I agree 100% with what you and written here about the tragedy in Arizona. It bothers me when something like this occurs because some people believe all people who have a mental illness are violent. The fact is most people with a major mental illness are more likely to be a victim of violence than a person that performs a violent act. The problem is when the mentally ill are not properly diagnosed and if they are refuse to be medicated.
I would like to correct something that you have written and it is the fact that Gabby Giffords did not die in the tragedy. 6 others did die but Gabby is coming along miracously and as of last night she opened her eyes for the first time.
i would like to close by Thanking you for what you have written and like i said i back what you wrote here 100%
Thanks so much for this Christina. It is a subject that is so very important. I also wrote a post, Mental Illness and Violence: Is There a Connection? on HealthCentral's AnxietyConnection.com. Unfortunately, there is no single answer because it really is so many different issues all wrapped into one.
We have the issue of the lack of adequate mental health care and facilities in this country. I know of someone who went to the hospital because of hallucinations/delusions/paranoia. He was turned away because, as the staff put it, "This is a pschotic episode. These normally last 3-5 days. You should go home and wait for it to pass." He also went to the local mental health clinic and was told it would be approximately 8 weeks for an intake appointment. There are many that choose not to take their medication and not to follow up with treatment, but this can also part of the disease. There are also many who would choose treatment, if it was readily available.
Then we have the issue of so many people believing the myth that those with mental illness are violent. In an article entitled, "The portrayal of mental illness on prime-time television" [Donald L. Diefenbach, 1998, Journal of Community Psychology] stated, "In this content analysis of television, the portrayal of persons with mental disorders was highly correlated with the portrayal of violent crime. The mentally ill were found to be nearly 10 times more violent than the general population of television characters, and 10 to 20 times more violent (during a two week sample) than the mentally ill in the U.S. population (over the course of an entire year). The mentally ill on television were also judged to have a negative impact on society and a negative quality of life."
No wonder so many in society believe this myth. It is reinforced every day on television. The stigma of living with a mental illness will live on as long as it is so inaccurately portrayed in television shows, in the media and on the big screen.
These are just a few of the issues facing us today. I am not sure what the answer is but I know that there is not one single answer and it must include combination of education and access to care.
Thanks again for posting.
Eileen
After reading what others have written I wanted to write about my experiences with mental health issues in the state of Ky. Although Ky as a state does not get a good grade as far as the treatment of mentally ill patients the care I received I would rate excellcent. My first experience was in 1983 right after graduating from college. I was taken to a local hospital by my parents after I went into work at a J.C penney store and had a psychotic episode. Two psychiatrists were called and my parents gave the case to a Dr. Vincent Ziegler. I was put on a wide array of medications and when none seemed to work my dr asked my parents to consider ECT treatments. After much consideration my parents agreed and so the treatments were given. While some people have bad experiences with these treatments they did wonders for me. In fact in 1986 when I was hospitalized again i was given these treatments once again and they worked Wonders again. All in all since 1983 I was hospitalized 5 different times with the last being in 1997. I feel the care I have received not only from my psychiatrist but also from the nurses was Excellent.
I am Very Thankful my parents were able to get me the help I needed and I realize I have a form of schizophrenia known as schizoaffective disorder but I also know with the proper medication I can live a normal life.
Over and over again, in shows like Law & Order and Criminal Minds, the people who have schizophrenia are not given a fair shake. They are not presented as some of us present ourselves to the world: recovered, responsible, educated, law-abiding citizens. We deserve to be represented as well as those with schizophrenia who harm themselves, their own families, and others because of a lack of self-knowledge, lack of treatment, lack of housing, etc. But it should shake us all out of the easy habit of letting things continue as they are. In a very real sense, we are responsible for obtaining the best possible care for ourselves and others through political action and personal concern.
Christina,
I applaud your efforts.
"Deinstitutionalism" during the 80's was the most "humane" event in years. To what end?
I lived with a woman that was cutting her arm with a razor. I called 911 and they took her away. 3 or 4 hours later she was back at our apartment. My older brother was suicidal. He went to the "crisis unit" and was released a short time later.
When I was first at the state hopsital here in Binghamton, NY there were about 1,500 patients. Now there about 200. Where did they go? Some went to "transitional living" houses, family care or boarding homes. A lot of those patients are dangerous. I know one woman that would get violent on a daily basis! She walks free. Another man killed his mother, he got discharged and walks a free man.
I agree that violent actions is a major issue. Blaming us and grouping us with killers is preposterous. Yes, some with a SZ do kill.
I decided to research the number of inmates with a mental illness.
According to the DOC of Georgia:
Nearly 13% of all the inmates in the Georgia Prison System are on active mental health caseloads. Thirtynine percent of all female inmates are on mental health caseloads. The number of mental health inmates increased four-fold between 1991 and 2001 and is increasing at an average rate of 12.8% per year. In 1991 there were 1153 inmates with an MI and in 2001..there were 3948.
According to the Human Rights Watch website:
September 5,2006
New federal statistics reveal that the number of mentally ill inmates in U.S. prisons and jails has quadrupled over the past six years, Human Rights Watch said today. More than half of all prison and state inmates now report mental health problems, including symptoms of major depression, mania and psychotic disorders, according to a just-released federal Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) report, Mental Health Problems of Prison and Jail Inmates.
In 1998, the BJS reported there were an estimated 283,000 prison and jail inmates who suffered from mental health problems. That number is now estimated to be 1.25 million. The rate of reported mental health disorders in the state prison population is five times greater (56.2 percent) than in the general adult population (11 percent).
March 1, 2010
Sixty percent of state correctional systems responding to a survey on inmate mental health reported that 15 percent or more of their inmate population had a diagnosed mental illness.
The MentalHelp.net reports
June 8,2010 that "People with mental illness are three times more likely to be in the criminal justice system than hospitals."
My head was in the sand. I googled many sites to find out stats on how many MI's are in jail & prisons. My mind exploded.
I am going to research this more.
David
This is a very emotional subject for me. You know this violence thing that people are referring to. I remember when I was psychotic and alone out on the streets of San Diego. I was convinced that my daughter and her mom were going to come pick me up. This was right after I was released from rehab and my brothers and father dropped me off at a follow-up recovery home. Once I was dropped off, I didn't even check in. I immediately went wandering off in search of my daughter and her mother.
After walking for about a few miles, I remember walking to this one busy intersection and sitting against a wall of one of the business' there and just started to wait. I remember talking with my rehab counselor, actually we were communicating telepathically and he told me to continue waiting and they would show up. After sitting there for a few hours, I started to question my counselor because I had been waiting for a long time. He told me to continue waiting and that they were on the way. A few minutes after that, I heard a voice tell me that if I really wanted to see my daughter, to walk out in front of one of the moving cars. I remember asking this voice "are you serious"? And the voice said yes, just go out in the middle of the street and let one of the cars run into you. So I answered back, ok if this is the way I can see my daughter, I'll do it. For some reason, and I don't know why I chickened out. The thought about me dying didn't even enter my mind at that point. It was all about seeing my daughter. I think about that today and if I would have gone through with it, it would have appeared to have been a suicide but I had no intention of killing myself.
If Jared Loughner is diagnosed as schizophrenic, I can't even begin to imagine what was going on in his head. I can remember when the TV was talking to me and who knows what type of rhetoric he heard on TV or even on the Internet that could have influenced him.
Very, very sad...I think NAMI should be as well known as the American Cancer Society maybe some TV commercials. I don't know, but I'll say this my second therapist never even heard of NAMI...what a shame...
Dear Christina,
My brother has schizophrenia and we have had a tumultuous time with him going on and off medications. After a major loss, he is finally now taking his medications regularly and things are much better now. He is back to his warm, funny and wonderful self. I just want to tell you that I have been reading your blogs for a few years now and I cannot tell you enough how helpful, informative, and uplifting they have been. This blog, like all you blogs, really deals with the issues. You are doing a wonderful service.
Keep at it.
Sister
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I'm going to comment on my own SharePost:
The lack of mental health treatment is no longer a trend it's the status quo in America and is our country's great public shame.
I feel the need to underscore that people diagnosed with SZ are not the problem. People with schizophrenia who go without treatment are the ones most likely to be symptomatic. This is a vicious circle that perpetuates the violence.
Nobody living with SZ deserves to live out their lives in total sickness all because they were routinely denied treatment.
I'm going to jump off the ledge of reason and ignite ire by claiming that if we had universal health care in the U.S. there would be better access to mental health treatment for the people who needed it.
Now what little health care reform was enacted congress members are trying to repeal. The Health Care Reform guaranteed people with mental illnesses that their health plans would have to insure them. Rolling back our modest gains by repealing the Act would guarantee that we would be denied coverage all over again because we had a pre-existing condition. The Health Care Reform did away with the pre-existing condition clauses so that we could be insured.
Do you think we can afford to conduct business as usual?
I think not.
Regards,
Christina
Thanks Christina for your post.
Seriously, the health care system in this country is terrible, and those healthy, wealthy people can stand on there high horse and say that we don't need a unified health care system, but I'm sure they've never raised a schizophrenic parent. They have no idea what it's like.
I grew up with a schizophrenic mom and she was delusional, and paranoid. She was kind when she was on her meds, but otherwise, she thought everyone was after her. The recent shooting of Gabrielle Giffords and profiling of her potentially schizophrenic killer made me realize that no-one talks about this mental illness and there are very few resources for children of schizophrenic parents, especially if you're supporting them financially. At 10, I raised a schizophrenic mom and her new born child. The internet didn't exist, there were few resources out there, and no-one talked about the illness. My mom was in and out of mental institutions. I not only felt responsible for her, but I felt alone in the journey. I hope that this recent tragedy will bring light to this dark, strange, and mysterious illness and create more resources for those needing emotional, financial, and spiritual support.