The recent incident in Santa Barbara, Ca. brings a lot of thoughts, to share.  For one, the National Mental Health System is weak and broken in this country.  The laws are a blur, action when needed is far removed.  This serious epidemic continues to escalate right beneath our eyes, and we do nothing.  For example in this recent situation, the cops show up at this guys house before the killings.  Do they search it no, better yet do they access a national gun control manifest to see if he owns guns, no.  Does anybody jump in and put this kid under watch, lock him up, no.  Why because with the screwed up laws in our country you can’t only if suicide attempt is being made.  His father and mother knew he was off, yet did they grab anybody of authority, mental health specifically and raise the awareness for action to take place, no.  Or let’s say they did, could an authority detain and examine this individual, maybe look at his videos and manifest, what about his 3 room mates that were killed?  How does this stuff go on right underneath our noses, and not addressed?  Again no proactive approach to these type of situations, no program in place, no funding to extend the program where it needs to be, including for our veterans who come back from the battlefield, torn and tortured mentally.  Not enough, never to soon, too late!  All of it. 

When is this country going to wake up and realize that there is a problem facing us in every sector, a problem that needs to be aggressively addressed and not handled delicately rather abruptly and swiftly, and without hesitation.  All the victims in this country, lives leveled by murder and torture, some could have been saved if we as a country took Mental Health with the seriousness that it requires.  If more people got involved and actually talked to one another rather than text or emailed or social media.  A convergence directed at those who need help could just save those who have died unnecessarily.

I blame the government Federal, State and Local.  For not spending the money that is needed to put programs and shove awareness in each and every one of our faces.  Too much emphasis on gay, racial or other political agenda.  All of us are affected by this, and might just be an innocent victim someday.  How about a national, and local hotline specifically for these kind of problems.  Rather we have 911 lines for every single incident that happens, no specific for Mental Health problems and I am talking the whole circle of problems that are Mental Health related.

People react to stress differently, we don’t know what goes on inside another’s mind, we don’t know if one will “act out” their twisted thoughts or they are just thoughts.  But in this case, the guy had been posting videos, wrote 140 pages, purchased multiple firearms and lived with 3 roommates.  HELLO, enough signs for someone, or some institution to have taken a hint.

My mother’s manic depression and alcohol abuse has affected my family tremendously. It has lead to a lot of fighting and turmoil, and has now ultimately lead to her husband, my step-dad, divorcing her. He has been through so much pain and the history of her hurting him is irreversible. For the past 7 months or so, she has been in and out of a mental health facility where she stays for a period of 3 to 5 days at a time. She is on medication, but because of how much alcohol she consumes, I fully believe the medication doesn’t get a chance to do what it is supposed to do for her brain. She is a beautiful mess. Today, I will be visiting her at the facility, where I hope to learn that they will also help her with her alcohol abuse, as they have failed to do so in the past. My job today, is to also make sure we have a set plan/course of action for her because we as a family cannot keep doing this every 2 months or so. The Mental Health system needs to change in that they continue to help the patient after they have left the facility, even if it’s years from now. Bipolar and depression is a lifelong battle, and she needs and army to help her the rest of her life.

One last thing I’d like to add: the Mental Health system also needs to change in that my mother should not have to go through the ER first, where they make her wait an average of 7 hours, so that she can get admitted into the mental health facility. That is just ludicrous. The Mental Health facility should have their own program where she can walk in, get physically checked and admitted in a reasonable amount of time. The ER is the wrong section of the hospital for her, and she becomes worse in those 7 hours they force her to wait.

I’m in Atlantic County NJ.

I have cpsd, Add, bipolar, avoidance and dependant personality disorder, Major Depression and much more. I have been in  mental health programs and a mental health system that refuses to take my issues seriously. I can not get a proper diagnosis in my area and my psychiatrist is very condescending when I explain what happens to me. I get the run around from any program that can help me for what I need.

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I have personally had bipolar for about 15 years now along severe depression and debilitating panic attacks, I personally find it very frustrating to get any kind of help in the mental health system, as of right now I am currently seeing my family doctor to get the medication that I so desperately need the problem with that is that my doctor knows very little about my condition and the medication that is used to treat it, I am the one that does the research to learn about the new medication out there and then try them out and see if they will work for me. I find it extremely frustrating and annoying that no one in this country cares enough about mental health to help us, and then when someone with a mental health crisis goes and does commits and criminal act because they aren’t being treated properly. All of a sudden it’s a big deal and all the crazy people need to be locked away and have all their rights stripped away like we are all criminals. If you ask me it’s the politicians that are the criminals, they don’t enough to fund the mental health system in this country, all the do is keep taking away from it and then wonder why people do what they do. Well start helping us and maybe things would get better.

It’s time to lobby for sharing of information between parents, therapists, schools, police, gun sales outlets and others involved when young adults are showing signs of distress. HIPPA laws are well-intentioned but too many young people are falling between the cracks during the time when major mental illness sets in (late teens thru mid twenties.) This, of course, is the age when families and care providers lose the right to discuss the individual’s behaviors among themselves, based on HIPPA laws (unless the patient is willing to sign releases). The current scourge of killings by young people must be addressed through a multi-systems approach.

Two of my own children have mental illnesses. Fortunately, they’ve never had violent tendencies. But when my daughter and son became adults, I suddenly lost the right to advocate for them, which caused a terrible wrench in their treatment and care. I think HIPPA mental health laws should extend to when a youth is 23 or even 25 years old.

My son Michael has been suffering from schizophrenia for the past 4-5 years. It’s become a vicious cycle for him and he doesn’t see what the medication does for him mentally when he is taking them. One day he just stops and by that time he has already digressed from taking his MEDICATION AFTER THE FACILITY HAD TO OBTAIN A COURT ORDER TO FORCES MEDS ON HIM. 

We trust that the doctors and staff know what they’re doing, so that he can be discharged home, but after three weeks then a month then another month this is the cycle he’s been living with and we don’t even think he remembers all the times he’s been sent to the emergency room because Lord only knows that we can’t force him to go on his own, so we have to call our local police department that really does help us and they take their time with him after my husband and I talk to them first and let them know he is not a threat.

Michael has started all over again not eating, drinking, showering and its been going on weeks and we need more help besides hospitalization for dehydration and his blood pressure. The ER doctor get his heart rate below 100 they send Michael to another psych facility. Suddenly he’s taking his meds that his father gives to him everyday and then he wants to take them on his own, but he doesn’t follow up with his doctor appointment with his psychiatrist and it starts all over again. This has been the cycle for some years now. Help is not here. We can’t force him to take his meds. Lord only knows what’s going on I just pray he gets the help that is needed because where we have insurance for him can only do so much, he needs more help than the love and support we give him.

A Hole in One?

MENTAL HEALTH dates back to prehistoric times when cave men were thumping women over the head and telling them ugggh! Around 5000 BC, during medieval times when these individuals were thought to be possessed by evil spirits or demons they would put a hole in the side of the persons head to let the evil spirits out-this was called skull trephine. Other reports state that exorcisms, incantations, prayer, atonement, as well as magical and mystical rituals were used to drive out the evil spirits. That was then this is now!

Michelle and I met in a hospital emergency room; both our sons had taken ill or as some would call it they had an episode! We were triaged and then given an ER room and after a couple of hours we were sat in the hallway in chairs up against a wall in front of the nurse’s station along with others who were there for the same purpose. As Michelle and I observed other patients, parents and friends seated in this row, we decided to dub it “mental health row”.

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This is a long story. Stick with me.

In August, a couple days before senior year began, I was sitting on a plane home to San Francisco. Everything was going okay, even though I wasn’t feeling so great (sinus infection). It was a normal, long, boring flight. That is, it was before a man stood up, opened a door, and leaped out of the plane at 30,000 feet.

I was pinned to my chair by the forces tearing at the compromised structure of the 737, helpless as I watched the rest of my fellow passengers get out of their seats and calmly jump out. I knew it was the end. In a way, it was the end of my life, as I had known it up until that day. It wasn’t a dream. I was awake the whole time. On that plane, I experienced my first psychotic episode.

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And I knew I wasn’t right 

So I planned on going that Friday night 

And I knew I wasn’t okay

Making it the perfect place for me to stay 

See, for most, a mental hospital isn’t a choice 

It’s one of those things where you are left without a voice 

Brought there suddenly against your will

Then before you know it, you are given a bunch of random pills 

But for me, it was where I was supposed to be

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