Project Moving On: an artistic outlet

A day treatment program in Brooklyn aims to provide an artistic and therapeutic outlet to those suffering form mental illness. Sometimes people with severe mental illness lose their perception of accurate judgement and wind up getting into some kind of trouble with the law. At Project Moving On, the coordinators argue that instead of being penalized with a jail sentence,  these people should be receiving treatment.

At Project Moving On, clients draw, paint and crochet as a way to provide relaxation, concentration and an overall sense of confidence. It helps them to cope and interact within their community.

I personally feel this is an excellent  program for those suffering from mental illness. I feel they can use art an as outlet and maintain a positive focus by expressing themselves through art.  If you would like to read more about this program, please check out this article:

Mental Health Social Network

A new social network has been launched for people who suffer from mental illnesses. The social network is designed to be a comfortable space for people to meet, learn from and interact with others they can relate to. The company, called Mental Health Social hopes that it will help people feel more comfortable to talk about these issues. This is another great way that social media is working towards helping people deal with mental illnesses. The question is will people actually join the network?

A blog from the examiner quoted the company’s president: “When people suffer from mental health conditions, they can sometimes feel isolated. There might not be anyone else in a patient’s life that has experienced their condition, which can make it difficult for family and friends to relate or understand what they’re going through. MentalHealthSocial.com eliminates those feelings of isolation by bringing people with similar experiences together. Sometimes people just need someone to talk to who really understands whatever mental health condition they’re dealing with.”

See the full article here:   http://tinyurl.com/yk2swmp

And Joint the Social Network here: http://mentalhealthsocial.com/

Mental Health Musings on Youth and Crime

An interesting debate revolves around whether youth offenders with mental health issues should receive mental health treatment (often through diversion programs) rather than face strict punishments. Of course there are many factors that play into such decisions, like the severity of the offense as well as the severity of the mental health issue at hand. And while points can be made on both sides of the debate, it seems blatantly obvious to me, that if possible, youth should be helped rather than punished. This is something that needs vast improvement in the U.S.

Despite research that leaves much to be desired and a study that shows mental health treatment diversion programs to be effective in a population that may not be completely generalizable, I think the expansion of diversion programs among youth would be a good idea. The fact that such programs have had some positive effects in certain populations is reason enough to expand them until more in-depth and conclusive research materializes. States should reallocate some of the money that is used for extensive (and seemingly unnecessary) court processing procedures and the incarceration of youth that often follows, and use it for youth mental health diversion programs. Such a policy would allow those youth who have been in trouble with law enforcement and who also have mental health issues, to receive the necessary rehabilitative services. This is particularly crucial among young people because enabling them to address their problems at a young age provides the potential for them to improve their lives and become productive members of society.

By solely enforcing strict punishments, the government is essentially giving up on these young people, and spending a lot of money to do so. Mental health diversion programs should be tailored to address the issues that each specific person is dealing with, as the proper supportive services are key to producing positive changes . Regardless of the specific funding strategies involved, all states should emphasize mental health treatment for youth offenders. Continuing to increase the extremely high rates of incarceration already taking place in the U.S. would truly be criminal.

Modern Psychosurgery?

When most people discuss mental health treatment, they tend to focus on various forms of therapy and/or medication. In a recent New York Times article, the merits and risks of psychosurgery (directly operating on the brain) were discussed.

While doctors, patients, and mental health advocates, among others, vehemently profess either support or opposition for psychosurgery as a treatment for various mental health illnesses, it is apparent that this debate has no obvious conclusion. And whether you are for or against it (or somewhere in between), people’s livelihoods are on the line.

When I think about treating psychiatric problems by operating on the brain itself, my own brain can’t help but conjure up images of people who were lobotomized in the middle of the twentieth century and left void of emotion, often becoming mentally stagnant. While modern medicine has come a long way since the 1950’s, psychosurgery still seems so far outside most of the public’s eye. Despite this, the article points out that at least one psychosurgical technique was approved earlier this year to treat certain cases of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. The number of people who undergo such treatment is small, and there is a strict screening process used to determine who is eligible for the surgery, giving precedent to those with the most severe cases.

While there are success stories the detail people who live completely reinvigorated lives thanks to psychosurgery, there are also tales of these surgeries resulting in disabling brain damage. Most people who undergo such procedures wind up somewhere in between these extremes, but it is important to remember that it can take the brain years to recover from such intense surgery. Also, while a brain operation may relieve a person of some of their symptoms relating to O.C.D., it may be detrimental to other aspects of their mind.

I think psychosurgical techniques are full of potential, but prudence should still outweigh hasty decisions to physically reconfigure one’s brain. There is still so much that doctors don’t know about how the brain will react to certain brain operations, and while the there have been remarkable results that showcase its great potential, the risk of brain damage is still very real. That being said, like any other surgery, patients should have the right to learn about the possible procedure and the risks and benefits associated with it. Who am I to stop someone from an operation that might give them a new lease on life? I would just offer a word of caution.

Mental Health and Second Life

There are a growing number of Mental Health resources in virtual world social media such as Second Life.  This is just another way individuals can break through their own stigmas of mental health and seek help. Many of us do not seek treatment or help because they of embarrassment or fear. Through a virtual world you are able to overcome these issues. For some this may potentially be practice for real life. Below are some examples of places in Second Life with information and resources for mental illness.

Wellness Island:  “Wellness Island is Second Life®’s first sim completely devoted to mental health resources and information. We provide a relaxing, peaceful, PG environment with a library, community outreach center, auditorium, and more. All of our resources, workshops, and training classes are free of charge to SL residents who are seeking information about mental health and wellness.” – http://slwellness.com

Online Therapy Institute: “The Online Therapy Institute is designed for clinicians and organizations who wish to enrich their knowledge about online counseling, clinical supervision and the impact of technology on mental health. The Institute, founded by Kate Anthony and DeeAnna Merz Nagel is a think tank for all issues mental health, cyberpsychology, technology and the internet. Our mission is to provide a platform that allows people to learn collaboratively from one another.  As an Institute, we strive to dissiminate information about research, education and training.” – http://www.onlinetherapyinstitute.com/

Centering Place: “Centering Place itself is designed to provide information to those who need it who are in crisis, or who are struggling with different area’s of their lives. It is a place of peace and grounding.” – http://www.centeringplace.com/

Soldiers and Mental Health

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1029

 

With the recent tragedy at Ft. Hood, there seems to have been an increase of media coverage on mental health. It disappoints me a bit  that it took a major incident-and lives lost- for the news to pay attention. Unfortunately I feel this is often the case. In public health, there are very prominent diseases that often gain a vast amount of coverage. Of course we should care about cancer, HIV/AIDS and the epidemic of obesity-related health issues, but aren’t we forgetting the laundry list of other pressing illnesses? I feel like there has been a huge communication gap here and I feel public health needs to do a better job of providing knowledge about these issues. My hope is that this unfortunate event will wake up health professionals to realize that we need to have conversations about mental illness and we need to increase prevention and outreach services.

I invite you to take a listen to these NPR commentaries, especially Some Scars Only Doctors See.

Add the “Peace of Mind” tab to your iGoogle homepage

Hey everyone!

Use this link ( http://tinyurl.com/yaxzx3k) to add our Peace of Mind tab to your iGoogle homepages. The tab has a number of cool gadgets related to mental health and we’ll try to keep adding to it when we come across new ones. Feel free to enlighten us if you know of any gadgets that you think would be worth adding. The peaceful photos put me at ease. So feel good and enjoy the rest of the week!

Fall and Winter Depression

http://www.wvnstv.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=69581

I’m writing in response to this brief article about rises in depression in the fall and winter months. Many people know about Seasonal Affective Disorder and that a lack of sunshine literally causes people to feel more listless and depressed. The article sights that often the onset of SAD begins when we set our clocks back. This is a completely unscientific point of view, but I feel especially in the last couple of weeks my friends have been feeling a bit down and I’ve seen some pretty downer statuses on facebook as well. Something to think about as we’ve set our clocks back just this past weekend…

October and November on a personal level have been pretty difficult. Getting adjusted into the new routine of grad school in addition to some sad events in that last couple weeks have definitely got me feeling blue. I just got off the phone with a close friend that is really struggling with an inevitable loss of a friend to brain cancer and something occurred to me during that conversation. (Let me preface this by saying, yes I know this is supposed to be an educational forum, and I mean not to offer up any official advice nor to stand on a soap box.) But in talking to my friend, we both came across the notion that community, support, love–all these things are helping us to get through these difficult times. The fact that I could be there for her, and that she was there for me to vent to really gave me a different perspective on this day and this mopey mood I’ve been rocking. After this conversation, I also realized that with a pile of stress, a couple of sad situations, and changes that I’m maybe not prepared for could easily predispose for depression.

I’m not really sure the point of this post, other than letting my thoughts out loud. But I think what I’m trying to say is that we need to look out for each other and for our own mental health and to know that sometimes we cannot individually take it all on ourselves. It’s ok to talk to somebody, and it’s ok to seek help. Let us be proactive and take care of our minds as we enter this season.

Halloween and Mental Health Stigma

Normally when you think of Halloween you wouldn’t even think to associate it with the stigma’s of mental health. To be honest neither did I. The scary “psycho” costumes are all just in good fun right? The National Alliance on Mental Illness or NAMI doesn’t think so. This year they put out what they call a “stigma alert” on their website calling on consumers to complain to the stores or companies selling costumes that portray mental health stereotypes and misinformation. Examples included costumes featuring straight jackets and shackles. You can see the short “stigma alert” here: http://tinyurl.com/ykqkh3y

So next time you see these costumes you may think twice. What do you think? Does Halloween help perpetuate negative stereotypes of people with mental illness??

Celebrities Fight Mental Health Stigma

What is Stigma? Webster’s Dictionary defines it as a mark of shame or discredit.  This is one of the major issues surrounding mental health treatment today.  Many people don’t have the facts about mental illness. Awareness is the key to breaking down the stigmas of mental health. We recently noticed a new campaign, called Bring Change 2 Mind (http://www.bringchange2mind.org/), that was featured today on Good Morning America, The View and MSNBC’s Dr. Nancy.

Large-scale campaigns like this one help raise more awareness among the general public about mental illness.  With the help of celebrities like Glenn Close (who helped found the initiative), this campaign strives to shed light on the truth about mental illnesses such as depression, PTSD, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. Separating fact from fiction is at the heart of reducing stigma, and this campaign aims to do just that.

Whether you celebrate Glenn Close’s acting career or not, the fact that a Hollywood celebrity is bringing attention to mental illness and its pervasiveness throughout American society is a good thing. Close’s background provides her with a unique outlook on mental illness, having portrayed mentally ill characters both in film and onstage as well as experiencing the realities of mental illness within her own immediate family. This does not make her  a mental health expert,  but her background and commitment to raising awareness around mental illness and the stigma surrounding it shows that she is not one of those celebrities looking to brand their name with the social cause of the week in order to jumpstart a stagnant career.

Close acknowledges that the Bring Change 2 Mind campaign is not going to cure mental illness. Likewise, I don’t believe that one single campaign alone will be the answer to stopping the stigma, but bringing this issue to a national stage is a start.  Sure, there have and continue to be PSA’s attempting to raise awareness about mental health issues, and I don’t fault such methods or advocate against their use. However, a large-scale campaign like Bring Change 2 Mind that is supported by numerous major mental health organizations and combines Close’s celebrity endorsement and advocacy with video stories posted by anyone who wants to share a mental illness-related experience is going to resonate better than a PSA with most Americans. While numbers and statistics are important descriptive factors of how widespread mental illness really is, they are no substitute for personalized stories that allow readers or viewers to receive firsthand accounts of the similar struggles that other Americans are also attempting to combat.  Reducing stigma related to mental illness is a challenge, but it’s reassuring to see that there are people working to confront it on a national stage.