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Mental And Emotional Paralysis Debilitated By Depression

Mental Health blogger

We have all experienced days when we felt so sad that it drove us to tears — even if we do not even know the reason for our sorrow. We become uninterested in our daily routines, and find ourselves struggling with sluggishness and melancholy. At times, we can be so overcome with emotional distress that we do not even want to go out of the room and choose to just sleep all day. These periods of sadness are but normal for any human being. Still, these feelings of sadness should not come on a regular basis. If one regularly suffers from sadness, it may be possible that that person is already suffering from clinical depression.

At present, depression afflicts at least 17 million adults in the United States alone. Clinical depression usually starts even without the person noticing it. Some are lulled into a cycle of despair even without the slightest hint that they already have an emotional and psychological problem. Clinical depression is a medical condition that affects the mind, often leaving the person suffering from feelings of hopelessness, loss of ambition, and loss of the ability to focus on tasks and on life itself. People suffering from chronic and acute depression become so sad and apathetic that it is often extremely difficult for them to even get out of bed in the morning. The depressed person reaches a state where even the simplest activity is performed with great difficulty. Depression has both physiological and sociological causes. It may be brought on by a physical illness, an emotional trauma or experience, use of various drugs and medications, alcohol abuse, or a combination of various factors. If depression is left untreated, this condition can adversely affect academic achievement, family life, friendships, careers, and may even lead to broken relationships.

Examination of this psychological problem in physio-chemical terms would show that depression is closely linked to abnormalities or changes in brain chemistry. Poor nutrition, lack of exercise, and negative attitudes also worsen a person’s depression.

People with psychological problems usually seek help from a mental health professional who, in turn, prescribes mood balancing drugs or anti-depressants such as citalopram or flouextine. Intense psychotherapy and counseling may also be required. However, there are others who use an alternative form of medicine for a more natural treatment. Milder cases of depression can be treated solely with natural remedies without the need for antidepressant prescriptions.

Therapy that involves personal expression has been found to provide an outlet for pent-up feelings and can be a positive way to articulate deep emotions. This can take many forms such as dance, martial arts, or art lessons. Relaxation techniques can also help a person focus and gain a sense of serenity. Ancient exercise and stress relief methods such as yoga, meditation, acupuncture, and hypnosis are also popular means to treat depression.

A change in diet and the use of supplements have been found effective in dealing with depression. Adding fish oil, Zinc, and B vitamins help the body regulate chemicals that may trigger depression. Exercise is very important for physical, emotional, and mental health. Keeping active will rejuvenate the body and keep it fit, promoting a healthier lifestyle and better self image. Working out several times per week can calm the senses and invigorate the body.

Although depression has increased dramatically in today’s world, the problem of depression is as old as time. It still continues to debilitate many lives despite the availability of 21st century technologies and conveniences. We can learn on the wisdom of many different healing traditions in our quest to overcome the burden of depression. Though there are modern tools to overcome depression, one should try to seek and discover the vibrant energy and personal empowerment that everyone of us can discover, even without using drugs.

How To Stop The Runaway Train Of Mental Illness By Betty Byrd

Mental Health blogger

One in six adults and nearly one in ten children in the United States suffer from bipolar disorder. Yet, there remains a stigma associated with being bipolar and being related to someone who is. Never mind that Edgar Allen Poe was bipolar or that President Theodore Roosevelt was too. Or that people with bipolar disorder can lead extraordinary and meaningful lives. Look at Winston Churchill, Virginia Wolf, and Rosemary Clooney. No matter how talented or famous someone is, if they’re in a situation dictated by mental illness, it can at times feel like a runaway train. Jim Carey and Robert Downey, Jr. know what it’s like, so do Robin Williams, Jean-Claude Van Damme, and Ben Stiller.
Dealing with a mentally ill family member is anything but a cakewalk. I should know. My mother, a Christian Science fanatic, refused to take medication to manage her sickness. During my formative years, I lived through extremes; from minute to minute I didn’t know what she might do. My childhood was spent being tossed around like a ping-pong ball. At sixteen, a Harvard-trained psychiatrist reluctantly told me to leave home and never look back because I was living in an incurable situation. Sadly, I hit the road, riddled with pot holes, lacking any parental advice. During those formative years I didn’t have a choice, but now, in 2011, things are beginning to change.

I went on to become an actress and later a novelist. I took it to heart when I read that Ernest Hemingway said, “A writer’s style should be direct and personal” For me, it’s therapeutic to write about the disease that robbed me of my mother and stole any chance I may have had to enjoy a normal childhood. I use larger-than-life characters on a backdrop of big oil and big tracts of land to show life on high octane, which, in my experience, is what it’s like to live with the ups and downs of mental illness.

One of my main characters, Olivia Harrison has a history of undisclosed schizophrenia. My novel, Utopia, Texas, shows the terrifying ramifications on a family whose young daughter’s problem goes untreated. Some call the book, which is a stand-alone sequel to my first novel, Trinity’s Daughter, a riveting tale. The character of Maggie Harrison is fashioned after me. Olivia is my mother. Olivia’s mother, Brya, is actually the novel’s protagonist. I use my books as a tool to educate others about what it’s like to live with mental illness, and if not treated it can be devastating to all involved.

As a member of the International Bipolar Foundation, I’m on a mission to try to help erase the stigma associated with this dreaded disease which often goes undiagnosed or misdiagnosed. What’s missing in the equation is proper education, but through advancement of research, medication and support services life can begin to stay on track. Having been one of those children affected, I’m committed to encouraging family members to openly discuss mental illness so that healing can begin.

Currently, I’m working with organizations, such as the Boy Scouts of America and the Girl Scouts of the United States. Through public education, I hope the shame associated with mental illness will be erased. For many, the stigma can be as great a challenge as the disease itself. For people with bipolar disorder or schizophrenia, their life is like trying to navigate an unstoppable train-one that’s prone to skipping tracks and changing depots on a quick whim. There is no stopping this locomotive, but it can be slowed down in hopes of reaching a more positive destination.

One Consumer’s Observations of the Mental Health Care System in America

Mental Health blogger

The Mental health system is a unique culture. Psychiatry itself is, unlike any other medical specialty. Mental health is an enclosed system. That means it is a world within a world. The doctors, therapists, patients, and support workers play roles. It’s a reciprocal environment. Each player in the system allows the other person the opportunity to act out his or her role. For example, the Psychiatrist gives you a diagnosis that has no basis (Yes this does happen from time to time). You, the patient, having complete faith in the powers of the behavioral health system, accept this diagnosis as the gospel truth. In time, you begin to notice certain behaviors and thoughts that you believe may be a sign of your supposed illness. You return to your doctor and report these symptoms. Your Psychiatrist agrees with your observations and writes them down in your medical record. He also inserts his authoritative comments to support his opinion. Therefore, both parties in the relationship are mutually validated in their roles.

When one has been playing the patient role for so long, a person begins to identify himself or herself as a -psych patient.- That-s who you are. This is the term that defines your very existence. You belong to the mental health system. Soon enough you find that every activity you engage yourself in is related to your disorder and the medication your doctor prescribed to suppress it. It’s a sad commentary indeed. It’s sadder still for the person who needlessly struggles against an undefinable defect in his or her character as if the diagnosis were the irrefutable truth. I acknowledge the fact that the unsettling scenario I am painting here is not true for every psychiatric patient.

At some point, the psychiatric patient discovers the benefits of being labeled mentally ill. There are mental health workers, such as case managers who assist the -consumer- in obtaining a free living allowance from the Federal government in the form of Social Security Disability Income or Supplemental Security Income in whatever minimal amount it may be. I will add for comfort that social security disability benefits are reported (by the government) to run dry in 2016. A consumer is often entitled to free housing, health care, food assistance, and much more. The mentally ill person may even have the right under certain disability laws to bring a pit-bull into a no-pet residential community. Technically speaking, you could even take it on a commercial airliner. The reason is simply because your therapist deemed it necessary that you have an emotional support animal (oops was that a secret?). Don’t get me wrong. I’m sure there are people who require a companion animal for their emotional health. I’m not trying to be disrespectful to those who are struggling. What I’m saying that there are incentives built into the system for many people to accept their diagnosis and play out their role.

There are case managers and outreach workers that will go to court with you, and advocate on your behalf before the judge when you run afoul of the law. They will help the mentally ill with all of their personal affairs. What a bargain! Run out and tell all of your friends about it. Let the government take care of you. It makes being a psychiatric patient seem so much more attractive. Why wouldn’t anyone want a Psychiatrist label to them disabled? Again, I’m being sarcastic to make my point that people, who are improperly labeled with a DSM V diagnosis, run the risk of becoming dependent on the mental health system for their needs.

This kind of social welfare encourages people to give up their ambition and motivation. It instills the idea that living a marginal existence is sufficient. I, for one, believe in the greatness people can achieve for themselves and the world by applying themselves.

Remember this. Once you get into the mental health system your chances of getting out are slim. There are a number of reasons for this. Primarily because the Psychiatrist or Psychologist has you convinced that you have a serious medical problem, which you can’t handle yourself. We all know that’s ridiculous. Many people manage their depression and anxiety remarkably well without the use of psychiatric medications. If Ativan calms your nerves and helps you function, then that’s great. On the other hand, I have seen plenty of people become addicted to sedatives. These drugs are unsafe. I wouldn’t put your faith in the safety of the anti-depressants either. I think the pharmaceutical giants are quick to point that out as a result of the numerous class action lawsuits filed against them.

Some blame can be placed on the pharmaceutical companies for this unnatural drug dependence. As I was writing this article, I surfed NAMI’s website (National Alliance for Mental Illness) and noticed -In Our Own Voice,- a public education program, is funded by a grant from Eli Lily. This is the pharmaceutical giant that manufactures psychiatric drugs like Prozac, Zyprexa, and Cymbalta. I gather (without too much mental effort) that Eli Lily’s generosity is a publicity campaign to make them look like one of the good guys in the mental field, and as a result, boost sales. As I surfaced the Internet, I found that NAMI has been receiving their fair share of criticism for their questionable association with pharmaceutical companies. I will not say NAMI is immoral or unethical. That would be too easy. If Ely Lily offered me thousands of dollars, I would have to seriously consider taking it. Sometimes the decision to cross the line depends on one’s real life needs. Other times it just has to do with making a buck. There is no denying that this kind of corporate misconduct adversely affects the mental health system and exacerbates the suffering of its consumers. Again, I know some people require the assistance of the pharmaceutical companies and the psychiatric community. The screening process for prescribing these medications is a big part of the problem. That’s because there is no adequate process in place for dispensing these potentially dangerous drugs.

Society itself contributes to this dysfunctional culture. The general attitude of the public is -As long as they are not bothering us you can do what you please with them.- This gives the mental health providers even more authority to do as they please. And so the psychiatric patient is stripped of his or her rights. As I see it, a psychiatric patient is a human being without respect or dignity. You can call my words dramatic if you like.

It may seem as I am playing the blame game and the taking on the victim role. Allow to clarify the role of the patient in the mental health system (those like myself). I will be the first to admit that the informed psychiatric patient is the one who is primarily responsible for his or her unfortunate situation. We have to accept our role in the system. No one can twist your arm behind your back, and say, -Go see a therapist about your anxiety.- At least that’s true in most cases. When you reflect on why you did it, you will say, -It seemed like a good idea at the time.-

The worst thing a mentally ill person could ever do, is telling someone about his or her condition. As soon as you do, the other person looks at you differently. An automatic flash goes off in the person’s brain, -Oh God. Here we go. His illness is acting up.- This attitude is especially noticeable in the face of a mental health professional, your family members, and closest friends. It’s a universal reaction. From the moment you reveal your secret, everything you do will be blamed on your illness. The ways in which you express yourself as a normal human being will be measured against your supposed disorder. If you are frustrated about something, the people in your life will conclude, -His meds aren’t working.- When people think you cannot hear them, they will gossip amongst themselves, -Oh he’s a psych patient. That’s why he looks agitated. That’s part of his illness.- This attitude is quite common. It comes from a lack of understanding. How could a person know, unless he or she has personally experienced it.

If you should attempt to verbalize your rights as a human being, the mental health provider will proceed to have you committed to a psychiatric hospital against your will. The patient can be held for an indefinite period of time until a clinician decides the person has come to his or her senses. The mental health professionals can essentially do whatever they want with you because no one is going to speak out against them. In Massachusetts, psychiatric patients must retain a specially trained lawyer to represent them before a mental health court in order to be released. This is where we are in 2013. I’ll bet most of you reading this article didn’t know how our behavioral health system works. We are still in the dark ages.

The only time the state of the mental health system is brought to light is when a patient commits suicide or kills someone. Then there is a public uproar and the Psychiatrist or therapist are blamed or in some cases sued. In their defense, no doctor can control the behavior of their patient in society. That is not their job as I see it. The mental health professional cannot be held responsible for the actions of their patients, unless they were grossly negligent in some way. We are free and sovereign human beings. In the United States, people are generally allowed to operate freely without undue interference from others. The American attitude is -No one has the right to tell me what to do.- It’s a slightly different story if the patient states that he or she intends to commit suicide or kill someone. Then the call to duty is activated. Mental illness is a complicated matter. This article presents an insider’s view of the system. My depiction of the mental health system in this paper is not necessarily representative of other people’s experiences. This observation is based on my own experience and perspective.