Mental Illness Kills

[bigmack]

It is amazing how unable the general public is able to recognize mental health issues when they're as obvious as in this latest shooting.

After working in a Psych ward in college and having a family member and a friend over the years diagnosed with schizophrenia, (NO, it's not split personalities!) it is a no brainer that this kid was a CLASSIC case of being in the midst of a schizophrnic psychosis. He refers to "conscious dreaming." HELLO, that's delusional thoughts, voices in his head, ideas of grandeur. ALL, classic symptoms of schizophrenia. I've seen it hundreds of times and it's often manifested in the same fashion. Rambling, incoherent writings, flat affectation to the face, etc... Most initially occurring in the ages 18-22

This kid was as sick mentally as a diabetic on the verge of going into a diabetic coma, physically. It's just astounding how little people know about such things. People talking about bad parenting, bullseyes on charts, rhetoric on TV/radio. It's all WAY off.

I do know much of the frenzied finger pointing was caused by a certain camp who when they heard he was white & non-Muslim, rang a bell akin to Ghostbusters and declared - "We Finally Got One."

The kid was/is sick. Plain & simple. With med's he'll level out but all this other banter is just laughable. Some media outlets should hang their head in shame for a rush to judgement in other directions.

[Grits]

How, though, would his parent's not have picked up on these behaviors, Mack? Please, tell me how. These are not behaviors that go without notice.

[bigmack]

Originally Posted by Grits

How, though, would his parent's not have picked up on these behaviors, Mack? Please, tell me how. These are not behaviors that go without notice.

As mentioned, most people haven't a clue how to recognize signs of serious mental illness. They probably figured he was going through a phase.

Strangely enough it's oftentimes the family members themselves that are last to admit the possibility of their loved ones being "sick in the head."

Both my parents had Alzheimer's and I know quite a bit about the signs. I've met many of my peers parents and have heard stories at social gatherings about their increased forgetfulness and paranoid accusatory behavior and I say "You realize those are the early signs of Alz?" In most cases they are unwilling to even explore the possibility.

[Steve 'StatMan']

Or maybe his family and/or friends/aquaintances suspected or feared mental illness, but he might have been hard to talk to about it, or admant that he was fine. Hard to get a grown adult to do things they don't want to do, or admit what that don't see (or want to see) or admit.

I knew a lady who used to be a M.D. who I (unfortunately) met at church and tried to help, not understanding that her inability to hold a job (she got de-crtified by the state after refusing a pysical and mentral exam) and troubles rasing her now adult-age son was part of her bio-polar problems that she won't admit ("I'm just burned out on medicine") and outside of church angrily rages against the world and the problems she see in everybody, instead of the problems that are within herself, with by sickness or by personality problems.

[Relwob Owner]

Originally Posted by Grits

How, though, would his parent's not have picked up on these behaviors, Mack? Please, tell me how. These are not behaviors that go without notice.

Pure speculation regarding this awful tragedy but I have seen cases where parents have a huge blind spot regarding their children. I imagine it is due to the fact that they love them, feel responsible for them and also I would think that if they acknowledge something is wrong with them, their view of how they themselves brought them up may be compromised.


I am no mental health expert but BM seems to have knowledge of it and his thoughts make sense to me.

[boxcar]

Originally Posted by Grits

How, though, would his parent's not have picked up on these behaviors, Mack? Please, tell me how. These are not behaviors that go without notice.

As our society over the years has grown steadily sicker, morally/spiritually, there's also been increased inability, simultaneously, to recognize the differences between "normal" and "abnormal". The lines have become very blurred because, as a society, we've become more conditioned in various ways to accept the abnormal for being normal.

A good physical analogy to this can be seen with people who have lived in chronic pain for a long period of time. Over time, they become so conditioned to the pain, they can barely remember when they didn't have any. In fact, many people living in chronic pain try adapt their behavior to the pain, and can still perform tough (albeit painful chores) remarkably well in spite of their condition; for the pain they suffer is "normal" to them.

Boxcar

[bigmack]

Meanwhile, many bring tangentially twisted reasons within hours of the shooting for their own agendas and say we need to lower the rhetoric.

[ArlJim78]

the students and teachers sure seemed to pick up on his problems. the question is, you suspect someone is unstable, what can you do about it?
here are some emails sent by a fellow student regarding his classroom behavior. she had him pegged right away, notice she talks about automatic weapons after sitting in class with the guy for one day.

From June 1, the first day of class:
"One day down and nineteen to go. We do have one student in the class who was disruptive today, I'm not certain yet if he was on drugs (as one person surmised) or disturbed. He scares me a bit. The teacher tried to throw him out and he refused to go, so I talked to the teacher afterward. Hopefully he will be out of class very soon, and not come back with an automatic weapon."

From June 10:
"As for me, Thursday means the end to week two of algebra class. It seems to be going by quickly, but then I do have three weeks to go so we'll see how I feel by then. Class isn't dull as we have a seriously disturbed student in the class, and they are trying to figure out how to get rid of him before he does something bad, but on the other hand, until he does something bad, you can't do anything about him. Needless to say, I sit by
the door."

From June 14:
"We have a mentally unstable person in the class that scares the living crap out of me. He is one of those whose picture you see on the news, after he has come into class with an automatic weapon. Everyone interviewed would say, Yeah, he was in my math class and he was really weird. I sit by the door with my purse handy. If you see it on the news one night, know that I got out fast..."

[boxcar]

The hypocrisy of the Left, Mack, is beyond comprehension. What also defies comprehension is the depth to their self-deception.

Boxcar

[bigmack]

Originally Posted by ArlJim78

the students and teachers sure seemed to pick up on his problems. the question is, you suspect someone is unstable, what can you do about it?

A 72 hour hold can only be imposed if the person has shown to be in risk of themselves or others.

A school counselor should have been alerted. While not a fan of pharmaceuticals with this disease it's the only option. Sitting down and digging into the id, ego & super-ego, toilet training and how they interpret Rorschach inkblots will have zero effect next to a well prescribed medication that will balance the wild imbalance of instability in their brains.

Most, if not all, cases involve a chemical imbalance not anything like a traumatic event or a complex.

[Grits]

Originally Posted by boxcar

A good physical analogy to this can be seen with people who have lived in chronic pain for a long period of time. Over time, they become so conditioned to the pain, they can barely remember when they didn't have any. In fact, many people living in chronic pain try adapt their behavior to the pain, and can still perform tough (albeit painful chores) remarkably well in spite of their condition; for the pain they suffer is "normal" to them.

Boxcar

I understand the concern for this young man, still though, its difficult to believe someone could not have seen some red flags. And Boxcar you could well be correct. Maybe we come to live with abnormal so long, its become normal. Be it physical or mental.

Too, the problem could have been similar, though not likely, as the case with BiPolar patients --"I'm fine, there's not a thing wrong with me, I'm not taking these pills anymore. I don't care what the doctor said." Such was the case with an acquaintance of my brother's. Wow, did that go South.

This thing called, "patient's rights", the Americans With Disabilities Act goes far in protecting those with special needs. But at times, it can well be a Catch 22. Its another ballgame.

[riskman]

Suspect’s Odd Behavior Caused Growing Alarm

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/10/us/10shooter.html?hp

"I was getting concerned about the safety of the students and the school,” said Mr. McGahee, who took to glancing out of the corner of his eye when he was writing on the board for fear that Mr. Loughner might do something. “I was afraid he was going to pull out a weapon.”

More at link above.

[JustRalph]

Not sure of the validity, but heard on the radio tonight that Walmart clerk refused to sell him ammo because he was hearing voices and acting strange in the store

[Robert Goren]

The conservatives are going this kid off with all this nut case talk. Do you have no shame? This guy deserves the chair(or whatever) not a ward in a nut house.

[bigmack]

Originally Posted by Robert Goren

The conservatives are going this kid off with all this nut case talk. Do you have no shame? This guy deserves the chair(or whatever) not a ward in a nut house.

Tough to make sense (again) of what you're trying to say. Try again.