole universe relys on a tiny pill to keep it turning, is very dangerous in my opinion.

imagine being so ****ed up and not realising it, being caught up in a false reality suspended by strings of delusional truths and knowings, then people on the outside trying to tell you the opposite of what you want to believe. thats enough to drive anyone who's already over the edge even farther. soooo much certainty for a reality sooo unreal. its like being in a box. a fate WORSE THAN DEATH my friends. which brings me to my point: it is inhumane to try to help them, DEATH is the only way to deal with a true pshychopath, one swift bullet, and their troubles are gone forever. i know this may sound harsh to you people, but what would YOU DO if charles manson came knocking on your door, hmmmm? im talking about real mental illness here, not **** you can deal with.



im terribly sorry to bring this up... but what if your girlfriend dumps you? you wont have a crutch to lean on anymore, youll have to rely on yourself to get yourself out of that position, do you think you are strong enough now? im not trying to mean, im trying to help you out and keep you from trying to kill yourself. its the dumbest option there is (for lack of better words.)

[Aqua-chan]

Originally Posted by Kalashnikova

imagine being so ****ed up and not realising it, being caught up in a false reality suspended by strings of delusional truths and knowings, then people on the outside trying to tell you the opposite of what you want to believe. thats enough to drive anyone who's already over the edge even farther. soooo much certainty for a reality sooo unreal. its like being in a box. a fate WORSE THAN DEATH my friends. which brings me to my point: it is inhumane to try to help them, DEATH is the only way to deal with a true pshychopath, one swift bullet, and their troubles are gone forever. i know this may sound harsh to you people, but what would YOU DO if charles manson came knocking on your door, hmmmm?

And who gets to decide that death is a fitting way to handle mentally challenged? How does a person decide that somebody else has absolutely no help of being helped and is perfectly incapable of being happy? Do you just allow any challenged person who doesn't "seem content with thier lives" to get a needle in the arm to end suffering, or just let anybody come in and tell you that they aren't happy and want to die? Worse yet, what if somebody coherrent enough to understand they need help and want it come to you, but you think it's just "inhumane" to try and assist them because their condition may seem hopeless? Would you kill them, Kalash, out of some self-righteous idea that you think you're doing the right thing for them?

[Kalashnikova]

you do make a strong point, but i was talking about SERIOUSLY screwed up people who cant think rationally at all and run about and kill innocent bystanders because of some ****ed up reality. then i suggested ending their unbeknownst suffering with a bullet so they can kill no more.

I wasnt talking about depressed people who dont want to live anymore, I would try to help a friend out by persuading him not to kill himself. if someone had enough strength to come to me for help, then by god, i would do my best. i guess you didnt read through every detail of my post, im sorry for how long it is, but you know how hard it is for me to get a point through. i guess i gave you mixed messages, sorry for that.

[Nightmare]

One of my friends has sisters that tried to commit suicide. They were placed into institutions for a little while so "they could be safe from harming themselves". Considering how they are now, they're much, much worse off. Institutionalizing them did harm, not good.

This is a rather personal and touchy subject for me, so I think I'll just lurk for a bit...

[Kalashnikova]

this IS an extremely touchy subject, its hard to do the right thing for mentally challenged people, because they are all different. what you think is doing the right thing could be harming something else down the line, right now im talking about people who are actually lucid and may be helped, not the pshycho people i was talking about earlier, so you all know

does your friends sister cause any harm to anyone else? maybe some time with family could help her out. but then again you probably dont want to talk about it.

[Dottie]

I think that any mental illness, regardless of how severe, should be regarded as any other type of illness. Finding the best treatement should be a matter of medical science, not personal opinions. Consequently the decision about institutionalisation should depend on the type of disorder, and the persons ability to take care of themselfs, not a political dogma.

@Kalashnikova: Thats a controversial opinion. Now, Im not quite sure about how to read your posts, so I would be happy if you could clarify: Is the policy to execute people with severe mental illness supposed to be primarily for their sake, or primarily for the sake of the society?

[Kalashnikova]

oh yes, well i do believe its for the good of both, with their "unbeknownst sufferings" being put to rest and what not, but its a little more for the good of the people because you cant have pure maniacs running around. if someone was sacrificing your newborn baby to a talking fish how would you react? sorry if i did not make it entirely clear before.

[Xandax]

Please note that this is (yet another) sensitive topic, so try and be respectful in posting.
This isn't directed at anybody in particular, but I notice that opinions are starting to be expressed, and if expressed carelessly or vague could lead towards “delicate” situations.

This is just a “heads up” sort of post, so everybody is careful of what is written.

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