Sue Bergeson
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
"Never events" is a term used in parts of the health care world to describe catastrophic events like death or the amputation of the wrong leg by a doctor in surgery. I was out of town when I got the news of yet another catastrophic, heart-wrenching event at a university. Northern Illinois ...
tls
Thursday, February 28, 2008 at 09:39 AM
The thought of a long term injectable is a bit scary. What happens if you have a bad reaction and you are stuck in a bad place for a month. It could lead to more hospitalization and perhaps mandated hospitalization. When depo provera first came out I was on the band wagon - yeah ha - no more daily pills to remember and no periods to boot! Problem was after my first shot I became suicidally depressed and stayed that way for a couple weeks. When I called my ob/gyn's office and told them something was wrong and I feel like driving off the canal bridge they told me that it must be something else because birth control doesn't cause that kind of thinking and then they dismissed me. I had enough wits about me to call my MD right away and got on zoloft but the truth was I was on a medicine that I could not stop and I was having a very bad reaction. This was pre-bipolar dx and I think it was the only time I was put on zoloft and it didn't cause hypomania. In the past and after that time everytime I got depressed and the MD put me on zoloft my life became golden but I didn't know why at the time. I am so thankful for my therapist in 2004 who recognized that zoloft was making me hyper-talkative and I was taking on way too many new things and I got a proper dx. This was after 24 years of suffering and a few too many suicide attempts. Sorry, I got sidetracked, my most recent hospitalization they took me off of zoloft and trileptal and put me on depakote. Within a couple weeks I was depressed, irritable, gained 20 pounds, slept all day, and did absolutely nothing, it was not a good time. If I had been given an injection that lasted a month it would have delayed proper treatment because I would need a counter-drug to stabalize me and then the whole thing would have started again after the injection wore off. I'm thinking this is not a good way to go. Hopefully, thankfully, the r&d and trials would be so far off in the future it wouldn't affect me but could seriously affect the next generation.
I appreciate your informative posts.
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TMarie
Thursday, February 28, 2008 at 02:49 PM
The best answer I see is for more and more of us to claim it, tell others about our own stories.
I know full well the difficulties and discrimination that exist out there, and would never want someone to be pushed into disclosure against their will. I never mentioned depression at any previous job myself.
But now I'm newly re-diagnosed with bipolar II. It's been a rough time, but it seems we're on the right track to medication and therapies that work for me.
Part of my healing is getting over feeling guilty for my illness. My family's silence about my dad's huge mood swings and anger taught me to not acknowledge nor seek help for my own; the very things that the depressed or bipolar brain tell us as well. I believe that silence promotes shame.
For my own healing, I need to not be ashamed. It's important I advocate for myself in learning about my condition, but just as importantly, I need to not be silent. I've told more family and friends about bipolar than I ever told about depression. (At first it was mostly because things worsened enough that more support has been needed; I needed to take that chance.)
I've been lucky and thankful that most responses have been overwhelmingly supportive and positive. There is an initial shock; they "never would have guessed" that I am bipolar. But that makes them curious. I am matter-of-fact about it, and open to questions - so they ask them. Their curiosity opens the door to knowledge, which (hopefully) leads to less stigma.
Those are just a few people in my little neck of the woods. And that's enough for me right now, because I'm working on getting over wanting to change the world.
Thank you for this site - good articles here.
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Rusty
Friday, February 29, 2008 at 08:53 PM
Hi Sue,
You said in your post..."This stigma could also impact the funding and advancement of psychiatric research, especially considering recent, further cuts on the federal level to treatment-specific research dollars ... research dollars that would have offered at least the hope of better mental health treatments in the future."
I really think that in the light of the recent events...funding for mental health would be INCREASED in the hope to provide better treatments and support to people with mental illness, so these event ARE NOT REPEATED. How governments could use this as a reason to cut funding makes no sense to me. Clearly more funding is needed. It worries me that the cost of medication for people with Mental illness is so high in the US......that is a reason people go off their medication..they simply cannot afford it. Making medications financially accessible means increasing financial assistance for people with chronic illnesses. I often hear on this site how hard it is for people to afford their medications. Something really needs to be done about this issue. In Australia, people on low incomes pay $2 for pharmaceutical medications. The government subsides medications for those whose incomes are higher ( maximum of $29) and if you go over the $800 threshold for medications and doctors fees in one year, these people then go onto $2 prescriptions as well. Public hospital and doctors fees are free for everyone. Some people pay into Private health insurance to cover private hospitals. All working people pay a levy ( % of income) in our taxes to cover these costs, so effectively the people who are well help to support those who are not. It is not perfect but it works. People are not discouraged from getting the medication they need.
We also introduced gun laws after a shooting in Tasmania. The govt introduced a gun buy back scheme and guns were handed in. Those who use guns for sport have to have them under lock and key and have psychological evaluations done. This is checked regularly. Unfortunately your constitution states "the right to bear arms" this is a tripping point for the US on this issue. Surely everyone does not need a gun. The less guns the less shootings. We have not had any repeat shooting events since these laws were introduced. I think we should take the focus away from blaming individuals with mental illness for these events and put it squarely back on governments to fund resources for mental illnesses and change things like gunlaws which contribute to these events.
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Michele Maliano
Saturday, March 01, 2008 at 09:14 PM
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alfredo
Tuesday, March 04, 2008 at 04:43 AM
Dear Sue,
I am a new comer to your website. This is because here in Australia we do not have a website like yours where people speak freely. Here everything has to be looked at, modified and given the green light before it can be icluded. To me this is wrong and kills the spontaneous mind. We need to hear from consumer and let them speak freely much like you do on your website.
I have read your article on the shooting in America. I understand too well what you are trying to say. I have been unable to get a postgraduate offer in a Master Candidature despite the fact that I have a very high and rare IQ and that I am multi talented though as a migrant my English is limited.
I am currently the full time carer of my wife who has a number of disabiilities and, when I have taken care of everything like housework and my wife, I study. We live on a disability pension and though our finances are very limited I fix things and because of this I can get things cheeply and fix them. For example I got a broken computer for little money and I was able to fix it having now a current computer that would otherwise have cost me a lot of money. I also help charity organizations by fixing computers and donating these to needy people who would otherwise be unalbe to go online.
Fortunately I was lucky enough to find a professor in the UK who has made it possible for me to further my studies. Though I would not receive a formal Masters degree I will get some references to say that I have attended University at the post-grad level from the UK.
The problem that you describe has affected me and prevented me from studies in a University. I suppose that it is the same in America where many Academic have fear of students with mental disabilities. As you know they can always say that there is no suitable supervisor no matter how interesting or useful the research. Such is the extent of the problem and having conducted research for 8 years with people with mental disabilities (I am in touch via emails with consumers from all over the world) I can say that consumers are prevented, in most cases, from studying.
Thank you for your sensitive article. Much needed.
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Beth
Wednesday, March 05, 2008 at 10:18 AM
I do not believe that forced medication is the answer to deterring these holocaust-type tragedies. In fact, forced medication stinks of Hitler mentality.
I do believe that all patients, no matter what their disorder be it psychiatric or other, should be encouraged to stick to their medication regime.
Otherwise, we must continue to EDUCATE, EDUCATE, EDUCATE, the public. Somehow, we must try to calm the fear that the general public has for people who suffer from mental illness. Too often when these dreadful events happen the general public JUMPS to the conclusion that the perpetrator must be mentally ill. It's just not so. Too many Americans are treated for depression and anxiety by GPs. That doesn't mean they are a danger. Just as the patients treated by professional psychiatrists for disorders are not always a danger to others.
Education is the answer.
Elizabeth in Mississippi
(Where a lot of education needs to be taking place because these people are scared beyond belief of anyone with a mental diagnosis!)
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