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Originally Posted by valo403
Actually I think this is a perfect example of what this campaign can achieve....
Fair enough. I did not delete any further posts after the warning; but things were getting more on the "insult" side of things and less on the "discussion" side. As long as we keep it about discussion- we are fine.
I am almost entirely certain that a large portion of mental health issues are along the lines of depression, general anxiety, and obsessive compulsive disorder. All of these are easily treated by exercise, and social activities. In more extreme cases, cognitive behavioural therapy is a proven avenue for successful treatment.
Exercise is absolutely essential for depressives - mainly because of the effect on serotinin levels, also because the repetition of exercise and the mental focus required simply takes you (temporarily, at least) away from the trigger issues. In a strange way, not dwelling on your problems can help you solve them. My own bouts are less severe when I have my regular gym time, and I'm a wreck without them. Social activities don't help me, but that's because I'm a hermit by nature.
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Only in the absolute extreme minority of cases should pharmaceutical intervention be necessary.
I don't agree with this. The severity of my depression is pretty mild and I'm on a small dose (40 mls/day), but each time I've tried to get off my meds it's been disastrous. Exercise combined with medication is (I think) the most effective treatment.
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It was heartbreaking to watch. As somebody that has had problems in the past, I'm grateful for all of the help and outlets that I had at the time to make it through that time. It's sad to think of all the things I would have missed in my life if I didn't make it through.
I do think it's an important issue to bring up. If you have never suffered mental illness or have had a family member that has suffered through it, I don't think you can comprehend how difficult it is.
Although there is a ways to go, however, psychiatry in 2012 is much better than psychiatry, say, 50 or 75 years ago. It wasn’t so long ago that, popularized by Walter Freeman, thousands of “ice pick lobotomies” were performed for all manner of indications, few of which had what we would consider to be compelling scientific support to back them up. Over the last half-century, better psychiatric drugs to treat different conditions have been developed, leading to their widespread use for a number of indications.
There are, of course, legitimate criticisms of psychiatry to be made, but that’s not what quacks are interested in. Their hatred of psychiatry is particularly pure, to the point where they look for any excuse to attack psychiatric medications. Indeed, there is even a phenomenon known as “mental illness denial,” which denies that mental illnesses even exist and, therefore, that psychiatry can possibly be a legitimate branch of medical science. Again, Scientologists are the most prominent proponents of mental illness denial, but such “thought” (if you can call it that) permeates many areas of “alternative medicine.”
Years back I would have fallen under the "its not a big deal, suck it up and deal with it" category about mental health.
My wife was diagnosed with a mental health disorder a few years back all stemming back to her parents dying of separate incidents before she was 8. She lived a normal life until her mid 20's when she was hit with sever panic attacks, and sudden overwhelming she was going to die, she didn't know how, what or when, but she was over whelmed with the feeling of death and could no longer do the simple functions in life anymore. Over the years she has tried different medications, she even saw different psychiatrists. Probably the biggest obstacle she has faced in handling her disorder is trying to explain it to close family, friends and co-workers. It's taken years but she is on the right path, she see's great Psychologist when she needs to and has been successful in tackling her disorder, not every day is butterflies and rainbows, but its about recognizing what is wrong, getting the help that is needed and support from your loved ones.
I've learnt over the years mental health takes on many different forms. I hope today helps people get the help they need and for people to see what is going on around them and help encourage and support those who are going through difficult times in their life.
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I have to weigh in on this:
Exercise is absolutely essential for depressives - mainly because of the effect on serotinin levels, also because the repetition of exercise and the mental focus required simply takes you (temporarily, at least) away from the trigger issues. In a strange way, not dwelling on your problems can help you solve them. My own bouts are less severe when I have my regular gym time, and I'm a wreck without them. Social activities don't help me, but that's because I'm a hermit by nature.
I don't agree with this. The severity of my depression is pretty mild and I'm on a small dose (40 mls/day), but each time I've tried to get off my meds it's been disastrous. Exercise combined with medication is (I think) the most effective treatment.
Puppet Guy, I'm in a very similar situation as you are. I am on a very low dose, but if I miss it can make me have a terrible day. I find exercise is very essential, whether it's a work-out or just doing something physical like construction. Hang in there!
As for the neigh-sayers. My uncle committed suicide, my other uncle is in a mental home, my brother-in law is in a mental home, my Dad has depression and I suffer from it too. So mental illness is very real, it's a serious problem that requires professional and medical help. IMO, everyone is different and requires different therapies. It's not something that simply can be cured overnight.
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Not at all, as I've said, I would rather start with LA over any of the other WC playoff teams. Bunch of underachievers who look good on paper but don't even deserve to be in the playoffs.
It's been mentioned above, but one of the bigger issues with mental illness is the stigma attached. Go back and read JD's post. His comments about his friend who committed suicide show the damage that ignorant louts like you perpetuate. It's hard enough trying to break free of these issues at the best of times - so much so that friends and family members are often left wondering how they missed the signs. When you are met with people trivializing or seeking to ignore it, it only makes it that much harder for someone suffering from depression and anxiety to start to break free of it.
People like you are why people commit suicide. Because people like you close off positive outlets for someone who is suffering. And anybody stupid enough to listen to you is going to be easy to convince that everyone thinks the way you do. People wont seek treatment because they are afraid to speak up.
And that, is why campaigns like this have value. Of course Bell budgeted for these donations, and of course they will be happy to add any business they get out of it. But the simple act of trying to make it okay to talk about mental illness is a critically important first step.
Well, I've got bipolar disorder. In my experience, people treating me like I was sick was part of the stigma. I only improved/recovered when I began to take responsibility for my own health. This has been my experience in the overall community of people with mental health.
The last thing we need is condescending, righteous people like you telling us what to do. Speaking up is not enough as it is far easier said than done. Have you ever dealt directly with a person suffering from severe mental illness? They are impossible to deal with; erratic, reclusive, and dysfunctional. There were weeks in my undergraduate where I couldn't get out of bed. I didn't get out of bed because I was afraid of a stigma surrounding my condition, I did it because I realized no one was seriously going to wait for me to recover unless I did it on my own.
I'm not saying there is NO need for extensive psychiatric treatment, or pharmaceuticals. If that works for you, that is fantastic. They gave me a marginal benefit, and the battery of side effects was far too much to stand on a daily basis.
The mentally ill need treatment, not self-righteous coddling. Awareness means absolutely nothing.
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I think I kind of get what Peter is saying. It's similar to all the 'this/that/the other cancer awareness' stuff. Uh, who isn't aware of cancer? They really need to use another word. People are aware mental illness exists. It's how it's treated, or not treated which is generally more the issue at stake.
And seriously, cancer gets a lot of voice and a lot of money thrown at it. Perhaps it's that we need to become more aware of other issues that need our money. I could tell you all kinds of things about arthritis but it isn't the disease with 'cachet' so to speak, so there isn't a lot of yak about it, a lot of corporations and the like throwing money at it.
And before someone jumps down my throat, I'm intimately acquainted with cancer. I'm not bashing it. It's pretty obvious that cancer is big money.
Minnie, to be fair I'm the one who added the term awareness in the title. Bell explains the initiative as "Explore the facts and gain perspective on mental health issues across Canada. Start a conversation or share the facts and help break down the stigma associated with mental illness."
It's about gaining perspective and ending the stigma, not necessarily raising awareness that mental illness exists.
Peter12, I think your thoughts would have been better received if you presented them in the fashion you just did. Drawing on your experience and using less absolute language.
I think the biggest uproar is caused by extrapolating your method of success/improvement to everyone under the umbrella. And just like you didn't take kindly to someone who may never have been affiliated with mental illness telling you what's right and important, the same can be applied to your initial grandiose statements toward anyone affected.
But your contribution raised some good discussion so thanks for sharing. I'm glad to see a lot of posters share their perspectives. And I would argue that the stigma still does exist and conversation does help in reducing its potency.
If somebody called into work and said they weren't able to come in because of a bout of depression, well I'm not sure how well that would fly with many employers or coworkers. We treat physical health quite differently. It's something tangible we can usually see or imagine ourselves in a similar state.
I don't know all of the solutions. All I know is they won't be found if everybody stayed silent or oblivious.
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Minnie, to be fair I'm the one who added the term awareness in the title. Bell explains the initiative as "Explore the facts and gain perspective on mental health issues across Canada. Start a conversation or share the facts and help break down the stigma associated with mental illness."
It's about gaining perspective and ending the stigma, not necessarily raising awareness that mental illness exists.
Thankfully, during the past 10 years, programs like Bell's and the media in general, the stigma associated with mental illness is gradually diminishing. The family and personal problems, associated with mental illness, are horrendous, and the cost to society is staggering. As one person in six will suffer with depression sometime in their lifetime, I would imagine a large company like Bell would be significantly affected, both financially and logistically, by mental illness.
As outlined above, there is a huge range of mental illnesses, and modern drugs have done wonders for those afflicted.
In my experience with depression, it is definitely a disease, just as any other, having a specific cause and characteristic symptoms. As mentioned in the video, it is caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain. The symptoms are well documented in the literature. The two established methods of treatment are drugs and/or cognitive behavioral therapy CBT). Athough the GPs are capable of handling depression, it often requires the services of a specialist. In general, the psychiatrists prescribe the drugs, while the psychologists employ the CBT.
I have found it can be a long process of trial and error in finding the right drug, as everyone is different in their response to a specific drug. What works for one may not work for another. It can help to know what works for a close relative, as there is often genetic factors involved.
As a caregiver for someone with mental illness, it's important to look after yourself. I have found that support groups can make a huge difference in learning how to handle various situations associated with a particular mental illness. The Canadian Mental Health Association offers a large range of services, and may provide the advise and help you need.
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In Iceland up until the last 10 years there was a lot of social stigma towards depression and other mental health issues. Most common attitude was that these people were just lazy and people who made excuses to be like this, not that there was anything actually wrong with them.
Thanks to two brave people showing their daily lives on a major news show in the last 10 years that attitude has changed quite dramatically, even within my own family I had a couple of siblings who had pretty ignorant attitudes have come around.
Any media coverage that promotes any kind of understanding and awareness helps, if nothing its nice to see people talking about it because I for the longest time avoided seeking help because I was so stubborn and refused to admit it to myself and let alone allow others to see me as "weak."
Since finally seeking help, my life has done a 180, and I just wish I had started sooner.
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I think I kind of get what Peter is saying. It's similar to all the 'this/that/the other cancer awareness' stuff. Uh, who isn't aware of cancer? They really need to use another word. People are aware mental illness exists. It's how it's treated, or not treated which is generally more the issue at stake.
And seriously, cancer gets a lot of voice and a lot of money thrown at it. Perhaps it's that we need to become more aware of other issues that need our money. I could tell you all kinds of things about arthritis but it isn't the disease with 'cachet' so to speak, so there isn't a lot of yak about it, a lot of corporations and the like throwing money at it.
And before someone jumps down my throat, I'm intimately acquainted with cancer. I'm not bashing it. It's pretty obvious that cancer is big money.
That's the thing, lots of people aren't, and it's been demonstrated in this thread. It's treated like being in a bad mood or having a rough day, when the reality is that it's a serious medical condition.
Well, I've got bipolar disorder.....
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. I didn't get out of bed because I was afraid of a stigma surrounding my condition, I did it because I realized no one was seriously going to wait for me to recover unless I did it on my own.
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The mentally ill need treatment, not self-righteous coddling. Awareness means absolutely nothing.
I don't understand your argument.
You were afraid of the stigma and didn't get out of bed.
