RANT: Mental Illness is just as serious as other medical illnesses

[KitchenWitch]

and not attributable to flaws in character, etc.

:grr:

[In_The_Wind]

1. Agreed

[jobycom]

2. Agreed. Who claims otherwise? nt.

[KitchenWitch]

5. No one here!

I am just hypersensitive to this sort of thing right now.

[jobycom]

16. I know I missed something that upset some of my favorite people here

Just hoping it didn't affect me.

I have a lot of mental illness in my family. Luckily, I'm adopted. So it very serious to me. Which is why I replied to your rant. In case you were wondering. :-)

[KitchenWitch]

20. You are good with me!

Always!

:hi:

Let us suffice to say, things got a little ugly here.

[Heidi]

3. But isn't it interesting how often mental illness is punished,

rather than treated, in our culture? The same applies to addiction. :grr:

[KitchenWitch]

6. No doubt!

totally steams me.

[alarcojon]

66. Aren't half the homeless in the US mentally ill?

and don't we still have state-sanctioned executions of the mentally ill?

It's WAAAY messed up.

:rant:

[Deja Q]

4. Doesn't stop employers from discriminating or the ADA from being impotent,

regardless.

(Americans with Disabilities Association, not the Dental one. Though a cavity or impacted tooth or whatever would be debilitating too...)

[KitchenWitch]

9. Yes, the ADA has little as far as real teeth in it.

It is "figurehead" law.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

7. You are absolutely right, my dear KitchenWitch......

The mind and body are mysteriously connected.....

They can influence either way.......for good or ill......

What brought this on?



:loveya: :hug:

I did respond to your PM...and thanks....

[KitchenWitch]

10. Just stuff tonight

that reminded me of stuff in the personal/family life.

[BrotherBuzz]

8. No need to parse words

Your Rant is spot on

[Oeditpus Rex]

11. I've been sayin' this for years

Want me to kick somebody's ass for ya, Kitchy?

[KitchenWitch]

12. No

I am just profoundly sad right now.

[GOPisEvil]

13. You're absolutely correct.

:hug:

[elshiva]

14. A-BLOODY-MEN!

:hug:

[KitchenWitch]

15. Thanks, love!

:hug:

[elshiva]

18. You are welcome!

:hug: You are always welcomed to post in the Mental Health Group.

[Heidi]

17. But how should we, as a community, deal with people

who, because of mental illness, victimize other members of the community? Discuss.

[KitchenWitch]

21. You know, there are no easy answers here

Perhaps suggest to such individuals that they may want to seek help/more help/better help for themselves, so their illness does not victimize themselves or anyone else.

[Heidi]

25. But how many chances should a mentally ill person get

before the community decides, "Enough is enough. You need more help than we can offer you. At this point, we're just enabling you . . ." ?

[KitchenWitch]

26. I think it depends upon the degree of bad behavior.

[Heidi]

27. Agreed.

I feel no guilt whatsoever about using the alert button when the behavior has been so frequent and so egregious. :hug:

[KitchenWitch]

29. Me too!

:hug:

And I am really glad when major violations go *ZOT* almost immediately.

[ikojo]

63. One way to assist people with mental illness

is for there to be REAL parity in health insurance. Too often the co-pays for seeing a therapist can run as high as 50% (the same is true of dental co-pays). This can be prohibitive for many people who cannot afford $50 a week to see a therapist. Although there are many who do sliding scale it is not always easy to find them. Insurance also limits the number of visits one is allowed to a therapist, usually limiting it to six visits. True, effective therapy, is a long term commitment.

[Wapsie B]

19. That's right.

But there's such a stigma to seeking mental healthcare in this country. Plus we gotta cut funding for those damned touchy-feely programs. I mean how the hell are repugs supposed to make a buck off of that?
Better we starve all these welfare programs. Then we sit and cry out why someone snaps and sprays a post office with an Uzi or why another dead baby is found in a dumpster.

[Queen Jane]

22. Damn straight! (nt)

[SmileyBoy]

23. I agree.

Is there something you want to talk about??:shrug:

[KitchenWitch]

24. Not out in the open

I just hate being reminded of stuff...

[NMMNG]

28. Of course it is. Is somebody claiming otherwise?

If they are I'll gladly cyber-kick their backside.

[KitchenWitch]

31. No

I just had to get that rant out...no one here claims otherwise, but our society is so fucked up around the issue...

:cry:

[NMMNG]

35. Trust me, I know

While society has improved dramatically, there is still a significant stigma attached to mental illness. People would never be ashamed to admit they had cancer or a broken leg (or make fun of others who had such conditions) but when it comes to mental illness it is often a completely different story. It shouldn't be that way, but it is. :mad: :-( :thumbsdown:

[Ellen Forradalom]

30. Mental illness is just that

Illness. Respect the person who deals with it and lives a good life; they have been to hell and back.

[KitchenWitch]

32. For sure!

:hi:

[merh]

33. ((hug))

:hug: :loveya:

:pals: :hug:

[KitchenWitch]

34. Thank you merh!

You are kind and loving!

:hug: :loveya: :pals:

[BlueIris]

36. Yep. Don't have to tell me.

:-)

[Ally McLesbian]

37. Not if

BushCo labels its political opponents as mentally ill, and locks them away in mental asylums.

Trust me, they've done that shit to me. I now have a mental record, when all the doctors I know have concluded that I'm nowhere near mentally disturbed enough for an asylum.

In any case, I will never get health insurance as long as I live in the US, and even moving to another country, with a medical "history," is questionable.

Nazi Germany was, and today's China is, known to do the same.

[Rising Phoenix]

38. I couldn't agree more...

but, if I may ask, what brought on this rant...

[KitchenWitch]

42. Let us just say it is a long story

Having a little to do with the circus of dysfunction that encompasses members of my extended family.

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

39. Have you gone MAD, saying something like that?

Sorry, couldn't resist.:evilgrin:

[KitchenWitch]

43. Thanks, I needed that

:rofl:

[EFerrari]

46. Enabler!

:evilgrin:

I just watched "The Aristocrats" with Doug.

The HORROR! Comedians NAKED, under their clothes.

Mad, all of them.

:hug:

[no name no slogan]

40. HELL YES!!! Now if they'd just pass the Wellstone Parity Act

which provides the same protection for mentally ill people that physically ill people get, the world would be a much better place!!!!

And why do my damn mental drugs cost so much?!?!??! Even with very good coverage, I STILL pay $100+/month for meds alone!!! :wtf:

[KitchenWitch]

44. Gods, I miss Paul and Sheila!

:cry:

[skygazer]

41. Sensitive issue for me too

When someone has a physical disease like TB or pneumonia, no one is surprised when they stay in bed or miss work. But someone with a mental illness is seen as lazy or shirking or weak or "not really trying." There is still so much misunderstanding about mental illness.

One of my pet peeves is the word "depression" to describe the illness - I so wish the medical community had thought of something else to call it. So many people seem to believe that depression means just feeling sad or blue. And they think that you can just snap out of it with a little willpower. "Well, I was really depressed when I broke up with my ex," someone will say to me, as if to equate it with a full blown mental breakdown. Not the same at all.

[KitchenWitch]

45. I agree with you

Depression does need a more fitting name.

[EFerrari]

47. What about "Leveling"?

"Depression" sounds like a road condition that you can fix with a little steering wheel action

I don't know anyone with depression that has that kind of steering wheel. :shrug:

[KitchenWitch]

48. No doubt

x(

Or a bootstrap puller upper!

[EFerrari]

49. We could start a cottage industry.

Sleep on it, dear Kitchen Witch.

:hug:

[Jamastiene]

50. Thank you.

It is so nice to hear someone who recognizes the difference between feeling sad or blue and being clinically "depressed." I know for a fact (from firsthand experience) that you are right, too, about the misconception that a mentally ill person can just snap out of it. I hate it when people who know nothing about depression swear that they are absolutely right about their view that mentally ill people can just will themselves not to be depressed. If only it actually worked that way. It takes good antidepressants and sometimes years of trying different ones to find the one that works.

Thank you for pointing out something that rarely gets a mention when it comes to "depression." I wish more people would do the same until the ignorance on the topic is eradicated at least somewhat.

:thumbsup:

[leftofthedial]

51. mental illness is all in your head

seriously

[KitchenWitch]

52. Oh...you!

:spank::spank::spank::spank::spank::spank::spank::spank:

[HEyHEY]

54. Very true

[nytemare]

53. Now, if you're talking megalomania, as in the case of *

This is a different story.

But, as I understand, this is a personality disorder rather than a mental illness.

Here is an interesting article on megalomania.
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-megalomania.htm

On the original topic, I have found the treatment of the mentally ill in this country to be pitiful, for the most part. The homeless are seriously affected, many of them veterans. I wish there was some way to have homes for the mentally ill that were well run, and didn't follow the reputations of the facilities that used electro shock treatment and gave lobotomies. The jails are filled with them. I hope there is some way to deal with the situation, other than that bullshit "New Freedom Mental Health Initiative" that * came up with to screen all school age children and give them treatment against the will of the parents. Seems there are no easy answers.

:cry:

[nytemare]

55. Well, I tried to recommend this thread.

It wouldn't let me.

Phooey.

:hi:

[KitchenWitch]

56. That is because it is more than 24 hours old.

:hi:

Thank you!

[nytemare]

70. The times are weird on here.

Must go on pacific time.

:shrug:

:)

[Fox Mulder]

57. Goddamn right they are! Now...

try explaining that to my dad...

[LaurenG]

58. I'm sorry KW- you speak the truth

I work in the field.:hug: I think people say stupid things because the are afraid and ignorant.

[Skittles]

59. when my father committed suicide

friends said to me HOW COULD HE DO THAT TO YOU. People just don't get it......

[BikeWriter]

60. Mental illness sucks.

[ikojo]

61. Amen, kitchenwitch. My brother, Jeff, died of

untreated mental illness (he committed suicide in July 2001). I tell everyone that untreated mental illness is just as deadly as untreated hypertension and diabetes.

My brother would get treatment every now and then but he swallowed the dominant cultural narrative that if one is depressed then it is the fault of the person for not having the "right attitude" and not "thinking postively." He thought all he had to do was think happy thoughts and he would be fine. He also thought it was a sign of weakness to see a therapist.

Oy vey!

[auntAgonist]

75. ikojo. I'm so sorry for the loss of your brother.

Mental illness has claimed 2 people that I knew personally. It's such a tragic senseless loss.

:hug:

aA

[zone]

62. A different kid of therapy

http://www.newfarm.org/features/1104/gould/index.shtml

[zone]

65. Gould Farm

My wife lost her father and a brother to mental illness. We visited this farm in the Berkshires a couple of years ago she and found herself both lamenting the fact that her family had never found such a place and being thankful that it existed for others. The premise Gould Farm operates under is that mental health and community health go hand in hand.

[KitchenWitch]

74. Welcome to DU

Any friend of Heidi's is a friend of mine!

:hi:

[realisticphish]

64. i think it would help

if there was not this stigma attached to psychologists. They're "shrinks," and just want your money. If more people went to see a therapist at least a couple times, there might be a lot fewer clinically depressed people (or at least more getting treatment)

[maveric]

67. Work in a psyche hospital for a year and you'll agree.

I did and will attest to the fact that people who suffer from menat illness are sick, beyond your imagination. When voices, mania or depression rule you and render you incapacitated, thats a serious illness. Just as serious as cancer or AIDS.

[Strong Atheist]

68. As I get older, I wonder more and more if there really is

such a thing as a well balanced, well ajusted person; or if we are all just mentally ill to greater or lesser degrees. I mean, what is "normal" anyway?

[zone]

69. Following the "norms" of society?

Then count me out of the normal club.

[KitchenWitch]

72. I definitely believe it is a continuum

similar to sexual orientation.

[zone]

73. tolerance?

Is that what you mean?

[KitchenWitch]

76. No - sanity

Sanity is on a continuum.

[zone]

77. That seems very optimistic

and I hope you are correct. I think a lot of people feel and believe the reverse to be true, only the "insane" are not the persecuted but those in power.

[LisaL]

78. I agree. No one is normal.

[LostinVA]

71. Yup. having psychosis is not being sociopathic

Buy yet many on DU simply refuse to accept that... I've argued over and over with CERTAIN DUers in the past about this re: Andrea Yates, etc. It is an illness, just like a physical illness.