Bella Q emailed and asked if I’d post this bleg for her. So here goes:
1 in 5. That’s the current estimate of how many people in the US will experience what’s known as a “mental illness.” Which is a misleading term because these are physical illnesses that can be fatal. Many of the conditions are manageable with medication and other therapies, and some even without medication. But far too many people don’t even seek treatment because of the social stigma attached to “mental illness.” I use the quotation marks intentionally, because the conditions are medical, and as physical as allergies or fractures or cancer.
Society doesn’t blame people with allergies or cancer, and we don’t expect people to conquer them with willpower. Not with “mental illness,” however – people with those conditions are often expected to just get over it, to buck up, or think happy thoughts. If only that worked. I guarantee you that you know someone who lives with one of these conditions; you may or may not know that you do.
The reason you may not know is that it is not a rewarding social move to reveal “mental illness.” Research published in the Journal of Health and Social Behavior (Vol. 41, No. 2) found that 68 percent of Americans did not want someone with a mental illness marrying into their family and 58 percent did not want people with mental illness in their workplace. So people are understandably wary about sharing that kind of information, since it can have significant social or professional consequences.
Those consequences can include incarceration. Americans with severe mental illnesses are three times more likely to be in jail or prison than in a psychiatric hospital. In any given year, the largest psychiatric hospital in the US is either the Los Angeles County Jail or the Cook County Jail. Granted those numbers are for severe mental illnesses, but like many other conditions, deterioration can occur without appropriate medical treatment, so what may not start out severe can end up that way.
There are potential professional consequences also. In a 2014 report by Yale Law School, 30% of Yale Law students who said they had considered, but did not seek treatment for mental health problems, cited “fear of disclosure risk for the bar exam” as a reason why. The level of intrusiveness of mental health questions varies by state. Some states choose to ask only about actual conduct or behavior that can be explained by a mental health challenge while some ask about current mental health challenges only. On the more invasive end of the spectrum states ask about past diagnosis and treatment history. With no national regulation of these questions, the range of questions is wide. (Source)
NAMI (the National Alliance on Mental Illness) is the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization dedicated to building better lives for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness. NAMI’s mission is to raise awareness of mental illness and to help individuals living with mental illness and their families. All NAMI programs are provided to participants free of charge. Fundraising is crucial to continuing programming, which helps more people each day as awareness of the programs increases.
NAMI provides support, education, and advocacy to hundreds of thousands of families, individuals, educators, mental health service providers, and law enforcement professionals each year. Among the important things NAMI does is support of programs to train law enforcement to manage situations involving people with mental illnesses. I presented sections in several of those trainings and saw the improved results as more officers were trained.
In 2019 Team Bella Q is raising funds for NAMI SW Ohio. Harry has his own page, and he’s again on pace to raise more than the rest of the roster. Any donations will be appreciated. All can be made as anonymously as you like. Visiting jackals who donate will get a coffee, cocktail, or other confection of their choice from me during their visit to SW Ohio (or with me if you live here).
Thanks for reading.
You all know what to do.
Open thread!
Adam L Silverman
I’ve been tracking the domestic terrorist attack on the synagogue outside of San Diego since the news went up on the TVs at the gym. I’ve just gotten in. I’m getting cleaned up, gonna go grab something to eat, and depending on what information comes out, may have a post on it later tonight. The shooter has been identified as John Earnest of San Diego who is in custody.
ETA: I highly recommend MSNBC’s custody as they have my close, long time friend and colleague Brian Levin on as one of their subject matter experts. Brian is a professor at Cal State San Berardino where he runs a center that studies extremism.
The Dangerman
Bitch and moan about the proximity of the willow?
ETA: Ugh, didn’t hear about San Diego. Sigh.
Adam L Silverman
@The Dangerman:
Always apropos.
satby
BellaQ and Harry, I will be chipping in on Wednesday. And so as not to play favorites, I will donate to you both ? Great cause, shared it on FB.
p.a.
We’re gonna have to start importing Thoughts and Prayers ™; domestic supply can’t keep up with demand. tRump will tariff them though.
(((CassandraLeo)))
@Adam L Silverman: Surely you mean MSNBC’s coverage? :p
Anyway, thanks for writing both this post and the forthcoming one.
Also, that 1 in 5 number seems very low compared to some of the other estimates I’ve heard. Judging from the phrasing, it sounds like an estimate of the number of Americans who experience mental illness over the course of their lives. Most estimates I’ve heard place that closer to 50%. And I suspect the remaining 50% just never get diagnosed, probably for reasons spelled out above. Of course, a lot of this also probably depends on factors such as how severe an illness needs to be to get counted and various other methodological factors.
Will try to remember to contribute later.
Steve in the ATL
What a great photo! Any idea who took it?
And this NAMBLA sounds like a great organization.
Mnemosyne
Since it seems like most of the stories we hear about people with chronic mental illness are tragic and (IMO) can feed into people’s bad perceptions of mental illness, I’d like to talk about a success story.
My BFF’s father was diagnosed with schizophrenia as a young man, but fortunately after anti-psychotic medication was introduced. Because he was diagnosed before it progressed too far and because he had a stable family life, it was a chronic disease that affected his life but did not ruin it. He was married for 60 years and he was able to retire from a union job with good medical benefits that paid for his medication and doctor’s visits without a fuss. He and his wife had 6 children who were all able to go to college and have their own successful marriages and children. They grew up pretty poor, but they were able to stick together and get through it.
There were times when his medication had to be changed because it became less effective, or when he was under unusual stress and stopped taking it. One of the last times that happened, it turned out that his wife (for whom he was the primary caregiver in a good assisted living facilty) had terminal cancer that was diagnosed shortly after he was stabilized. I’m still convinced that he had the breakdown because he sensed before anyone else that she was sick and the stress was too much for him to handle alone.
He and his family were fortunate in that his disease did not have paranoia as one of its features, so it was relatively easy for him to get his health back on track after a breakthrough episode. I realize that that tends to be a matter of luck and that other people with schizophrenia are not as fortunate.
He passed away earlier this year in his early 90s about a year after his wife died. He was surrounded by the family and friends who loved him.
He was never “cured.” He had schizophrenia until the day he died. But he was able to live with it successfully because he had the social and medical support he needed to do so, which is what I wish for everyone who has one of these chronic illnesses.
Eric S
I’ll be sending some shekels. My own story.
In retrospect I have had a life l ok ng struggle with Social Anxiety Disorder. I thought I was just shy but it is wider and deeper than that. I sought medical help for physical manifestations. The docs told me there was nothing “physically” wrong with me. Two to three years in I am much better than I was but still have a long journey ahead of me
Mr Stagger Lee
Congratulations To Caleb Wilson from UCLA, Drafted by the Arizona Cardinals as Mr. Irrelevant, the last pick in the draft
SiubhanDuinne
@Adam L Silverman:
Have been on the road since 11:00 this morning, and the Met’s live radio broadcast of Götterdämmerung accompanied my journey until 5:00 pm. It was only then that I switched over to MSNBC and heard the horrible news.
Seems to me that the media generally, and MSNBC in particular, have become far more cautious than they used to be about repeating rumours, indulging in premature speculation, and generally sensationalising this kind of event. Good for them — credit where credit is due.
That said, Adam, I will look forward to seeing whatever wise analysis you can bring later this evening to this depressingly familiar scenario.
(Edited to unfuck some fucked-up formatting.)
eemom
Lifelong OCD sufferer here. Meds saved me from the brink of suicide many years ago when it was exacerbated by postpartum depression.
Mnemosyne
Also, too:
I’m not quite sure if ADHD gets classified as a mental illness since no one is entirely sure what causes it and doctors are reluctant to call issues that first show up in early childhood “mental illness,” but like many women I was first diagnosed with depression — specifically a depression called “dysthymia” that is a chronic, low-grade, undramatic depression that nevertheless dragged my life down until I was on the verge of getting fired from my job at the time. I didn’t realize that I had been swimming through a mental fog for years until the Wellbutrin kicked in and the cloud suddenly lifted.
From what I’ve read, dysthymia is not currently considered a “true” mood disorder because it seems to be triggered by the chronic stress of ADHD and/or Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) while “true” mood disorders usually don’t have a specific, traceable cause.
In retrospect, luck came to my rescue because the psychiatrist I was referred to decided to put me on Wellbutrin rather than an SSRI, which happens to be the best anti-depressant for people with ADHD. It was still a long, hard slog in therapy to get out of that hole, though, and it wasn’t until several years afterwards that I was finally diagnosed with ADHD.
Mr Stagger Lee
I would like to see something done to reduce the deadly confrontations between those Mental Illness and the police, Seattle Police, among others seems to have a shoot first policy especially if the person is a POC. De-escalation seems never the solution. Let it be known I am not saying every person with Mental Illness is violent. but this issue is one I like to see groups tackle.
SiubhanDuinne
@eemom:
Hugs. That’s devastating to contemplate. I’m so glad the help you needed, pharmaceutical and otherwise, was available to you when you most needed it.
laura
Wow, this cuts so close to the bone. My paternal gramma had an undiagnosed manic depression and was both a genius and in and out of state hospitals immediately following the birth of her second child. My dad and aunt were feral children as a result. He protected us from the hard parts, but I’ll NEVER forgive Ronald Reagan for closing the State Hospitals and tossing the very I’ll and very vulnerable onto the streets of California.
I’ll be kicking in in memory of my gramma, our family’s Jonathan Winters.
Lyrebird
@Eric S: Yeah I don’t have a diagnosis, but there are 1-2 people from elementary school I wish I could go back and inform about that issue. Childhood me being one of them.
Go Bella Q! Will send a few coppers to your team!
I wonder how many of y’all have read this thread already about a dad of a special-needs child having a rotten time in a store. I saved the link in part bc I wonder how much worse it might have gone had he not been – I presume – white. But everyone did come out okay.
@Adam L Silverman: And thanks Adam. Hope you had an awesome holiday!
debbie
@Steve in the ATL:
I think that’s a painting.
eemom
@SiubhanDuinne:
Thank you, SD
SiubhanDuinne
@Steve in the ATL:
Green balloons and everything!
debbie
@debbie:
Stupid eyes. The background is painted.
p.a.
Depressive since youth, (I could go years w/o issues), v bad in 2012 (every untreated attack worse than previous) CBT, therapy really helped, and although I never spoke about it then here, so did this place. TY.
Now waiting for Endgame to start.
oatler.
Don’tt worry, Bothsides Chuck T is on the scene!
“The nyc tabs should be interesting tomorrow re #giants pick.”
Brachiator
Thanks for this post about mental health. I have friends with various issues, and sometimes you just feel helpless, not knowing what to do or how to help.
ETA. Just saw the breaking news about the synagogue shooting. Damn.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
I joined NAMI last year when my nephew was diagnosed as bipolar. It wasn’t pretty, and he’s decided the diagnosis was wrong, which I understand is typical.
Ohio Mom
@debbie: That looks like the restaurant where the second of the Cincinnatii meet-ups was held.
Now I am imagining an Instagram feed of poorly composed photos of all the restaurants all over the country where Steve in the wherever has dined.
Steve in the ATL
@debbie: @SiubhanDuinne: it was a trick question. I took the photo after the Blue Ash Bar Association meeting; Bella Q brought the balloons from the B-J meetup the night before.
Steve in the ATL
@Ohio Mom: Applebee’s! Chili’s! Bob Evans! Max and Erma’s!
Ruckus
@laura:
I was a volunteer mental health counselor towards the end of ronnie’s reign of terror as gov and for almost 3 yrs after. Most of the people we saw just needed some one to talk to about an issue they had no one to talk to. IOW normal stuff. But some were suicidal, some were really, really in need of professional help. It was not all that uncommon to see in person or talk to on the phone, people with severe needs who had no where else to turn except the local city volunteer mental health center/suicide call center. If they or their parents had insurance it most likely didn’t cover any mental health issues. And at best we were a stop gap, with no better solution in sight.
MomSense
Depression and PTSD here. My mom self medicated her anxiety and panic attacks with alcohol for decades and it wasn’t pretty. She stigmatized herself and didn’t get help until fairly recently.
I’m in for a continuation. And if anyone would like to trade a contribution for a handknit accessory like a hat, shawl, scarf, or baby item, let me know.
Ruckus
@Steve in the ATL:
That sure doesn’t look like any Applebees or Bob Evans.
SiubhanDuinne
BTW, I find it … interesting … that the stories about total dysfunction at the NRA were rendered invisible by news of a shooting.
John Revolta
It’s sad, but I have to struggle to imagine police submitting to training nowadays as to how to intelligently and professionally de-escalate situations. I know it’s not true across the board but my concept of a cop is a goon who’ll shoot first and possibly enjoy it.
mrmoshpotato
@p.a.: Maybe if they’re imported from brown countries, the Republican gunhumpers will hate the Thoughts and Prayers enough to actually help pass bipartisan gun control laws.
zhena gogolia
@Steve in the ATL:
Bob Evans is the weirdest. Ham and pork and pork sausage and bacon and . . . would you like some pig with that?
Mary G
@Adam L Silverman: Did you see that a bunch of white nationalists with a bullhorn disrupted a talk by Jonathan Metzl about his book called Dying of Whiteness at Politics and Prose bookstore in DC this afternoon?
No link because I could only get through a few seconds of seeing those gleefully angry assholes in what is my holy place. Twitler has been stirring them up with his praise of R.E. Lee.
Mnemosyne
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
Misdiagnosis is not uncommon, unfortunately. Diagnosing these disorders is often more of an art than a science, and a doctor’s unconscious or subconscious biases can influence the diagnosis. That’s why women and girls with ADHD usually get treated for depression and anxiety with limited success long before anyone thinks to screen them for ADHD.
It’s also not uncommon for people to have comorbid conditions. My adult nephew has fairly severe ADHD plus bipolar disorder, so it’s a tricky balancing act to treat both at the same time since the medication that works for ADHD can send the bipolar disorder spiralling out of control, and vice versa.
Steve in the ATL
@Ruckus: Brown Dog Cafe, Blue Ash, Ohio. Great wine list and food.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@zhena gogolia: could I get that with a side of spam?
Aleta
Thanks BellaQ.
Although the link above to Team BellaQ says Invalid ID in the URL, the link to Harry works and Harry’s page has a working link to Team B. Q.
Will be donating.
One of my relatives had several hospitalizations while going through Yale. (The triggering stress was financial — summer job failed to pay enough for the next semester, etc.) At the time it was hard to get Yale to take you back in if you’d withdrawn for mental illness. (Same for many other schools; still true for many places.) Managed to be readmitted, then went through Yale Law and its school of business management at the same time. Job in NYC, but another hospitalization and recovery after a therapist died suddenly. Long recovery, new job at a law firm. After awhile, told the firm they were bipolar. Fired immediately. This was many years ago.
Financial stress, poverty and prejudice make a difference between being susceptible to illness yet still functioning; vs loss and nearly impossible recovery. I especially hate the MSM and internet joking about people who are poor and behaving erratically.
Aleta
@Ohio Mom: or a travel guide book
Anotherlucker
The seeds of my PTSD were planted in catholic school. Sadistic nuns and pedophile priests set the stage for my lack of self esteem .
Superstorm Sandy “recovery”, dealing with insurance companies, FEMA, the SBA and other entities (who’s only purpose is to protect the banks and insurance companies) brought the condition to the surface. Dealing with these pig fuckers sent me into 7 years of frustration and self doubt. I got out of L.I. and moved to Fla., trying to start a new life. Another disasterous choice which led to 2 suicide attempts. I got a great therapist who helped me recognize trigger points. She also helped me develop coping strategies.
On top of everything I had to deal with Fla. Red Tide and 3 eruptions of facial Shingles. With me, Shingles seems to be heavily stress related. All and all I lost nearly 10 months of 2018.
My oldest, best friend threatened to come to Fla. and drag my ass to the East Bay, if I didn’t GTFO of Bradenton.
I took his advice and moved in November. My friend and his wife are empty nesters who rented me a room . This simple act allowed me to recover my health.
I’m now working out 3-5X/week. I have revived my career (TV Audio) and I’m about to start looking for an apt. (Brooklyn, NY prices!!).
I guess what I’m trying to say is that “mental illness” can include many factors. Some of these elements respond to meds. , some respond positive attitude and some respond to the kindness of friends.
There should never be social stigma attached to it. Sadly, our USA society is heavily influenced by calvinistic religious fuckery and this, IMHO, contributes to the stigma.
Mnemosyne
@Aleta:
My abovementioned nephew’s father spent most of his adult life in and out of prison before anyone bothered to screen him for mental illness. To no one’s surprise, he also has comorbid ADHD and bipolar disorder, with a side order of addiction problems, mostly gambling.
Ironically, prison probably saved his life, because all three of his brothers died young in accidents or drug overdoses. Given that his issues went undiagnosed for so long, it’s a safe bet that his brothers had the same or similar mental illnesses since they are highly inheritable.
But the family was poor and Black, so nobody bothered to get them the help they so desperately needed and couldn’t afford even if they had been properly diagnosed.
SiubhanDuinne
@Ohio Mom:
Some of those places don’t even have restaurants.
lamh36
Evening BJ.
Back home from work and saw Endgame after.
oooooh… Endgame was really good!
So amazing how they brought it all full circle!
No spoilers, but def A+. I can’t wait to see where the MCEU goes from here!
ruemara
I wasn’t a depressive, not at the start. Things were always rough, but I had that childlike faith that at some point, the suffering was worth it & god would pour out a blessing etc., etc. Until maybe about 41-2 when I realized that if GAWD was gonna give me restitution for everything, I was literally owed about a billion or 2 and I was tired. Problems can start you being depressed, but when there’s never a break, you change and don’t even know your self any more. I’ve given a lot of thought to anti-depressants but I cannot deal with yet another medicine and my fantastic history of bad interactions, reactions, rare side effects that surprise doctors. So far, a bit of THC gummy works to subdue things a bit, but if I can get the weight down even more to see if the hypertension meds finally are fully effective and can even be reduced, I may actively consider anti-depressants. I’m lucky. I know that consistent exercise, and creative work help immensely. Having an income for the past few years also reduced the anxiety. It’s ramping up quickly again, since I’ve got 3 more weeks of work left. I’m glad I almost got it to taper off in the past few years.
zhena gogolia
@lamh36:
Idris Elba got married.
lamh36
redacted…gonna post in new open thread
JR
No mention of the 8chan-inspired synagogue shooting in Poway?
zhena gogolia
@JR:
It’s been discussed in threads, and Adam said he’d do a post later.
lamh36
@zhena gogolia: I heard he got married..but not to me…Congrats I guess..
Mnemosyne
@ruemara:
Bella Q is the subject expert here, but IIRC one of the big contributors to chronic depression and anxiety is having stressors that are out of your control, like chronic illness, employment, and (no surprise) racism and sexism. I hope you’re able to get the work part sorted out quickly. I’ll repeat myself from the other day and say that the stories I’ve heard from many of the Black women writers I know have convinced me that you may be better off self-employed if you can swing it. Most of them have turned to self-publishing because they couldn’t get a book contract and are now doing way better financially than most traditionally published authors.
NotMax
@<a href="https://balloon-juice.com/2019/04/27/bleg-team-bella-q/#comment-7270549"zhena gogolia
Their Passover buffet special is kind of sparse.
:)
Steve in the ATL
@zhena gogolia: Bob Evans is for people who think wonder bread is exotic
Aleta
@Mnemosyne: “stressors that are out of your control”
I’ll add parents with illness and self medicating, to that ‘out of your control’ list
The child of my relative went through a lot . (Fortunately Pres Obama’s ACA brought better care.) The kid is grown now, doing pretty well but has to spend extra effort recovering from the effects.
Mental illness shoots through families and then gets carried on.
NAMI helps families.
(((CassandraLeo)))
@Mnemosyne:
Holy shit, no wonder I’m such a wreck at the moment. Every single factor on your list has been a concern over the past few months*, plus several other similar factors. Now I don’t feel quite as bad that I’ve been so unproductive lately.
*To be fair, most of these aren’t as bad for me as they are for others, but that doesn’t erase the difficulties I’ve faced.
debbie
@zhena gogolia:
Bob Evans started out as a pig farmer. HowdEEEE!
ruemara
@Mnemosyne: I think that’s where I’m headed. Podcast, writing, and I’m looking at landing some govcom & scicomm projects.
Mnemosyne
@ruemara:
I am becoming friends with Theodora Taylor, if you want to look her up. Her career in mainstream fiction stalled out and she switched to romance after meeting some at a writing convention for Black authors. (Just a few names, like Beverly Jenkins and Brenda Jackson.) Now she’s making six figures as a full-time self-published romance author.
ruemara
@Mnemosyne: I have to admit, I am devouring the kindle unlimited stuff. And thanks for Alyssa Cole. I am LOVING the inclusive fiction.
Mnemosyne
@ruemara:
Inclusive fiction is out there, but a lot of it is self-published or small press because most of the big romance publishers are afraid of alienating conservative white housewives.
Except Berkley Books (a division of Penguin). They’re actively recruiting non-white authors like Jasmine Guillory and Helen Hoang and making money hand over fist because they’re publishing them as $14 trade paperbacks instead of $8 mass market paperbacks.
(Mini brag: Alyssa Cole signed my book at the Festival of Books, and also a sticker with my new favorite characters of hers. If you have not yet downloaded her novella “Can’t Escape Love,” drop EVERYTHING and get it now. It’s Reggie’s book of her own. You will love it even more than I did, and I was so enthusiastic about it that I scared the author a little.)
ruemara
@Mnemosyne: YES! I loved it! I preordered it so I got it the minute it dropped. If anything, IT WAS TOO SHORT.
JustRuss
@Anotherlucker: I came down with facial Shingles after my life started falling apart. Talk about kicking a guy when he’s down. I expect stress is a factor. Went through several years of severe depression, I guess I’m lucky it was not chronic.
HeartlandLiberal
From the Raygun presidency on, the GOP and Congress have conspired to destroy the infrastructure that provided safe havens in the form of state hospitals and similar institutions, that would provide subsidized funding for those incompetent mentally to care for themselves. And as a result, we have a homeless epidemic, and many of those homeless and living on the streets are people who are mentally incapable, for many reasons and diagnoses, of functioning normally. It is one of the greatest shames on our society in the last fifty years, as far as I am concerned, that we just wrote of the helpless and the weak and those unable to care for themselves.