The recent suggestion from the NRA to have armed guards in our schools as an answer to increasing gun violence is beyond ridiculous.  “Fight fire with fire” seems to be their mantra.  Well, I have a better one.  “An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind,” – Gandhi.

It makes about as much sense as the law in Arizona that allows people to carry firearms in bars!  Great, “let’s get all liquored up” and and start playing with guns!  Ugh!  Am I the only one that doesn’t understand this mentality?  Don’t get me wrong, I totally support the second amendment, except when it comes to ballistic missiles, 30 round magazines, and other weapons of mass destruction. I understand wanting to protect yourself, but really?  What has happened to common sense? What about fences and security gates like most of the high schools have?

Devastating shootings like the one that occurred in Newtown last month or the one that occurred here on January 8th two years ago need to stop.  There has to be an answer other than putting more guns out there.  As a mental health advocate, I want more education in schools, community groups, businesses, and organizations about the realities of mental illness.  Everyone aggrees that a person who literally mowes down innocents with a high capacity gun needs to have his “head examined.”

Let the conversation start here……One in four families are effected by mental illness.  Treatment success rates for depression go as high as 90%.  One in eight teens experience depression, yet only 20% of them seek treatment. Even treatment success rates for schizophrenia are very high! Should people with a mental illness diagnosis be restricted from gun use?  Not necessarily, but let’s talk about it!

These are the topics of discussion we should be having.  Answers may not come as quickly as the “solution” from the NRA, but increasing arms in our schools is preposterous. The last thing our babies need is an increase in violence and an “eye for an eye” mentality.

Last Saturday I had the opportunity to participate in a panel that fielded questions and discussed the challenges of mental illness.  During the hour, struggles faced by a person living with mental illness  as well as the difficulties a care giver confronts while trying to support a person with a diagnosis were addressed.  Unlike many of the panel discussions I have participated in where we have spoken mostly to people currently involved in the mental health community, this group was much more diverse and consequently less informed about the illnesses, treatments, stigma and recovery.  It was a fascinating discussion and hopefully enlightening to those in attendance.

Afterwards, I was able to watch the Broadway Musical now playing at the Arizona Theater Company, “Next to Normal.”  The play exquisitely tells the story of a family’s struggle with mental illness.  In this case, the Mother is struggling with Bipolar Disorder and the rest of the family is  doing the best they can to cope with the unpredictable scenarios that are faced on a daily basis.  When Mom is feeling hypo-manic everything is great.  But, inevitably either the bottom falls out and Mom becomes horribly depressed or just as awful, Mom becomes manic and repercussions can be just as devastating. The Dad misses the exuberant young woman he first fell in love with. The teenage daughter feels un-noticed and at times unloved by an overwhelmed Dad and an ill Mom. As for the son, well……I’ll leave his story out of this blog as I wouldn’t want to spoil it for anyone going to see this play.

Suffice it to say that this dramatic musical tells a complicated, absorbing tale of life in a family with mental illness.  After all, when someone in the family have a serious illness, everyone is effected, no matter if it’s a physical illness or a mental illness.  The narrative, told almost exclusively with song, is compelling and realistic.  Having experienced mental illness in my family, it touched me as if  my best friend was sharing her family life with me.  The author has great insight  and the actors were amazing.

The first steps in changing attitudes about mental illness are awareness  and education. This production does an excellent job in demystifying the reality of mental illness.  One in four families are effected by mental illness and mainstream media, even  Broadway musicals, can have a huge impact on advancing that goal.

After living in Douglas for over a year back in my early 20′s, I was ecstatic to finally find a friend from that area that I had something in common with. We were pregnant at the same time. Our kids grew up together. She gave me the strength to go on after my husband was killed in 1986.  She and her family continued to visit regularly after we moved to Tucson.   I always felt supported by Kathy. She  stood by me though my roller coaster emotions and never once judged me.  As my daughter recently said, she taught us about functional family relationships.

So many people looked to her for guidance. It was a huge mantle to carry and she did it with grace and elegance. Kathy never said anything negative about anyone and continued to have a positive outlook even after liver cancer was diagnosed one month ago. She was focused on seeing her first grand baby born and was determined to “beat this  thing.”

Family and her huge circle of friends are experiencing intense grief right now.  Some people are conflicted about their pain, thinking that close family members are the only people that have the right to feel so intensely.  I have always said, “you can’t compare pain,” and I believe that you also can’t compare grief.  We all experience it in our own way and no matter the degree of intensity, pain is pain and grief is grief.  Mine is not easier or more difficult than yours and we can all support each other in these times of sadness.

The person that shared so much of our life is no longer with us physically, but I believe those that pass on are still with us in spirit.  And, our Kathy has one strong spirit.  She leaves a legacy of love and compassion and I am so honored to have had her as my loyal friend.

According the the University of Arizona Press, “The poignant, but ultimately empowering memoir tells the story of Peter Likins, his wife Patricia, and the six children they adopted in the 1960′s, building a family beset by challenges that ultimately strengthened all bonds.  With issues such as inter-racial adopton, mental illness, drug addition, unwed pregnancy, and homosexuality entwined in their lives, the tale isn’t just a famlly memoir-it’s a story of the American experience, a memoir with a message.  With circumstances of race, age, and health making all their children vitually unadoptable by 1960′s standards, Pat and Pete never strayed from the belief that loyalty and love could build a strong family.

Both Pete and Pat have served as teachers, and Pete’s long academic career-holding positions as a professor, dean, provost and then president illuminates more than just his personal success.  Pete’s professisonal attainments produce a context for  his family story, wherein high achievments in education, athletic, and financial terms coexist with the joys and sorrows of this exceptional family.

A frank, open account of the difficulties his family faced, this is a brave story, told with unflinching honesty and remarkable compassion.  The New American Family is a wonderful narrative of the genesis of a family and a journey to the deepest parts of a father’s heart.”

The University of Arizona Press will publish the book in March 2011 and you can order copies by contacting them at 1-800-426-3797 or by visiting the website at:  www.uapress.arizona.edu

Staying out of the heat can be difficult for our homeless population, many of whom also live with mental illness. I have seen a homeless person on more than one occasion totally overdressed during our 100 degree plus days because he either doesn’t realize how hot it is, or he’s afraid to leave his few possessions, including his clothing, behind.

Stay Safe

Educate yourself about the symptoms of heat stroke , such as:

* An extremely high body temperature (above 103 degrees Fahrenheit)
* Red, hot and dry skin (no sweating)
* Rapid, strong pulse
* Throbbing headache
* Dizziness
* Nausea
* Confusion

Individuals living with mental illness may be more prone to heat stroke because some medications alter the body’s response to heat. In addition, people taking specific medications may be at a higher risk of developing Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome (NMS) , a serious condition that may be connected to high temperatures and the dehydration that can result from heat stroke. NMS and heat stroke have similar symptoms, so it is especially important that people with mental illness inform their doctors of all medications they are currently taking.

Stay Informed

The National Weather Service is the hub of information about heat alerts. The Weather Channel offers a free service that will send updates about heat advisories to your phone.

Stay Inside

On extremely hot days, limit your exposure to the heat and sun, especially during the hottest part of the day. Don’t walk long distances if you don’t have to. Some public transportation systems offer free bus service on days with a dangerous heat index.

Stay Cool

If you do have an air conditioner, change the filter and perform other maintenance that will keep the unit working at peak capacity. If you don’t have an air conditioner, try to spend a few hours a day in an air-conditioned public place like a library or mall. Look into area programs that may provide air conditioners for people with disabilities for free or at a reduced cost. In the past, some local United Way chapters have collected donated units and redistributed them to people with the most need.

Here’s a list of some of Tucson’s Homeless Shelters.  I don’t know if any of them have room, but hopefully they can provide a respite from the heat for our city’s people on the streets.

But, this catastrophic Gulf oil spill has gotten me down.  I can’t imagine what it must be like for people who live in the area affected. And that area is growing day by day.  If you listen to some doomsday “sayers” this is just the beginning of a global crisis that could change the world as we know it. One can’t help but get nostalgic thinking about the days most of us have spent frolicking on white sand and splashing in the ocean. Some of my favorite childhood memories are from family vacations spent on the beach.  Many times it was on a Gulf of Mexico beach.  Same is true for my daughter, except that it was usually the Sea of Cortez.

What I can say for a fact is that the Gulf of Mexico is experiencing the biggest threat to it’s environment in history and it makes me want to cry.  When I first heard of the oil spill, I had this sinking feeling in my stomach.  Some how I knew intuitively this wasn’t just another oil spill. Now, almost two months later most of the world knows it’s the worst environmental disaster in history.  Scary part is, we still don’t know how to stop it.

A few facts we do know:

• 11 people lost their lives in the initial explosion
• Efforts to cap it or plug it have been unsuccessful
• Relief well may or may not work
• Dispersant’s being used are toxic
• Skimming works in a very small area
• Small portion of the oil is being recaptured
• Thousands of people’s livelihoods have been disrupted

No one really knows how this will end. President Obama said in his speech on Tuesday that we should all pray.  Some made fun of that suggestion.  It reminded me of the bumper stickers that say “Visualize Peace,”  or the adage “the power of positive thinking.”  So,  I think we should all visualize a clean Gulf – it can’t hurt! Thinking about a clean beach and aqua blue seas can definitely lighten my mood!!

“Burnout” was first coined in the 1970’s and is now used more often than the older terminology “nervous breakdown” which was commonly used for some of the same kinds of symptoms. The big difference as far as I can tell is that “Burnout Syndrome” applies mostly to work related exhaustion, while “nervous breakdown” applies to symptoms caused by an abnormal amount of stress.

“Burnout syndrome” seems to be less of a psychiatric illness and more of a general feeling of being drained physically and emotionally. I know of people who have worked themselves to exhaustion. Different situations can lead to burnout including overwhelming workload, hard work and no clear goals, powerlessness to change something important to you, conflict between your personal values and the values of the company you work for, and hitting the “invisible ceiling.”

In both cases, it’s important to try and be aware that you are headed into a burnout situation so that you can make the appropriate changes before it happens. Psychiatric care may or may not be needed, but chances are that drastic changes in life style and attitude will be.

Governor Brewer wants to repeal the measures passed in 2000 requiring that all those below the Federal Poverty level be covered by the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System, the state’s Medicaid System. If this is repealed, estimates of up to two thirds of the state’s citizens diagnosed with a serious mental illness will loose their coverage.

It’s obvious where they will go, or in worst case scenarios where these most vulnerable residents will be sent. Our emergency rooms will continue to be inundated with people seeking treatment for mild to serious symptoms and our prison system, already stretched to the limit will continue the latest trend as the nation’s mental health hospitals. Even the few lucky people that are able to afford an occasional visit to a private psychiatrist will have a difficult time paying for their medications. Many will have to make the choice between medication and food. Our homeless population already underserved and in crisis, will continue to grow.

Effective community based treatment is proven to be a more cost effective way to treat people living with mental illness. Hospitalizations and incarcerations are the most expensive, yet that seems to be where we are headed, especially now that the City of Tucson is also stopping funding for the mental health courts (another questionable cost saver). 

It seems like the dream of health care reform is turning into a nightmare.

Back in October when we started making plans for the Holiday season we were  discouraged about the price of an airline ticket.  Double what it normally is, my daughter suggested I stay in Tucson and she stay in Seattle and we see each other another time of year.  Of course, I would have no part of that.  After all, ’tis the season and I couldn’t imagine not being with her.  She and I are the only two left in our little family.  I have many extended family members, and I love them all,  but as a Mom, my daughter is the one I want to spend my holiday with.

She (my daughter) reminded me of how stressful the holidays are and how hard traveling can be at that time of year.  She reminded me about built up expectations we all have and unreasonable urges to spend unnecessarily just to find the “perfect” gift. Don’t get me wrong, may daughter is not a “scrooge,” but  she is making a valiant effort to simplify her life and not add any additional stresses.  She works full time and goes to graduate school full-time, so she has plenty on her plate already.  Wouldn’t it be better for her to take time off in the spring when the weather is nice? She, and I agree, also believes the holidays are too commercialized.

Bottom line – I flew to Seattle to be with her for the Christmas holiday.I’m sure you parents out there will understand.  On the way there, I noticed how everyone seemed to be in a good mood.  There were many more families than usual and all of them seemed to be happy and not bothered by the long lines and cramped planes.  None of the babies were crying and parents didn’t look overly tired.  The weather in Seattle was uncharacteristically sunny the entire vist and we shared a delicious Christmas dinner at my daughter’s friends’ home.

But, here’s when we get to the whole point on this blog……..

The expensive ”perfect” gift I gave to my daughter was one of the worst choices I think I have ever made.  As she gently pointed out after opening it, it wasn’t her style and now I could never imagine her wearing it.  I don’t know what I was thinking. (I was able to return it)

Two days into the trip I developed a head cold that totally slowed our activities down.  We had been looking forward to seeing “Avatar” at the IMAX theater, but I was too afraid of having a coughing attack during the show that we decided it best not to go. I wasn’t even able to visit the Pike Street Market while I was there.  My daughter, who was leaving for San Francisco for New Year’s Eve  didn’t want to get too close to me for fear of catching my “bug.”

Upon return to Tucson on Tuesday night, I drove straight to the ER because of severe shortness of breath that had me pretty worried.  After an all night ordeal and a ton of heart tests, blood clot tests, chest x-rays, etc I was sent home with an in-haler.  Now, finally on Sunday I think I’m going to live.  Oh, and most if not all of the children on the plane were crying, many with runny noses, and the parents looked like the walking dead.

So, what is my lesson here?  I underlined “my” because this only pertains to me and you can take it or leave it.

• The holidays cause undue stress
• The holidays cause unnecessary expense
•  The holidays cause unreasonable expectations.
• Some people become overly sensitive and uptight during the season. (luckily, my daughter and I communicate well and have been able to avoid negativity between us)
•  Undue stress and not enough rest can cause your immune system to be weaker than normal.
• Flying in a cramped plane exposes you to all the “bugs” going around at the time.
• Although weather wasn’t a factor for me this time, you most likely will have to deal with delays and cancellations if you choose to fly and possible road closures if you choose to drive.

What will I be doing during the 2010 Holiday season?  Hummm……that will be a tough one, but my intention is to try and embody the spirit of the season all year……….Peace and love to you and yours.