Schizophrenia

Shyner

The government really needs to help out these people they are walking the cold streets with this disease. 

ehbacon

Schizophrenia is an absolutely horrific disease. Not many diseases that i would rather be dead than have, but schizophrenia is one of them. I'm a psychology student, so I've learned much about the disease.

Shyner

Alzheimer's as well

Shyner

MS

Meltdown99

Yes, it’s a horrible illness.  Yes, the government really needs to do more for people with mental health.

Shyner

They are digging a hole by closing down hospitals. The funding is being stripped. 
I dont see anyone stepping up for this disease. Its horrible. 

Meltdown99

Shyner said:

They are digging a hole by closing down hospitals. The funding is being stripped. 
I dont see anyone stepping up for this disease. Its horrible. 

I assume your American.  Mental Health here in Ontario is not well funded.

brianlux

Many of California's mental institutions were closed back in the 1970 and the patients were basically just turned out into the streets.  Now, it's true that most of those institutions were wretched, hellish places where people were treated poorly at best, abused horribly at worst, but instead of rebuilding or revamping them, they were just closed.  That was a terrible legacy of then governor  Reagan's administration and one that still is in need of major improvements.  I imagine in some places it's even worse.

Shyner

Yes i am .It is the obligation of the strongest to help out the weaker. 
Not saying my brother owes me anything
Im saying america needs to step up
Its imperative to have a world view
Not a patriotic view

Halifax2TheMax

brianlux said:

Many of California's mental institutions were closed back in the 1970 and the patients were basically just turned out into the streets.  Now, it's true that most of those institutions were wretched, hellish places where people were treated poorly at best, abused horribly at worst, but instead of rebuilding or revamping them, they were just closed.  That was a terrible legacy of then governor  Reagan's administration and one that still is in need of major improvements.  I imagine in some places it's even worse.

Reagan did the same during the 80s as president, exploding the homeless population and leaving it to the states, minus the funding, to deal. 

Hi!

My oldest brother suffers from schizophrenia. I cant really put into words the toll it has put on my family, especially my parents who have taken care of him his whole life. 
I don't know alot about the disease and the different levels but he suffers from probably the worst case of it. 
I read an article awhile back in Huffpost and the actually had an audio clip that tried to give you some sort of idea what goes on inside someones head that suffers from the disease. Let me just say it was probably the scariest shit I ever heard. I started crying and it still makes me sad that my brother has had to deal with that his whole life. 
Just brutal. 
Im sad now.

Shyner

I'm sad with 

vaggar99

Halifax2TheMax said:

brianlux said:

Many of California's mental institutions were closed back in the 1970 and the patients were basically just turned out into the streets.  Now, it's true that most of those institutions were wretched, hellish places where people were treated poorly at best, abused horribly at worst, but instead of rebuilding or revamping them, they were just closed.  That was a terrible legacy of then governor  Reagan's administration and one that still is in need of major improvements.  I imagine in some places it's even worse.

Reagan did the same during the 80s as president, exploding the homeless population and leaving it to the states, minus the funding, to deal. 

irony

Meltdown99

• Ok so we identified reagon caused some big problems...but let’s not kid ourselves.  Republicans, Democrats, Liberals, Conservatives and so on, none of them are doing all that much for mental health or homeleseness...reagon was a looooong time a ago, there been  plenty of time to reverse his mistakes.  As for homeless people, vast amounts of homeless people are unemployable due to mental illness or physical disabilities...and they do not have the skills necessary to get good jobs.  If people are no longer are able to work because of an illness then that needs to be addressed with affordable housing and some sort of living income to keep them off the streets, combined with getting them the medical attention needed.  But who are we kidding, politicians who care if they get your vote...

jeffbr

Meltdown99 said:

• Ok so we identified reagon caused some big problems...but let’s not kid ourselves.  Republicans, Democrats, Liberals, Conservatives and so on, none of them are doing all that much for mental health or homeleseness...reagon was a looooong time a ago, there been  plenty of time to reverse his mistakes.  As for homeless people, vast amounts of homeless people are unemployable due to mental illness or physical disabilities...and they do not have the skills necessary to get good jobs.  If people are no longer are able to work because of an illness then that needs to be addressed with affordable housing and some sort of living income to keep them off the streets, combined with getting them the medical attention needed.  But who are we kidding, politicians who care if they get your vote...

You're exactly right. It is easy to talk about Reagan back in the early '80s. That was 35+ years ago for Christ sake. Things began even before that with JFK, though. We've since had a couple of Dem presidents, a few Rep presidents, a Dem controlled congress with a Dem president. Plenty of time to devote needed attention and resources. This goes way beyond a partisan issue.  Both parties have consistently defunded mental health at the federal level. And don't forget that in 1975 the ACLU played a major role in this, by making convincing the court that involuntary commitment is violation of one's right to liberty (see O'Connor v. Donaldson). It is a very difficult issue, with plenty of blame to go around.

PJ_Soul

It's a tough one for sure. The main issue, I think, is how a healthcare system keeps people with severe mental illness on medication.... As it is, there really isn't any way to do it unless they are proven to be dangerous, and thus locked up and/or monitored by the state. These kinds of mental illnesses specifically make the sufferers stop taking their necessary meds, and then it's all downhill from there, and with that being the case, even with a great mental healthcare system, what the fuck can anyone do, unless there is some way to force them to take their meds, which, of course, is a serious legal/constitutional/charter of rights problem. Honestly, until there is a cure or a vaccine or something, I'm not sure there is a really good solution at the end of the day.

Meltdown99

jeffbr said:

Meltdown99 said:

• Ok so we identified reagon caused some big problems...but let’s not kid ourselves.  Republicans, Democrats, Liberals, Conservatives and so on, none of them are doing all that much for mental health or homeleseness...reagon was a looooong time a ago, there been  plenty of time to reverse his mistakes.  As for homeless people, vast amounts of homeless people are unemployable due to mental illness or physical disabilities...and they do not have the skills necessary to get good jobs.  If people are no longer are able to work because of an illness then that needs to be addressed with affordable housing and some sort of living income to keep them off the streets, combined with getting them the medical attention needed.  But who are we kidding, politicians who care if they get your vote...

You're exactly right. It is easy to talk about Reagan back in the early '80s. That was 35+ years ago for Christ sake. Things began even before that with JFK, though. We've since had a couple of Dem presidents, a few Rep presidents, a Dem controlled congress with a Dem president. Plenty of time to devote needed attention and resources. This goes way beyond a partisan issue.  Both parties have consistently defunded mental health at the federal level. And don't forget that in 1975 the ACLU played a major role in this, by making convincing the court that involuntary commitment is violation of one's right to liberty (see O'Connor v. Donaldson). It is a very difficult issue, with plenty of blame to go around.

Some good information ...

Where I live in southern Ontario I’ve seen the homeless problem get worse.

Meltdown99

PJ_Soul said:

It's a tough one for sure. The main issue, I think, is how a healthcare system keeps people with severe mental illness on medication.... As it is, there really isn't any way to do it unless they are proven to be dangerous, and thus locked up and/or monitored by the state. These kinds of mental illnesses specifically make the sufferers stop taking their necessary meds, and then it's all downhill from there, and with that being the case, even with a great mental healthcare system, what the fuck can anyone do, unless there is some way to force them to take their meds, which, of course, is a serious legal/constitutional/charter of rights problem. Honestly, until there is a cure or a vaccine or something, I'm not sure there is a really good solution at the end of the day.

You are in BC, according to a mental health nurse I know, she says BC is ahead of the country when it come to treating mental health, but there is a ways everywhere.  

PJ_Soul

Meltdown99 said:

PJ_Soul said:

It's a tough one for sure. The main issue, I think, is how a healthcare system keeps people with severe mental illness on medication.... As it is, there really isn't any way to do it unless they are proven to be dangerous, and thus locked up and/or monitored by the state. These kinds of mental illnesses specifically make the sufferers stop taking their necessary meds, and then it's all downhill from there, and with that being the case, even with a great mental healthcare system, what the fuck can anyone do, unless there is some way to force them to take their meds, which, of course, is a serious legal/constitutional/charter of rights problem. Honestly, until there is a cure or a vaccine or something, I'm not sure there is a really good solution at the end of the day.

You are in BC, according to a mental health nurse I know, she says BC is ahead of the country when it come to treating mental health, but there is a ways everywhere.  

Wtf, if that's true, then I can't even imagine how bad it is elsewhere. In Vancouver I can't go out without having some kind of run in with severely mentally ill people, and many streets downtown and some other places are lined with homeless people year 'round, and supposedly a good 60 - 65% of them are mentally ill.

josevolution

My mother suffers from Alzheimers it's starting to get bad she's on meds and my father is retired so he takes care of her we all pitch in to help him out , i get depressed thinking about her everyday when ever i'm alone i think of her i cry as i'm driving alone just thinking of her , at least she does have a loving family around her ...

jeffbr

josevolution said:

My mother suffers from Alzheimers it's starting to get bad she's on meds and my father is retired so he takes care of her we all pitch in to help him out , i get depressed thinking about her everyday when ever i'm alone i think of her i cry as i'm driving alone just thinking of her , at least she does have a loving family around her ...

Really sorry, Jose. I know all too well how it affects family. My mother also has Alzheimer's. She's been living with my sister and her family for years, and over the past few years has deteriorated to the point where she doesn't know us (but will act like she does for family gatherings), lashes out, needs assistance with basic hygiene, talks about her childhood as if that is what she is currently experiencing (she's often waiting for her long-ago deceased dad to pick her up and take her home). It is crazy how she's gone from a charmingly forgetful woman to a shell of a human being. It is devastating to watch and is emotionally exhausting. She was my rock growing up. She's now just a shadow of herself. I wouldn't wish this affliction on anyone. Stay strong. It is a tough journey.

Meltdown99

PJ_Soul said:

Meltdown99 said:

PJ_Soul said:

It's a tough one for sure. The main issue, I think, is how a healthcare system keeps people with severe mental illness on medication.... As it is, there really isn't any way to do it unless they are proven to be dangerous, and thus locked up and/or monitored by the state. These kinds of mental illnesses specifically make the sufferers stop taking their necessary meds, and then it's all downhill from there, and with that being the case, even with a great mental healthcare system, what the fuck can anyone do, unless there is some way to force them to take their meds, which, of course, is a serious legal/constitutional/charter of rights problem. Honestly, until there is a cure or a vaccine or something, I'm not sure there is a really good solution at the end of the day.

You are in BC, according to a mental health nurse I know, she says BC is ahead of the country when it come to treating mental health, but there is a ways everywhere.  

Wtf, if that's true, then I can't even imagine how bad it is elsewhere. In Vancouver I can't go out without having some kind of run in with severely mentally ill people, and many streets downtown and some other places are lined with homeless people year 'round, and supposedly a good 60 - 65% of them are mentally ill.

It’s very bad in my area as well.

I can only relay the message.  I honestly do not know.  It’s getting bad everywhere, and will only get worse.

josevolution

jeffbr said:

josevolution said:

My mother suffers from Alzheimers it's starting to get bad she's on meds and my father is retired so he takes care of her we all pitch in to help him out , i get depressed thinking about her everyday when ever i'm alone i think of her i cry as i'm driving alone just thinking of her , at least she does have a loving family around her ...

Really sorry, Jose. I know all too well how it affects family. My mother also has Alzheimer's. She's been living with my sister and her family for years, and over the past few years has deteriorated to the point where she doesn't know us (but will act like she does for family gatherings), lashes out, needs assistance with basic hygiene, talks about her childhood as if that is what she is currently experiencing (she's often waiting for her long-ago deceased dad to pick her up and take her home). It is crazy how she's gone from a charmingly forgetful woman to a shell of a human being. It is devastating to watch and is emotionally exhausting. She was my rock growing up. She's now just a shadow of herself. I wouldn't wish this affliction on anyone. Stay strong. It is a tough journey.

Sorry to hear about your mom yeah I’m loosing her with each passing day that’s the crux of this horrible disease every day we loose them a bit more , thanks for your words wish you & your family the best ..

brianlux

jeffbr said:

Meltdown99 said:

• Ok so we identified reagon caused some big problems...but let’s not kid ourselves.  Republicans, Democrats, Liberals, Conservatives and so on, none of them are doing all that much for mental health or homeleseness...reagon was a looooong time a ago, there been  plenty of time to reverse his mistakes.  As for homeless people, vast amounts of homeless people are unemployable due to mental illness or physical disabilities...and they do not have the skills necessary to get good jobs.  If people are no longer are able to work because of an illness then that needs to be addressed with affordable housing and some sort of living income to keep them off the streets, combined with getting them the medical attention needed.  But who are we kidding, politicians who care if they get your vote...

You're exactly right. It is easy to talk about Reagan back in the early '80s. That was 35+ years ago for Christ sake. Things began even before that with JFK, though. We've since had a couple of Dem presidents, a few Rep presidents, a Dem controlled congress with a Dem president. Plenty of time to devote needed attention and resources. This goes way beyond a partisan issue.  Both parties have consistently defunded mental health at the federal level. And don't forget that in 1975 the ACLU played a major role in this, by making convincing the court that involuntary commitment is violation of one's right to liberty (see O'Connor v. Donaldson). It is a very difficult issue, with plenty of blame to go around.

I agree with you both.

What prompted me to mention Reagan and the 70's is that I still see guys my age who totally lost it during that time, especially Vietnam war vets, who still roam around homeless.  They are present in every major city in my state and even in a town as small as Placerville (officially 10,389 but probably about 12,000 today) I see these guys come though town torn, ragged, filthy and out of their ever loving minds.  It's sad, majorly sad.

Shyner

The reality is hell .We meaning "the gump" need to get these sick people into a hospital and some medicine. 

fife

Meltdown99 said:

PJ_Soul said:

Meltdown99 said:

PJ_Soul said:

It's a tough one for sure. The main issue, I think, is how a healthcare system keeps people with severe mental illness on medication.... As it is, there really isn't any way to do it unless they are proven to be dangerous, and thus locked up and/or monitored by the state. These kinds of mental illnesses specifically make the sufferers stop taking their necessary meds, and then it's all downhill from there, and with that being the case, even with a great mental healthcare system, what the fuck can anyone do, unless there is some way to force them to take their meds, which, of course, is a serious legal/constitutional/charter of rights problem. Honestly, until there is a cure or a vaccine or something, I'm not sure there is a really good solution at the end of the day.

You are in BC, according to a mental health nurse I know, she says BC is ahead of the country when it come to treating mental health, but there is a ways everywhere.  

Wtf, if that's true, then I can't even imagine how bad it is elsewhere. In Vancouver I can't go out without having some kind of run in with severely mentally ill people, and many streets downtown and some other places are lined with homeless people year 'round, and supposedly a good 60 - 65% of them are mentally ill.

It’s very bad in my area as well.

I can only relay the message.  I honestly do not know.  It’s getting bad everywhere, and will only get worse.

Maybe I am just being hopeful but things can get better but people have to start standing up and fighting for better funding.  when is the last time you heard any politician talk about mental health in a platform? 

I live in Ontario Canada and it is estimated that mental health is underfunded by 1.5 billion a year. 

The economic burden of mental illness in Canada is estimated at $51 billion per year. This includes health care costs, lost productivity, and reductions in health-related quality of life.

Also people with mental health issues are 20% more likely to also have addiction issues as compared with the general population and since we are talking about Schizophrenia, 50%of people of people diagnosed are more likely to also have concurrent substance use issues. 

I work with alot of people who have major mental health issue and do be honest, the way we as a country(Canada in my case)  treat people with Mental health and also addictions is horrible but I still have hope that it will get better.

Meltdown99

fife said:

Meltdown99 said:

PJ_Soul said:

Meltdown99 said:

PJ_Soul said:

It's a tough one for sure. The main issue, I think, is how a healthcare system keeps people with severe mental illness on medication.... As it is, there really isn't any way to do it unless they are proven to be dangerous, and thus locked up and/or monitored by the state. These kinds of mental illnesses specifically make the sufferers stop taking their necessary meds, and then it's all downhill from there, and with that being the case, even with a great mental healthcare system, what the fuck can anyone do, unless there is some way to force them to take their meds, which, of course, is a serious legal/constitutional/charter of rights problem. Honestly, until there is a cure or a vaccine or something, I'm not sure there is a really good solution at the end of the day.

You are in BC, according to a mental health nurse I know, she says BC is ahead of the country when it come to treating mental health, but there is a ways everywhere.  

Wtf, if that's true, then I can't even imagine how bad it is elsewhere. In Vancouver I can't go out without having some kind of run in with severely mentally ill people, and many streets downtown and some other places are lined with homeless people year 'round, and supposedly a good 60 - 65% of them are mentally ill.

It’s very bad in my area as well.

I can only relay the message.  I honestly do not know.  It’s getting bad everywhere, and will only get worse.

Maybe I am just being hopeful but things can get better but people have to start standing up and fighting for better funding.  when is the last time you heard any politician talk about mental health in a platform? 

I live in Ontario Canada and it is estimated that mental health is underfunded by 1.5 billion a year. 

The economic burden of mental illness in Canada is estimated at $51 billion per year. This includes health care costs, lost productivity, and reductions in health-related quality of life.

Also people with mental health issues are 20% more likely to also have addiction issues as compared with the general population and since we are talking about Schizophrenia, 50%of people of people diagnosed are more likely to also have concurrent substance use issues. 

I work with alot of people who have major mental health issue and do be honest, the way we as a country(Canada in my case)  treat people with Mental health and also addictions is horrible but I still have hope that it will get better.

You would know better than me if you work in the system.  I agree, you never hear mental health take centre stage.  I see all 3 political parties are promising more funding ... bu I don't believe any of them.  And where I think the funding needs to be extended is by covering counselling through OHIP for those without benefits to cover this expense...I myself benefited immensely from counselling.  

PJ_Soul

What is needed are some politicians who actually have mental illness to be assigned to the task. I think the reasons why that is unlikely are obvious (and one of them is not that people with mental illnesses wouldn't be able to do some really good things if they found themselves in this position). I don't really feel like many people who have never experienced mental illness themselves are particularly qualified to deal with it. People who haven't been through it in some way really aren't capable of truly getting it - not even extremely empathetic people who want to get it.

fife

Meltdown99 said:

fife said:

Meltdown99 said:

PJ_Soul said:

Meltdown99 said:

PJ_Soul said:

It's a tough one for sure. The main issue, I think, is how a healthcare system keeps people with severe mental illness on medication.... As it is, there really isn't any way to do it unless they are proven to be dangerous, and thus locked up and/or monitored by the state. These kinds of mental illnesses specifically make the sufferers stop taking their necessary meds, and then it's all downhill from there, and with that being the case, even with a great mental healthcare system, what the fuck can anyone do, unless there is some way to force them to take their meds, which, of course, is a serious legal/constitutional/charter of rights problem. Honestly, until there is a cure or a vaccine or something, I'm not sure there is a really good solution at the end of the day.

You are in BC, according to a mental health nurse I know, she says BC is ahead of the country when it come to treating mental health, but there is a ways everywhere.  

Wtf, if that's true, then I can't even imagine how bad it is elsewhere. In Vancouver I can't go out without having some kind of run in with severely mentally ill people, and many streets downtown and some other places are lined with homeless people year 'round, and supposedly a good 60 - 65% of them are mentally ill.

It’s very bad in my area as well.

I can only relay the message.  I honestly do not know.  It’s getting bad everywhere, and will only get worse.

Maybe I am just being hopeful but things can get better but people have to start standing up and fighting for better funding.  when is the last time you heard any politician talk about mental health in a platform? 

I live in Ontario Canada and it is estimated that mental health is underfunded by 1.5 billion a year. 

The economic burden of mental illness in Canada is estimated at $51 billion per year. This includes health care costs, lost productivity, and reductions in health-related quality of life.

Also people with mental health issues are 20% more likely to also have addiction issues as compared with the general population and since we are talking about Schizophrenia, 50%of people of people diagnosed are more likely to also have concurrent substance use issues. 

I work with alot of people who have major mental health issue and do be honest, the way we as a country(Canada in my case)  treat people with Mental health and also addictions is horrible but I still have hope that it will get better.

You would know better than me if you work in the system.  I agree, you never hear mental health take centre stage.  I see all 3 political parties are promising more funding ... bu I don't believe any of them.  And where I think the funding needs to be extended is by covering counselling through OHIP for those without benefits to cover this expense...I myself benefited immensely from counselling.  

I agree about the counseling part but you also need more counselors and it be more easily accessible.  one of my worries in Ontario is if Doug Ford wins is that he is going to close the safe injection sites and that is where many of my clients with mental health issue get their counseling done.   as for the political parties, yes I don't believe them also.  

PJ_Soul

Perhaps a lot more focus needs to be on preventing mental illness, where it can be prevented. Depression and debilitating anxiety, by far the most common mental illnesses that are preventing people from being consistently productive and functioning citizens and workers/earners, have skyrocketed in recent years. Who in the government is working to figure out why this huge increase is occurring, and then working towards actually cooperatively doing something meaningful about the causes/prevention? Nobody, that's who. Business is doing way more about it than the government is, and that's not saying much.

oftenreading

PJ_Soul said:

Perhaps a lot more focus needs to be on preventing mental illness, where it can be prevented. Depression and debilitating anxiety, by far the most common mental illnesses that are preventing people from being consistently productive and functioning citizens and workers/earners, have skyrocketed in recent years. Who in the government is working to figure out why this huge increase is occurring, and then working towards actually cooperatively doing something meaningful about the causes/prevention? Nobody, that's who. Business is doing way more about it than the government is, and that's not saying much.

I don’t see government’s role as trying to figure out the “whys”. There are people far more qualified to do that. I see government’s role more as funding the research into the whys, and then assisting to implement evidence-based recommendations. We already have part of that piece of the puzzle, of course; it’s the funding part that is a challenge.