Random Vents.....

[Dixie]

Really, mbrek, because it sounds like you're being judgmental. If a person could think themselves out of mental illness, it would not exist. Who wants to be mentally ill? People don't want to be in that club.



Startling Statistics About Mental Illness | ASHA International

Schizophrenia runs in my family. My cousins weren't "helped" into their mental illness. They can't think themselves out of psychosis. It's tragic that they have schizophrenia and they will die early due to the complications of their medications and health issues.

It runs in my family as well. Two years ago, my uncle who was severe schizophrenic passed away unexpectedly. He was found in his apartment. The autopsy revealed no foul play and ruled it as natural causes. I suspect it was the years of abuse his body endured due to the mental illness. He got to where he would not take care of himself and he would have to be admitted to a hospital to have his medications checked and re dosed for him. He was the youngest of two brothers.

 

[mbrek]

Really, mbrek, because it sounds like you're being judgmental.

Uh oh, the dreaded "J" word.

Now be fair. I never implied that mental illness is self-imposed. And I certainly didn't say anything about schizophrenia. But I have seen instances where some people were coddled and enabled into a phobia. Do you think that cannot happen?

And yes, I can be judgmental. Most people are but try pretend otherwise.

 

[jillio]

I can't help but wonder if some mental disorders are self-induced and build up with reinforcement from the families. I've seen shows on young people with Agoraphobia - who are babied and catered to by their parent(s). Don't these things just close up on themselves if left to fester? The less it's addressed, the worse it gets?

Wouldn't the phobic person be better off having to go out and work, or go hungry?

I gotta step in here. Agorapobia (literally translated "fear of the marketplace") is a very real and a very serious disorder. fMRI has found structural and functional brain differences in people with agoraphobia. Would you simply tell a person who has suffered a stroke and has a brain lesion that prevents mobility to just get up and walk?

There is an interplay between the biological predisposition of a person and the environment that precipitate the development of a mental disorder. The plain fact of the matter is, if someone with a mental disorder could do things differently, they would. It is not a matter of choice. They do what they do because they HAVE to at that point in time. The treatment of disorders like this is a matter of proper medication and long term treatment that allows the individual to reframe, learn skills they don't have, and control the anxiety that is a true biological reaction to the particular stressor they are susceptible to. After long term, successful treatment, agoraphobics can, and do, get better. But simply telling them to suck it up and go out and get a job isn't going to help them, and in fact, will only make symptoms worse. Agoraphobics experience an anxiety and fear reaction that is so severe that they truly believe that they are dying. Given what happens in their brains and their nervous systems when these reactions occur, their perceptions are not unreasonable.

This is why I detest some of these psychobabble television shows that are so popular right now. They give people serious misperceptions about real people experiencing real illnesses. All that does is serve to create even more stigma and less tolerance for these people who are truly suffering.

 

[cmdrwhitewolf]

(Just chipping in on one of the subject threads.) I don't like how while I was in school, a government "expert" advised my parents & myself not to learn ASL. Claiming it would isolate me and make me have less of a chance of getting a job. In addition to that, in keeping with his bias, he advised my parents to not send me to deaf school, nor let me have contact with other Deaf/HoH children lest I be affected by them. (As if I'd get some 'sick' on me or something... :roll: ) And of course, none of my family learned ASL either. I was taught to hide my hearing aid. (They only prescribed one for me while younger b/c they thought that 'fixed me' enough to be mainstreamed.)

In hindsight, I wish none of that advise had been followed. Because now, I 'fall between the cracks' as they term it, and they say they can't do anything for me because they use pretty words to say that 'I'm broken' and can't be 'fixed' anymore.

It amazes me sometimes at how wrong they could be no matter how well meaning they thought they were being. And sometimes it annoys me as well. I just hope more of us who went through it can get the message across to them about how wrong such advice is.

 

[jillio]

I remember the Hoarders Episode where they found like 4/5 dead cats in this lady's house that had been buried for YEARS.

Right. So just ask yourself, would anyone in their right mind live this way? Do you think they like the way they have to function? These people are suffering. They need help, understanding, and tolerance. Most of all, they need to be seen as human beings just like you and me, but with a particular problem that needs to be addressed. No one would judge someone with cancer.

 

[jillio]

Just like that? The agoraphobic is probably going to starve, unless they figure out a quick way to make a living on their computer and just have everything delivered.

Exactly. It is not a matter of choice. "Leave the house and get a job or starve" is going to result in a mentally ill person who ends up dead. Not because they have agoraphobia, but because those around them are intolerant and have not an ounce of compassion.

 

[jillio]

Really, mbrek, because it sounds like you're being judgmental. If a person could think themselves out of mental illness, it would not exist. Who wants to be mentally ill? People don't want to be in that club.



Startling Statistics About Mental Illness | ASHA International

Schizophrenia runs in my family. My cousins weren't "helped" into their mental illness. They can't think themselves out of psychosis. It's tragic that they have schizophrenia and they will die early due to the complications of their medications and health issues.

My heart goes out to your family members. Schizophrenia is a horrible, horrible disorder. There is a definate biological, neurological basis for this disorder. As with all disorders, environment can certainly make symptoms worse or make psychotic breaks occur more often. There is a fine interplay between environment and biological predisposition in all mental disorders. There are medications that can help symptoms, but the vast majority of people who suffer from schizophrenia are never, ever symptom free. Most continue to suffer hallucinations despite medications, and medications often have side effects that are worse than the symptoms they are meant to control.

I am currently working with a colleague doing some lit reviews on the success of trancranial magnetic stimulation to treat intractable auditory hallucinations in schizophrena. He is currently running a research project using the same technique in combination with therapy to treat intractable depressive symptoms (another huge problem in this country) and is showing some promising results.

 

[cmdrwhitewolf]

Right. So just ask yourself, would anyone in their right mind live this way? Do you think they like the way they have to function? These people are suffering. They need help, understanding, and tolerance. Most of all, they need to be seen as human beings just like you and me, but with a particular problem that needs to be addressed. No one would judge someone with cancer.

Exactly! I think these individuals suffer on account of their own natural human instinct of 'adaptability'. In this case, the specific ability to adapt to a worsening situation. When things go downhill, their mind rationalizes it somehow. When their environment goes to pot, they take it as the new normal. And so on, they let the slow changes over time continue to build up, and fail to catch themselves in the slow slippy slide.

I think part of the disorder is their 'reality check circuitry' doesn't function right. Somehow, they miss those red flags that others get, that say something needs to be done when these situations arise. And in these cases, the red flag warning needs to come from an outside source and it needs to be recognized by them for what it means. Right now 'the system' doesn't know how to deal with these individuals, so for the most part, their just cleaning up the mess - leaving the individual who to fall back on themselves, which often just makes it worse.

It's all very sad.

 

[jillio]

Exactly! I think these individuals suffer on account of their own natural human instinct of 'adaptability'. In this case, the specific ability to adapt to a worsening situation. When things go downhill, their mind rationalizes it somehow. When their environment goes to pot, they take it as the new normal. And so on, they let the slow changes over time continue to build up, and fail to catch themselves in the slow slippy slide.

I think part of the disorder is their 'reality check circuitry' doesn't function right. Somehow, they miss those red flags that others get, that say something needs to be done when these situations arise. And in these cases, the red flag warning needs to come from an outside source and it needs to be recognized by them for what it means. Right now 'the system' doesn't know how to deal with these individuals, so for the most part, their just cleaning up the mess - leaving the individual who to fall back on themselves, which often just makes it worse.

It's all very sad.

I like the way you phrased that "reality check circuitry". That is really a good way to put it. Their neurological differences interrupt their ability to perceive what you and I are seeing and as a result, results in behaviors that are symptomatic of mental illness. But it isn't just a behavioral issue. No one believes in strictly behavioral causes, or treatments, for mental illness anymore.

 

[Mintee]

i'm not feeling like myself today. i'm so dizzy and i almost fainted when i was taking a shower this morning. ughhh

 

[Bottesini]

i'm not feeling like myself today. i'm so dizzy and i almost fainted when i was taking a shower this morning. ughhh

You have Meniere's? Or something else that causes vestibular balance issues?

If not, maybe get a checkup as it seems you have been having quite a bit of problems the past week or two.

 

[Dixie]

Right. So just ask yourself, would anyone in their right mind live this way? Do you think they like the way they have to function? These people are suffering. They need help, understanding, and tolerance. Most of all, they need to be seen as human beings just like you and me, but with a particular problem that needs to be addressed. No one would judge someone with cancer.

Anyone with normal brain function wouldn't do this. That is why once they take care of the physical problem of the hoarding and unsanitary conditions that they provide some type of 'aftercare' for these people to see that the real root of the problem is dealt with -mental illness. I'm not sure what this aftercare entails but I'm told it has a fairly good success rate as long as the patient complies with the care.

 

[Mintee]

You have Meniere's? Or something else that causes vestibular balance issues?

If not, maybe get a checkup as it seems you have been having quite a bit of problems the past week or two.

no it's something else. usually happens before that time of month, TMI sorry!

 

[KristinaB]

no it's something else. usually happens before that time of month, TMI sorry!

I've always had bad ones and never got dizzy enough to pass out or anything like that. I would totally get it checked out just to be safe. Even for that, this is not normal.

 

[jillio]

Anyone with normal brain function wouldn't do this. That is why once they take care of the physical problem of the hoarding and unsanitary conditions that they provide some type of 'aftercare' for these people to see that the real root of the problem is dealt with -mental illness. I'm not sure what this aftercare entails but I'm told it has a fairly good success rate as long as the patient complies with the care.

The after care is usually a combination of anti-anxiety meds, SSRIs, or atypical anti-psychotics, therapy to address cognitive and emotional distortions, skills training to learn new ways of functioning, and home visits.

 

[Frisky Feline]

Funny. When I was working out in the snow... Barefooted.

I noticed a bit of coldness in the feet. No big deal, looked down. it was steaming!!!!

Pretty awesome if you asked me.

too bad it wasn't videotaping your feet being steamed!

no it's something else. usually happens before that time of month, TMI sorry!

LOL Maybe, just eat something good sweet but too much of candies or icecream. Something like fruit mixed with sweet? Last time, I had grilled buttered cinnamon bread with cooked sugared apple mixed with peanutbutter. I guess I had craving for this moment. lol pepperridge farm brown sugar cinnamon swirl bread is the best. *wink* All i did was added sugar a little with apple to reduce the bitter and warm in the pan on the stove. then let it cool off while grilling the bread with butter. then I mixed the warm apple with peanut butter then spreading it on the bread. ta da. will it help? LOL

 

[Mintee]

i think i'm okay, maybe it's because i didn't eat enough.

too bad there's NO chocolate around.

 

[Frisky Feline]

If you are a fan of the honey maid graham crackers then put peanut butter on it. They taste not bad!! just a quickly sweet munchies.

 

[Frisky Feline]

i think i'm okay, maybe it's because i didn't eat enough.

too bad there's NO chocolate around.

it happens to me too often when i didn't eat enough. then all of a sudden i get dizzy when the time comes like you said TMI.

 

[Frisky Feline]

do you have any chocolate syrup? i use it on either peanuts or peanutbutter.

my god i notice that i use peanut butter too excessive.