Healthcare Professionals and Mental Health

I had another post planned for today, but then I realized there is more I need to share for Mental Health Awareness Month. So, today I want to address the role of healthcare professionals in treating and caring for people who live with mental illness. I have experienced several healthcare professionals who understand mental illness and are empathetic. Unfortunately, I have also experienced those who don’t understand and allow that lack of understanding to affect how they treat patients. 

I have shared my story of the painful experience I had. (Turning Hurtful Words Into Healing) It is hard to believe it has been eight years. Even though it has been that long, at times it still affects me. An interaction that provider never gave a second thought scarred me. I know I am not the only one. People with mental illness are misunderstood and mistreated often. I think it is happening less. At least that is what I would like to believe. 

I don’t know what the training programs for doctors and other healthcare professionals are teaching their students. My research indicates that most non-psychiatric doctors take one psychology course in medical school and do a 4-8 week psychiatric rotation. That doesn’t seem like enough. The training for physician’s assistants and nurse practitioners appears to be about the same, one course and a 4–6-week rotation. I wish mental health was a larger part of the curriculum for healthcare professionals. Mental health and physical health are tied together. They affect each other. My understanding of that connection has strengthened over the past two years. 

My mental health was not in a good place when I was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer. I could not have faced my cancer diagnosis without also addressing my mental health. I needed my mental health team as much as I needed my oncologist while I fought cancer. I needed my oncologist to understand my mental health needs so she could better treat me. Thankfully, she understood. There were some chemo days when my anxiety was high. My oncologist was empathetic and gave me Ativan to help me get through the anxiety. She never doubted that my experience was real. My oncologist respected my mental health and as a result was better able to treat me as a whole person. 

What about primary care providers? They see a wide variety of patients. I am sure not a day goes by where they don’t see a patient with a mental illness. They may be seeing that patient for some other reason, but daily a patient enters their exam room who has some type of mental illness. How they treat these patients is important. I know my primary care provider not only understands mental illness, but she is also empathetic. That is important and I am grateful.  Patients need to know they can trust their provider. We need to know that our mental health needs will be taken seriously. We also need to know a physical symptom won’t be ignored because we have a mental illness. Physical symptoms are not in our head just because we have a diagnosed mental health disorder. 

I have had the privilege of giving talks to psychiatric nurse practitioner students. They listened with open minds and curiosity as I shared my lived experience. I would like to speak to medical students and students in physician assistant and general nurse practitioner programs. I think hearing from a person with lived mental illness experience would be valuable to them. I also think it would be beneficial to talk to those already in healthcare professions. It would give them a refresher on what it is like for a patient to live with mental illness. Hearing my experience or the experience of others with mental health disorders might encourage practitioners to learn more about mental health. It might even change how they approach their patients. Maybe it could help that physician’s assistant who mistreated me.  Since it has been eight years, I hope she has already figured out that she needs to be more empathetic. Sadly, unless we make purposeful efforts to provide healthcare professionals with a better understanding of mental health there will be providers like the one I experienced.

If you are a healthcare provider or healthcare instructor, you can reach out if you would like me to speak to your group. You can email me at ginacapobiancoauthor@gmail.com.

 

 

Anyone Can Be Affected by Mental Illness

            I read a quote that really made me think.  So, I decided to write about it.  Here is the quote:

            "Anyone can be affected, despite their level of success or their place on the food chain. In fact, there is a good chance you know someone who is struggling with it since nearly 20% of American adults face some form of mental illness in their lifetime. So why aren’t we talking about it?” — Kristen Bell

            Mental illness is a reality in our world.  Bell is correct when she says anyone can be affected by mental illness.  It can attack anyone regardless of race, religion, or socio-economic status.  Mental illness does not discriminate.  I didn’t check her statistic, but it is in the right ballpark. We probably all know someone who lives with mental illness whether we know it or not.  So, yes, we should be talking about mental illness.

            What does mental illness look like?  There is no one description of mental illness.  It doesn’t have a typical look. Mental illness looks different for each individual it affects.  Mental illness can mean depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, obsessive compulsive disorder, or borderline personality disorder.  These are just a few of the disorders that fall under the umbrella of mental illness.  These disorders have many symptoms.  Some are shared across disorders.  Others are unique to specific disorders. 

            What does talking about mental illness mean?  Talking about mental illness means having conversations about these disorders and how they affect people.  It means raising awareness by being open about these disorders.  These conversations are difficult.  They require openness and honesty.  We should be talking about ways to ensure individuals with these disorders are receiving the health care they deserve.  The conversations should be no different than a conversation about a physical illness.

When talking about mental illness it is important to put the person first.  For example, we should be saying a person with depression, not a depressed person.  Recognizing the person before the disorder is important.  It shows respect for the individual.  He, she, or they are not the diagnosis.  

Mental health disorders are not descriptors.  We should not be using these diagnoses as adjectives.   The weather is not bipolar.  A person is not depressed when their favorite football team loses.  Someone who likes things clean is not OCD.  Using mental health disorders in this way is not talking about mental illness.  This is how mental illness becomes demeaned and stigmatized.  

With the number of people who suffer from mental illness, discussions should be taking place about identification, treatment, prevention, recovery, and research.  We have these conversations about illnesses such as cancer and heart disease.  Mental illness deserves the same attention.  

According to John Hopkins Medicine, 26% of Americans 18 and older have a diagnosable mental health disorder. That is about 1 in 4 American adults.   That is a significant number, and it is not even counting children with mental health disorders.  By comparison, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 5% of adults aged 20 and older have coronary artery disease (CAD).  When looking at cancer, approximately 39.5% of Americans will be diagnosed with cancer according to the National Cancer Institute.  These numbers show that mental illness impacts Americans at a similar rate as other diseases that receive attention. 

My interpretation of these statistics is that mental illness affects enough people that it should be given equal attention.  It should be talked about.  Action should be taken.  I am grateful that the conversation has increased.  When my mental illness first emerged, there was very little conversation about depression.  Its presence was hushed.  The resources available were slim.  I had no one to turn to for support.  As a result, I did what many people with mental illness do, even today, I kept it hidden.  When you hide mental illness, it makes it more difficult to receive treatment.  Even though I felt alone and at times still do today, the numbers indicate that I am not alone.  That is why we need to have conversations about mental health.

Awareness and funding need to be raised.  Thankfully, the conversation is getting louder. Organizations like NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) are trying to get mental illness into conversations at all levels.  Awareness is spreading, but we need more.  We need to not only discuss mental illness, but we need to reduce the stigma.  We need to normalize taking mental health days in school and the workplace.  Jokes about mental illnesses need to stop.  When the social media or the entertainment industry make jokes about mental illness, they are making it harder for a person with a mental illness to reach out for help.  

Bell points out that it shouldn’t matter who we are, we can have a mental illness.  People of any socioeconomic status, any race, or any religion can have a mental illness.  These disorders do not discriminate.  No one is immune. For that reason, the issue of mental illness should concern all of us.  Paying attention to your friends and family is important step.  Ask others how they are doing and listen to the answer.  

The important thing is to remember that mental illnesses are illnesses.  We need to take them as seriously as heart disease, cancer, and other physical illnesses.  Seeing a therapist or other mental healthcare professional should be just as normal as seeing a primary care provider.  When you hear someone make a joke or use a mental illness causally, take advantage of the opportunity to educate them.  Let them know mental illness is not a joke.  

It is important to take care of your own mental health.  Learn about the signs of mental illness. Reading blogs like this one can be a good step towards learning about mental illness. There are podcasts you can learn from.  I recommend The Giving Voice to Depression podcast, which can be found wherever you get your podcasts.  

We can encourage our lawmakers to designate funding to mental health or participate in fundraisers for mental health.  Add positives to the conversation.  Someday you or someone you love may suffer from a mental illness.  

Do You Really See Me?

           I have had rough few days.  I am not up to writing a full post, but I want to get something up on the blog.  So, I will share a poem that is related to a recent post.  In my January 11^th post, “Turning Hurtful Words into Healing”, I wrote about a hurtful experience I had with a health care provider.  Since poetry is my go-to healing strategy, I wrote a few poems about that incident.  I am going to share one today.  This poem, Do You Really See Me? can be found in my book, Traveling the Healing Journey: Finding the Light in Mental Illness.  It is available in bookstores and on Amazon. 

            Let me know in the comments if the poem resonates with you.  I’ll be back with a longer post on Thursday.  

 

 

Do You Really See Me?

 

I get it.

I have a mental health disorder.

You do not understand.

I see you standing there in your white lab coat.

I guess you think that I am crazy.

It is easier for you to just assume that I am my mental health.

You do not see the person behind the label.

The person who feels so deeply, who longs for life to be different.

That is who I really am.

I am not just “depressed with catatonic features”.

I am more than my anxiety disorder.

I have dreams just like you.

I feel pain just like you.

Do you see me?

We are not that different.

One day you may struggle with this darkness, although I hope that you do not.

I do not wish depression on anyone.

Sometimes I wish I could better explain what it feels like to live with a mental health disorder.

Let others know what is like to see darkness all around me.

I hide my tears, wear a fake smile just to get through the day.

You only see a part of me.

Deep inside I am longing to emerge from behind my diagnosis;

Shatter the label and be seen.

 

 

A Personal Observation About Healthcare for People with Mental Illness

            There is something on my mind. I was just in the hospital for physical health-related issues. For the most part everyone was great, but I have one concern. The doctor on the unit stopped my depression medication. Now medications don’t work for me, but my psychiatrist has decided to keep me on this one while we pursue alternative treatments. How can the doctor just take me off it? I have enough experience with psychiatric medications to understand that tapering is needed. So, I questioned why my medication was stopped. I said my psychiatrist, whom I trust, says I need it. After my questioning, another doctor said I could take it, but that I would have to get someone to bring it to me from home because the hospital doesn’t have it. I understand I’m on a medication that is not very common, but that’s not my fault. 

      My concern is that my needs as a person with a mental illness were dismissed by a doctor providing care for my physical needs. I shouldn’t have to speak up to get the medication I need. This is an example of one of the many problems people with mental illness face in healthcare. We must get better.

            I do want to say that there are good people in healthcare.  The nurses were understanding about why I needed my medication.  My primary care provider understands mental health and always ensures my needs are met.  Unfortunately, there are others out there who are not understanding whether from lack of training or lack of care. This is not the first time I have experienced this type of treatment.  I’ll return to this topic in later posts and share my experiences and invite others to share theirs.

 

Check back Thursday, July 19^th for my next post.