Mental Health Update

I recently attended a talk by Denise Mair, on the evening that I also gave a presentation to the ADD group in Rhode Island. Denise is the only professional organizer in Rhode Island certified by the National Study group for the Chronically Disorganized. The NSGCD has published a measurable scale that distinguishes most of us from the chronic hoarders, the people you sometimes hear about in the news, with winding paths that cut through the memorabilia stacked from floor to ceiling, crushed by their books, surrounded by three hundred broken antique toasters, fifty years of Life magazine and a neglected cat.

Do you look forward to Christmas, Easter, and other family holidays? Or do you get so stressed that you have trouble enjoying these special occasions? Stress is a common problem for moms during holiday seasons, but there’s no reason that you shouldn’t enjoy these times just as much as everyone else. Here are some tips to help you have great holidays without all the hassle…

throughout my entire life, i’ve worn the hat of “the fixer”. whether it was during my mom’s stint with depression, protecting my brother’s out-of-wedlock baby news, during my other brother’s drug and alcholism, taking care of my family… oddly being the one everyone turns to. anything and everything. i fix things. that’s what i do. i make things better. somehow. i rescue. and perhaps that’s not healthy… no it’s not healthy but that’s what i do. so naturally when a crisis happens, i am automatically on “what can i do to make it better” mode, “who can i help through this” mode, “what can i say to make it better” mode.

Yeah.. i’m a schizophrenia alright at that time until now but compared to the years i’ve been suffering delusions all the time, even when sleeping. I’ve to come back to reality!

If you find yourself feeling completely out of control with worry, you may be suffering from an anxiety disorder, and you may need counseling and medication to overcome your worries. If that is the case, your doctor can recommend treatment plans that can reduce the emotional anguish that anxiety disorders can cause.

Jacob Sullum links to some recent findings regarding the risk of increased “suicidal ideation” in children and adolescents taking antidepressants.

That’s right, every prescription drug purchased by ever person in this country. Ever taken antidepressants? Ever been on birth control? Ever sought treatment for erectile dysfunction?

The work, which could have implications for treating attention deficit disorder (ADD), is the first concrete evidence that two radically different brain regions-the prefrontal cortex and the parietal cortex-play different roles in these different modes of attention.

I can tell right away that he isn’t comfortable prescribing antidepressants for people. I don’t seem depressed. I’m intelligent and articulate, and pleasant. I smile. I bathe, my teeth are clean, and my nails are polished. He says he’ll prescribe them for me, and wants to start with the lowest dose of Celexa, because it has the least number of serious side effects, but he suggests that I start counseling with the psychologist I saw.

The inner catastrophizing got frantic enough that I tried something I’ve never tried before, though Senior Pastor swears by it. I began praying the Jesus Prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, son of God, have mercy on me.” At first it actually raised the anxiety to a frantic pitch. Maybe I’ve never liked it because I’ve never resonated with the word mercy.

That rings a bell? This is for Alprazolam, the active drug in Xanax, but this applies to 99% of all anti-psychotics and anti-depressants. Now, the article doesn’t mention what anti-psychotic drugs were prescribed to the teen, but it’s safe to say that it probably contained Alprazolam, or a similar drug with similar counter-indications.