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Bipolar NewsOctober 1, 2006Note: One or more of the following articles may require a subscription to view the entire article. We cannot post articles that require a subscription. We are sorry for the inconvenience.
Is Terrell Owens Bipolar?
Misdiagnosing Narcissism - The Bipolar I Disorder
Deputies, EquuSearch looking for Houston teen
Does Olanzapine Have Any Antidepressant Effect? Culture
and assessment of manic symptoms
Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene and rapid-cycling ...
Clinical Trials Update: Sept. 29, 2006
Glaxo Bipolar Drug May Be Tied to Defects
Help for families with mentally ill members
Terrell Owens: Just Selfish, Or Bipolar?
Inmate suicide prevention is in focus
Dispelling myths about mental illness
The Lexington Herald-Leader, Ky., Merlene Davis Column: Four Who Speak
for the Mentally Ill Four Who Speak for the Mentally IllFrom: Lexington Herald-Leader (Lexington, Ky.) | Date: October 1, 2006 Oct. 1--Lisa Miller of Lexington has been diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder. Yolonda Kelsor of Nicholasville and Jennifer Dishman of Lexington live with major depression. And Vicki Miller of Richmond doesn't care who knows she's bipolar. These four black women think they are not unlike other members of minority communities who have mental illnesses, except in their desire and willingness to be upfront about it. Monday is the start of Mental Illness Awareness Week, and these women want black folks to remove the stigma of mental illness so those who need treatment will feel free to seek it. They all belong to support groups aligned with the National Alliance on Mental Illness in Lexington, which has rededicated efforts to reach out to minority communities throughout the Bluegrass. "NAMI used to be a group of white-haired, white old ladies," executive director Kelly Gunning said. "But we have changed the makeup of NAMI." And with the simple act of moving NAMI's offices to the Black & Williams Neighborhood Center, 498 Georgetown Street, Gunning hopes more minorities will venture in. To help speed that mission along, NAMI has established the Multicultural Action Committee, or MAC, which has minority members willing to go out and speak with any group that's interested. Kelsor, 46, hopes MAC will reach those who need help as she once did. Kelsor thinks she has suffered with depression since she was a teenager. She was reared by a grandmother while her younger brother was reared by their parents, and she never quite understood why. That's when she thinks she internalized a sense of rejection. A former schoolteacher, Kelsor endured further rejection with two failed marriages. When she had to quit teaching after a back injury from two accidents, depression grabbed a better hold on her mind. She was diagnosed as borderline bipolar in 1995, silently took medication for a while, then stopped. "I didn't tell anyone. It was the stigma," she said. "I didn't want people to reject me any more than I had already been rejected." But Lisa Miller changed that. In January, she invited Kelsor to a "Family to Family" class, which spends 12 weeks teaching about mental illness and discussing tools to help families navigate the system. After one meeting, Kelsor was lent a copy of a documentary, Shadow Voices: Finding Hope in Mental Illness, released last year by Mennonite Media and endorsed by NAMI. (It is scheduled to air on the Hallmark Channel at 7 a.m. Oct. 8.) "That film had a great effect on my life," Kelsor said. "I wrote (the producers) and told them of the healing that has come and the journey to joy that I'm on now. I found a balance, and I found peace and I've become an advocate." When she was younger, Kelsor saw her mother hospitalized. And she remembers no one talking about it. So she has encouraged her daughter, Destin, 12, to join NAMI's adolescent support group. "And that's good," Gunning said. "We are trying to break that multigenerational silence." The three other women -- Lisa Miller, Jennifer Dishman and Vicki Miller -- nodded at the story, knowing theirs were similar: denial, silence, fear of rejection and finally acceptance. "I can stand up in church and say I'm bipolar," Vicki Miller said. "I don't care if people say, 'There goes Vicki Miller. Did you know she is bipolar?'" Lisa Miller, no relation, nodded. "I have schizoaffective," she said, "but schizoaffective doesn't have me." Dishman said it is time we all identified with the individual and not the disease. "We've got to keep putting that into people's minds," she said, and continually remind family members and others that mental illnesses are brain disorders. "I feel like NAMI is my saving grace and my support system," Dishman said. "I call Yondy (Kelsor) if I need to talk about not feeling well. I can call Lisa and say, 'How are you feeling?' and really mean it." They are all willing to share what they know and support those who feel alone. "Through education you become empowered," Kelsor said. "I call myself an ambassador because I go where I'm sent to spread the word of hope and healing." Call NAMI, (859) 272-7891, and set up a time to let these women help break the silence. Mental Illness Awareness Week Oct. 2: Candlelight vigil and art show. 6:30 p.m. Phoenix Park. Oct. 4: "Stamp Out Stigma" Gala. 7 p.m.-midnight. Blue Moon Saloon, 815 Euclid Ave. Oct. 5: Free screening for depression. 10 a.m.-3 p.m. University of Kentucky W.T. Young Library. -- "Heroes in the Fight" awards ceremony and social. 6:30-9:30 p.m. Kentucky Theatre. Black tie optional. Call (859) 272-7891 to RSVP. Oct. 7: "Walk for the Mind of America," led by Gov. Ernie Fletcher and first lady Glenna Fletcher. Noon registration, 1 p.m. 5K walk. Kentucky Horse Park. Reach Merlene Davis at (859) 231-3218; or 1-800-950-6397, Ext. 3218; or mdavis1@herald-leader.com [mailto:mdavis1@herald-leader.com]. Copyright (c) 2006, The Lexington Herald-Leader, Ky. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business News. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. Police are investigating Howard inmate's death.From: Baltimore Sun (Baltimore, MD) | Date: September 29, 2006 Byline: Melissa Harris and Tyrone Richardson Sep. 29--Maryland Howard County police are investigating the death of a 24-year-old Howard County Detention Center inmate who apparently hanged himself using a bedsheet Tuesday and died that night at Maryland Shock Trauma Center. The death of Vaughn Hairston of Columbia came less than a year after Melanie C. Pereira, the jail director, issued a suicide prevention plan in response to the deaths of two inmates who hanged themselves last year and another who suffered an acute lung infection after a suicide attempt. Pereira referred questions about the latest incident to county spokeswoman Victoria Goodman, who announced the death yesterday and declined to comment further. Hairston's mother, Flora Hairston, said that her son had bipolar disorder and was taking medication when he entered the detention center in March to await trial on a number of charges, including second-degree rape. Her son told her that inmates were harassing and assaulting him and that he had stopped taking his medication because it made him lethargic and vulnerable. Hairston said she met with her son hours before officials said he killed himself. He was scheduled to appear Oct. 3 in Howard County Circuit Court. "He told me, 'Mom, if you don't get me out of here quick, you may lose your son,'" she said. "He was in fear of some people, and he had to watch his back." County officials said Vaughn Hairston was taken by ambulance to Howard County General Hospital at 2:25 p.m. Tuesday after an apparent suicide attempt. He was later flown to Shock Trauma, where he died shortly after 11 p.m. Pereira said yesterday that in response to the previous hangings, she has removed brass handles from bunk beds and cages from sprinkler heads, but could not remove cages from all of the windows because of security concerns. melissa.harris@baltsun.com Copyright (c) 2006, The Baltimore Sun Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |
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This Week's Bipolar NewsArtist faces her demons in gallery show Atypical antipsychotics in bipolar disorder: the treatment of mania In a sense, everyone is bipolar to some extent, doctor says Click here for all Bipolar News.
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Featured Article:The Three Worst Things That Bipolar Disorder Causes - Part 1Anyone who has bipolar disorder would agree that there are many bad things that the disorder causes for them; such as: having to take medication every day for the rest of their lives, having to change their whole lifestyle to accommodate the disorder, having to go see doctors and therapists and psychiatrists, etc. However, the three worst things that bipolar disorder causes are:
Click here to read the entire aritcle
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