I would just like to find some suggestions how you ladies cope with loved ones, or having a mental illness themselves, and the stigma that surrounds it. I have had so many problems with this, from people saying my husband is crazy, and making false reports on him, to just nobody wanting anything to do with him, that knows he has a mental illness. I am just sick of people calling him a "schizzo" and putting him down. I called some mental illness support groups to get some feedback, and they said to use the works "psychotic" instead of schizophrenia. I mean, it just is replaces a diagnoses word really.
How do you all cope with this? I just wish that society as a whole would understand it better, we dont condemn a cancer patient, a person with diabetes, we understand them. A person with diabetes could have a "hypo" and start acting strange, but we go, oh, thats terrible there sugar level went to low, but with a person with a mental illness, the outlook is different, and its not, cause it is a chemical imbalance in the brain.
I also looked up statistics as well, and alot of the prisons are filled up with mental health patients. They abolished the mental health hospitals, and made beds minimal, and then put these people in the community with little or no support, and some end up in the criminal system, that really only needed some support. I have fought mental health for 3 years over this, and yesterday I got a support worker for him.......2 hours a week. Sounds silly, but I was excited, as 2 hours is a small step after three years fighting the system.

I think people fear what they don't understand. There definitely should be more mental health awareness. Just because someone has a mental illness does not make them "crazy." It is such a shame that people still have this attitude in this day and age. My heart goes out to you Kyla. Stay strong. I will keep you in my prayers.

Chrisa

I would just like to find some suggestions how you ladies cope with loved ones, or having a mental illness themselves, and the stigma that surrounds it.

I also looked up statistics as well, and alot of the prisons are filled up with mental health patients. They abolished the mental health hospitals, and made beds minimal, and then put these people in the community with little or no support, and some end up in the criminal system, that really only needed some support.

Kyla,

I'm glad you finally got a support worker for your husband; I think I'd be excited about the 2 hours as well.

How do I cope? Usually, I try to be "gently" supportive. This weekend, I didn't cope very well at all....but I am learning as I go. Shawn never hid his diagnoses from the beginning of our relationship, but it's not something that casually comes up in conversation, either. Different doctors have given varied assessments over the years...bipolar, manic-depressive, borderline personality disorder, atypical schizophrenia, PTSD, you name it...a different label for every week in the year.

His cutting scares the bejeezus out of me...it's so out of control, so bizarre; I admit, I really struggle to get my head around it. I have a completely over-the-edge phobia about blades and knives, so it's hard for me to even face this reality at times. He's been doing it since the age of 9, so the behavior is firmly embedded in his psyche.....how does one "un"learn such a behavior? Do you replace such an unhealthy coping mechanism with a more acceptable one? Is that even possible?

The questions are endless...and they usually lead to even MORE questions, unfortunately. I wonder, what IS my place in all this? What are the boundaries between helping my man and enabling him? With my ex-husband, whose alcoholism almost took me down with him, the paramaters were very obvious...the enemy was visible, and I could handle that. With Shawn, the line in the sand is constantly shifting...and that makes for a very frustrating battle.

In Kansas, the DOC has Larned Mental Health CF, a full-fledged, intensive treatment facility. Shawn has been there on and off in the past 7 years, most recently in 2002....the only problem is lack of space; they are at near-capacity at this time. Which means, as you say, lots of people needing help and not receiving it.

I'm glad you posted this, Kyla....these thoughts have been rolling around my head for some time now.

((((hugs))))

Susan

Thanks so much for posting that Susan,
My husband was has been diagnosed with I think all of the above you stated to, but I finally got him in a mental health facility that have diagnosed him with paranoid schizophrenia, and now his on his medication, you wouldnt know that he was the person he was. It was a long road, and they hate to "label" people. They wouldnt outright say that he was schizophrenic, but put him on the medication (risperdol) that is only used for schizophrenic patients or alzheimers patients. I kind of understood why they didnt "label" him, but had to fight the diagnosis to use in the courts.
I am not sure about the mental health facilities in the US, but its a long and hard haul here in Australia. They are getting there small steps at a time, but there is still alot of stigma,
Corry doesnt cut himself, but when things go "really bad" he overdoses. I understand that its extremely scary situation, and Susan, I have been there where you have absolute panic and worry.
We will get there, and we are all lucky that we have each other to share our stories with, that understand.