John Young, whose column appears regularly in the Hamilton Journal-News, writes:
"What we do, or don’t do, for severely mentally ill individuals is a scandal. One of the rarely discussed scandals is the lack of housing assistance."
"When it comes to housing the mentally ill, most policymakers don’t get it. They don’t see that permanent housing, with support, for the mentally ill is cost-effective. It helps people recover. It reduces demands on jails and mental hospitals.
"You’ve heard the old definition of insanity — doing something over and over again and expecting a different result. That’s what we do when mentally ill people go from jail, to the mental hospital, and back to the street. Yeah, that’s crazy."
Read the complete article at this link.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
NAMI's 30th Anniversary Convention July 6-9
NAMI National is celebrating its 30 year anniversary at the 2009 Convention this year in San Francisco, CA from July 6 -9th. There is still time to register for the convention by going to www.NAMI.org.
Denise Nichols: The Elememts of Recovery
Our NAMI speaker for the May 21st meeting was Denise Nichols, a long-time friend of NAMI and provider of services in Butler County. She is now a counselor at Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton. Denise discussed the elements of recovery and highlighted getting sleep, having a schedule and exercise as three important components. Also she believes everyone with a mental health diagnosis should have an "advanced directive", a document that clearly states how one wants to be treated, by whom and with what in the event of a serious decompensation in mental health status.
This document gives control to the person with the mental illness and helps family members and doctors know how to proceed according to the patient's wishes. Also for people with bipolar illnesses, it is important that a close friend or family member recognizes the first signs of decompensation and takes steps to avert disasters. Often times, one of the first signs is a person going for days with little or no sleep. With an increased manic state there is tendency to abuse credit cards, some people willingly give up the cards, especially if that if one of the conditions of the advanced directive. This alone saves untold grief and depression for the person once the manic state subsides.
Denise said that a good doctor who finds the right medications plus a trusted therapist are imperative to a successful recovery. Putting together all these pieces can take a lot of time but the payoff is worth the investment.
This document gives control to the person with the mental illness and helps family members and doctors know how to proceed according to the patient's wishes. Also for people with bipolar illnesses, it is important that a close friend or family member recognizes the first signs of decompensation and takes steps to avert disasters. Often times, one of the first signs is a person going for days with little or no sleep. With an increased manic state there is tendency to abuse credit cards, some people willingly give up the cards, especially if that if one of the conditions of the advanced directive. This alone saves untold grief and depression for the person once the manic state subsides.
Denise said that a good doctor who finds the right medications plus a trusted therapist are imperative to a successful recovery. Putting together all these pieces can take a lot of time but the payoff is worth the investment.
Treatment Options for Drug-Resistant Depression
Our speaker for the April 16th meeting was Dr. Dallas Auvil, psychiatrist at the Lindner Center of HOPE. Dr. Auvil talked about the availability now of two new research programs for people with medication-resistant depression. The Center soon will offer ECT (Electro-Convulsive Therapy) and TMS (Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation).
Dr. Auvil explained that the ECT is not the ECT depicted in movie "One Flew Over the Cukoo's Nest) that instilled fear and stigma into this form of treatment. He explained it is easily tolerated by elderly, even fragile patients, in controlled dosages. It can be very effective for people who are depression-resistant to typical medications. It can even be successfully used for people with bipolar illness in some cases to control the depression part of their illness.
TMC is also another research-based treatment for drug-resistant patients. This non-invasive method places powerful magnets over the surface of the brain which then offers relief to an estimated 35% of patients. ECT has a much higher success rate than TMS but both offer new approaches to depression treatment at the Lindner Center of HOPE. Memory loss in ECT is usually temporary and involves memory of recent events.
Dr. Auvil explained that the ECT is not the ECT depicted in movie "One Flew Over the Cukoo's Nest) that instilled fear and stigma into this form of treatment. He explained it is easily tolerated by elderly, even fragile patients, in controlled dosages. It can be very effective for people who are depression-resistant to typical medications. It can even be successfully used for people with bipolar illness in some cases to control the depression part of their illness.
TMC is also another research-based treatment for drug-resistant patients. This non-invasive method places powerful magnets over the surface of the brain which then offers relief to an estimated 35% of patients. ECT has a much higher success rate than TMS but both offer new approaches to depression treatment at the Lindner Center of HOPE. Memory loss in ECT is usually temporary and involves memory of recent events.
Rhonda Benson named Associate Director
Rhonda Benson is the new Associate Director of NAMI Butler County. Rhonda’s education and past mental health work experience perfectly suits her for this position. Rhonda graduated from Purdue University with a BA in Sociology, and earned an MSW from the University of Michigan. She has worked for the past 10 years as a case manager for Greater Cincinnati Behavioral Health Services with an intensive caseload, and prior to that worked in the field of substance abuse. Her past professional experience gives her a sensitive perspective on both families and consumers.
Rhonda is also a certified Life Coach, a discipline that assists people in identifying and moving forward with their life goals. In addition to her professional experience, Rhonda has demonstrated excellent organizational skills and is already managing our financial database, doing community outreach, program development and teaching Family to Family classes at the Lindner Center of Hope.
In the near future, Rhonda plans to start a support group for graduates of NAMI’s Family to Family program and is putting together a curriculum for a Boundaries class for families.
Rhonda’s enthusiasm, expertise and personal commitment to NAMI are why we are so excited about having her on our staff!
Rhonda is also a certified Life Coach, a discipline that assists people in identifying and moving forward with their life goals. In addition to her professional experience, Rhonda has demonstrated excellent organizational skills and is already managing our financial database, doing community outreach, program development and teaching Family to Family classes at the Lindner Center of Hope.
In the near future, Rhonda plans to start a support group for graduates of NAMI’s Family to Family program and is putting together a curriculum for a Boundaries class for families.
Rhonda’s enthusiasm, expertise and personal commitment to NAMI are why we are so excited about having her on our staff!
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