Mental Illness in Society

The mental illness issue should be SEPARATE from the whole gun issue. Not all gun violence...in fact, I would guess not a great percentage is because of a mental illness. HOWEVER, there NEEDS to be more comprehensive mental health coverage. A large percentage of the homeless are mentally ill, and some of them are veterans. Combat soldiers come home and commit suicide. Statistics show that most mentally ill people are the victims of gun violence, not the shooter.

Mental illness is just that - an ILLNESS. There are physical causes with chemical and hormonal imbalances and parts of the brain structurally wrong. I have known people that killed themselves, I have a person very close to me that tried and almost succeeded, and I have tried it a couple of times. They have statistics on how many people have died from cancer, heart disease, car crashes, etc. They have no statistics for how many people die from mental illness. That is because it is just lumped in with suicides. THIS NEEDS TO BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY!

There needs to be services for people who have mental health issues. Our insurance companies have cut visits to psychiatrists to 15 minutes for medication management. That is barely enough time for a person to talk to their doctor about symptoms, side effects, and how new medication will help them and what to expect.

All hospitals should have a psychiatric wing. The one that my doctor was affiliated with closed down to make more beds. If I should have to be hospitalized, I will be going to a hospital where there will be another doctor making decisions instead of the doctor that knows me best. There is something wrong when you can't have your doctor treat you in the hospital. Any medication changes can cause a spiral that actually makes it worse.

There needs to be more support groups...for the sufferer and the family and friends that have to live with or support the sufferer. 

And there needs to be more awareness when it comes to kids developing symptoms. I started showing symptoms when I was 9 years old. I started responding to stress by mutilating myself...mostly cutting my arms. When I got towards middle school and high school, I was bullied terribly and the school psychologists were a joke. They knew I was cutting myself and did nothing, didn't recommend a doctor - nothing. I also started having severe asthma attacks regularly enough that I missed a lot of school. I ended up quitting at 17 and getting my GED.

And Mom was at her wit's end. She knew I needed help, but I was uninsured for pre-existing conditions, and she didn't know where to turn...except to the "professionals" that were at the school.

There has to be more comprehensive education about mental illness in schools and and in society in general. There is a terrible stigma associated with being mentally ill. And in school it can be traumatic. I was bullied horrifically in school. And I can tell you that the words "Sticks and Stones can break your bones but words can never hurt you" is NOT TRUE. Please, give me the broken bones! The way I was treated in school affects my thinking to this day. Everything that is said to me is taken personally...and cause problems like panic attacks. My self-esteem has severely been beaten up. If I do one thing wrong, I take it out on myself the hardest, which causes me to be more symptomatic. I have yet to figure out that I live in an adult world where people aren't as judgmental children are. These are all things I can trace back to how I felt when I was being bullied.

So this leads to schools needing to stop bullying. It is not "this is just a normal phase that kids go through". It is not. People need to recognize that being bullied like that during the developmental part of growing up is going to have effects that last a lifetime.

It is better than it was when I was a kid. But it needs to be better. Kids need to be taught to be accepting of their fellow classmates, whether they have mental problems, ADD, are mentally disabled, etc. They have to know that the things they do have consequences that can last the victim's entire life. The suicides of kids that were bullied should be a huge sign.

Ciao...