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I hadn’t heard of Bipolar Disorder Awareness Day until I was browsing the NAMI website today. My interest piqued, I read on:
"Bipolar Disorder Awareness Day was created by NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) and Abbott Laboratories to increase awareness of bipolar disorder, promote early detection and accurate diagnosis, reduce stigma, and minimize the devastating impact on the 2.3 million Americans presently affected by the disorder."
I wiped my eyes and read that again. I saw the same thing: NAMI and Abbott Laboratories. Yes, THAT Abbot Laboratories, the manufacturers of Depakote. Not that there's anything wrong with Depakote per se, it gave me a major psychotic episode but I'm sure thousands benefit from its proper use. But suddenly I feel cheated. Cheap and used. It's like finding out Hallmark started "Love Day", "Sweetest Day", and "Second-Cousin's Day" for purposes of selling greeting cards.
Maybe I should feel honored that a disorder that personally affects me has its own day. Wondering if other conditions have their own day, I select 2 at random. There's World Schizophrenia Day, and World Crohn's and Colitis Day. Hmmmmmm - are any of those days co-sponsored by pharmaceutical companies? I guess it doesn't really matter, and everyone's particular health challenge should be honored with it's own day irregardless of who sponsors or benefits from it.
Am I sounding a little sarcastic? That's my frame-of-mind right now. Antagonistic, sarcastic, anxious, and bitter. But enough of that, let's get back on topic and learn a little more about Bipolar Disorder Awareness Day.
BDAD activities focus on encouraging the community to:
* Learn more about the symptoms of bipolar disorder and mental illness and understand its impact on society.
* Participate in a free mental health screening held in many communities.
* Reach out to individuals suffering from bipolar disorder or mental illness.
* Encourage individuals with bipolar disorder to seek treatment.
Bipolar Disorder Awareness Day is actually a part of the 2007 Mental Illness Awareness Week, which occurs the first week in October each year. It's happening now, October 7 - 13. Once again, per NAMI:
Established in 1990 by Congress, the first week of October is designated as "Mental Illness Awareness Week" (MIAW) in recognition of NAMI’s efforts to raise mental illness awareness. "Bipolar Disorder Awareness Day" (BDAD) is held each year on the Thursday of MIAW to encourage further understanding and promote early intervention and treatment for this mental illness.
MIAW and BDAD are NAMI’s premiere public awareness and public education campaigns that link the organization nationally to the organization’s over 1100 local affiliates across the country.
Over the past 16 years, MIAW has become a tradition in NAMI. It presents an opportunity for all three levels of NAMI –national, state and local – to work together in communities across the country in meeting the NAMI mission through a variety of outreach, educational, and advocacy efforts.
"Bipolar Disorder Awareness Day was created by NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) and Abbott Laboratories to increase awareness of bipolar disorder, promote early detection and accurate diagnosis, reduce stigma, and minimize the devastating impact on the 2.3 million Americans presently affected by the disorder."
I wiped my eyes and read that again. I saw the same thing: NAMI and Abbott Laboratories. Yes, THAT Abbot Laboratories, the manufacturers of Depakote. Not that there's anything wrong with Depakote per se, it gave me a major psychotic episode but I'm sure thousands benefit from its proper use. But suddenly I feel cheated. Cheap and used. It's like finding out Hallmark started "Love Day", "Sweetest Day", and "Second-Cousin's Day" for purposes of selling greeting cards.
Maybe I should feel honored that a disorder that personally affects me has its own day. Wondering if other conditions have their own day, I select 2 at random. There's World Schizophrenia Day, and World Crohn's and Colitis Day. Hmmmmmm - are any of those days co-sponsored by pharmaceutical companies? I guess it doesn't really matter, and everyone's particular health challenge should be honored with it's own day irregardless of who sponsors or benefits from it.
Am I sounding a little sarcastic? That's my frame-of-mind right now. Antagonistic, sarcastic, anxious, and bitter. But enough of that, let's get back on topic and learn a little more about Bipolar Disorder Awareness Day.
BDAD activities focus on encouraging the community to:
* Learn more about the symptoms of bipolar disorder and mental illness and understand its impact on society.
* Participate in a free mental health screening held in many communities.
* Reach out to individuals suffering from bipolar disorder or mental illness.
* Encourage individuals with bipolar disorder to seek treatment.
Bipolar Disorder Awareness Day is actually a part of the 2007 Mental Illness Awareness Week, which occurs the first week in October each year. It's happening now, October 7 - 13. Once again, per NAMI:
Established in 1990 by Congress, the first week of October is designated as "Mental Illness Awareness Week" (MIAW) in recognition of NAMI’s efforts to raise mental illness awareness. "Bipolar Disorder Awareness Day" (BDAD) is held each year on the Thursday of MIAW to encourage further understanding and promote early intervention and treatment for this mental illness.
MIAW and BDAD are NAMI’s premiere public awareness and public education campaigns that link the organization nationally to the organization’s over 1100 local affiliates across the country.
Over the past 16 years, MIAW has become a tradition in NAMI. It presents an opportunity for all three levels of NAMI –national, state and local – to work together in communities across the country in meeting the NAMI mission through a variety of outreach, educational, and advocacy efforts.
, but when pharm. companies come in, well, I know we need the meds and that they are our salvation sometimes but it just don't seem like they should be the SPONSOR of such an awareness week...kinda makes you wonder about their motive...which we all pretty much can guess at. At least that is my feeling, and probably just my ocd or paranoria speaking, but something seems awful fishy with this combination to me
....sorry but I guess i have trust issues....I mean would this pharm. company support this awareness week if they weren't the manufacturer of the medication that treats the illness???now THAT would tell me they are interested in helping and advocacy....sorry but don't trust this at all...
and has helped so many, it is the pharm. company that makes me leary
, that is all....i don't know it just seems weird to me...but i guess the NAMI must get sponsorship whereever the money is at and they certainly need funding so, perhaps it is again my "paranoria" or my distrust of the perception of our illness that has so come out in such a negative way that makes me wonder....I soooo appreciate you posting information like this for i do a lot of research but you always have the most interesting things that i haven't heard or seen yet....I thank you....and i'm with you a STRANGE partnership for sure....but you're absolutely right the NAMI DOES deserve our support. Hope you have a good day and keep posting!!!
Hello G.J.,
I know that the purpose of your post was to enlighten us about the fact that there is a day set aside to recognize bipolar disorder and that we should do something to ensure that it gets recognized.
I am sorry, but I couldn't get past the notion of NAMI and Abbott Laboratories being in collusion together to sponsor the day. As I have long suspected, it would appear that NAMI has once again sold itself out to the larger group that would make them feel better about what caused their relative's illnesses. In other words, the drug companies back up the notion that bipolar disorder is a brain disease and can only be treated with medications. That takes the "heat" off the parents so that they are not seen as the cause of their relative's illnesses. It very nicely allows Abbott to then encourage NAMI and others to buy their wonder drugs, which will treat these brain diseases. NAMI and Abbott - not such strange bedfellows after all.
I know that parents were treated with a great deal of disrespect and suspicion with regard to what the cause of bipolar and schizophrenia was. There has always been the fight about nature versus nurture - were their kids born with it or did they develop it based on what happened to them as they grew up? Still, it seems that NAMI was all too eager to embrace the medical mindset of causality for bipolar and other mental disorders and now, they are in cahoots with a major drug company. Isn't that just peachy?
And please don't misunderstand me. I know that NAMI has done some invaluable things to advance the cause of destigmatizing mental illness. Unfortunately, their entire focus seems to be on mental disorders as brain diseases, and I am not at all sure that I agree with that viewpoint. To a certain extent, I suppose I do, but not to the exclusion of other possibilities as the causes of mental disorders. When NAMI jumped on the bandwagon during the decade of the brain, they virtually ensured that research into other areas of causality for mental illness were shut down. People no longer dared to entertain the notion that there might be something more at play here, than just brain dynamics.
It does not come as that big of a surprise to me that NAMI is working together with a major drug manufacturer. Anything to promote their own research, especially if that research supports their widely know belief about the cause of mental illness.
I don't mean to sound so negative about NAMI, but I have always thought that their focus was very esoteric. I am a firm believer in examining all possible causes of mental disorders, so that we can then find more appropriate treatment modalities. If it were all just about brain diseases, then there would be no need for psychotherapy to help a person gain "insight" into their condition.
I feel your bitterness, G.J. The anti-seizure medicines have caused me a great deal of pain and agony, and I can understand that you would be angry about this "hook-up". It just goes to show you that you can really never be too paranoid. There is almost always an element of truth behind a paranoid idea . . . . .
Kay
Kay,
An excellent comment. I don't share the depth of your distrust and rancor for pharmaceutical companies, but I am absolutely more jaded. I have changed since being on medication. That's why we take medication, and many of my changes are desired and welcomed. But many are not, and were completely unexpected. For example, yesterday I was home from work because of a severe mania and anxiety. That anxiety began with my psych meds. I'm working on a sharepost about this.
Thanks for your comment, I like that you held nothing back. As a community we need all our voices - the trusting and the distrusting, to force us to consider all facets of our treatment.