Fighting Stigma During Halloween

It's that time of year again for ghosts and goblins, but also it is a time of stigma, especially more than usual, for individuals with a mental illness as costumes and attractions are featured depicting mentally ill individuals as ghoulish, deranged monsters of the night. Last year, I wrote on how you can fight the stigma surrounding mental illness around Halloween: Help Stamp Out Stigma This Halloween. I can't emphasize enough how hurtful these depictions and stereotypes can be to individuals with a mental illness or their family and yet they continue.

I think for next year's Halloween (seeing as Halloween is tomorrow and I'm tight on money), I'm going to design a t-shirt to wear out in public to bring awareness to this issue and challenge stereotypes. Here's what it'd look like:

"Miss Manners" Gave Poor Advice When She Interjected Political Opinion

This morning, I am reading the advice columns in the local paper, as I usually do, and I came across the following question addresses to "Miss Manners" Judith Martin:

Dear Miss Manners: I am a father of three, with No. 4 on the way. This time, my wife and I decided to find out the sex of the baby before the birth (some-thing we did not do with the others). I am proud to say that we are expecting a girl, and I would like to share the news with my buddies with the traditional cigar. Do I wait until the birth to pass them out? Or is it OK to pass them out now when I share our good fortune?

Miss Manners response was less than suitable, filled with her political opinion and with a touch of bitterness:

Gentle Reader: You have three children, and you haven't learned patience? Yet there are other things Miss Manners hopes you never learn, such as that not all pregnancies go smoothly, and not everyone is as charmed by embryos as by babies. (Some people even find cigars offense, but that's another matter.) Your daughter is not ready yet for her debut. Please give her a chance to get ready to face the world, and, for heaven sakes, to put something on.
Copyright Judith Martin Distributed by Universal Uclick

Although  the sexual organs distinguishing male or female are clearly visible at 12 weeks post-ovulation/gestational age (14 weeks since Last Menstrual Period) (Source: Visible Embryo), most patients don't seek to find out the gender of the baby by ultrasound until around 18-20 weeks (Source: Parents.com), at which time it's more than just an embryo and well past the point of the highest risk for miscarriage. (About 10 to 20 percent of known pregnancies end in miscarriage, and more than 80 percent of these losses happen before 12 weeks. Source: Babycenter.com).
Also, even if Miss Manners didn't feel the pregnancy amounted to much at this stage, it obviously did for this father-to-be and her political opinion had no place in her advice column. My advice to Miss Manners: better educate yourself in biology and to leave your personal political convictions out of your advice columns.
My advice for the father-to-be? Celebrate with your buddies and bring out the cigars (or a healthier, less stinky option is the candy/gum cigars made for such an occasion), congratulations on expecting and I wish your wife and child the best health.

Taboo...Talking About Living with Tourettes, Trichotillomania, and Autism

A few months ago, I watched an interesting episode of the television show "Taboo." Featured in that episode  were individuals with tourettes, trichotillomania, and autism. I found the whole episode fascinating and educational (as in bringing awareness), however when they got to interviewing two individuals with autism and talking about autism and how individuals with autism (and other disabilities) were institutionalized when they were children (one interviewee was raised in an institution, the other by a family member), it broke my heart recalling some of the horror stories I've heard about how institutions were run back in the 1950's and 1960's, and having had seen the damaging effects of institutional abuse in a mentally disabled elderly gentleman I cared for a couple years ago. Fortunately, a demand for reform came back in the 1970's (although too late for some), resulting in movement towards integrating individuals into smaller group homes and expanding services in the community (which enables these individuals to stay in their home communities near friends and family), as well as an improvements in care and the development of new therapies, including assisted communication, music therapy, and art therapy, which enables individuals with disabilities to develop their abilities and strengths and live their life to the fullest. Also, the individuals in the show talked about stigma, the stigma surrounding having their condition and others reactions to their atypical behaviors and mannerisms. The show ended with a great message: "I have found a great purpose in my life. And that is to change people's view of disability to that of ability." and "Can you, as a supposedly non-disabled person, see me for who I truly am, not seeing the autism, but me, the real Tracy!" - Larry and Tracy, two gentlemen with autism.
to which the show's narrorator ended with this message, "Isn't it treating people as outcasts...taboo?"

This episode highlights the importance of educating children, teens, and adults in the fight to end bullying and erase the ignorance and stigma surrounding developmental disabilities and mental illness.

Thoughts on Sidewalk Counseling

It was in the high 90s yesterday when we were out at the Planned Parenthood on the Northwest side & boy was it hot! The local Gabriel Project works with the Indianapolis Metro Police Department to follow local and state laws and to ensure they are aware we are there. Yesterday, there were two prayer warriors there, sitting back and praying in the shade, one standing a distance down the road holding a sign of Mary which asked for prayers to close PP (we prefer those protesting & using signs keep their distance as to not associate ourselves with them or create fear or intimidation for those who we approach), as well as two other experienced sidewalk counselors, who I observed & learned from. From the grass along the entrance of PP’s driveway, we offered friendly waves and smiles and asked to speak with them, as they pulled through in the driveway. Of about 15 cars, 3 stopped to talk with us & we handed them a brochure from the Gabriel Project (we don’t use graphic images and can only use brochures approved by the Gabriel Project director) and let them know there are alternatives and assistance and to call the Gabriel Project number (the Gabriel Project on call hotline person then connects them with the assistance needed in their community and a sponsor parishioner through their local church participating in the Gabriel Project.) It was heartbreaking because one woman I spoke with was an immigrant and had two children with her spouse who is working, but barely have food to feed their children. I offered her our assistance, but she was already determined and closed her mind to anything else, even as we offered assistance for her family. Although she had made up her mind, it was clear she was emotionally struggling with the decision (she choked up when she stated she had asked for God’s forgiveness and stated her husband convinced her it was necessary) but felt she had no other choice. How can I best address individuals in these types of situations to help them see there is hope?

I've Started Sidewalk Counseling

Just wanted to let you guys know that I’ve connected with the local Gabriel Project of the Great Lakes Region in Indianapolis and have started to sidewalk counsel in front Planned Parenthood twice a week. I've given this much thought and have considered this for some time. What is a "sidewalk counselor?" We are peer counselors there to offer hope, encouragement, and alternatives to abortion as well as help connect women with resources in their communities to meet their immediate needs (whether it's food, transportation, employment, or housing). The Gabriel Project's focus is non-political, but rather to help connect the women with socioeconomic resources to develop independence and self-sufficiency and a support system through her pregnancy and beyond. We do not engage in “street theater” or “harassing,” nor do we use graphic aides. We do not beg or plead, yell out condemning words, discuss adoption, make empty promises, try to change their minds on the morality of abortion, evangelize, or coerce/manipulate her into choosing life. We are simply there to let her know there alternative and resources/support if she so chooses.

My Blog Account Was Hacked...

Recently in the news, we learned LinkedIn was hacked and 56 million passwords were stolen and leaked. Unfortuantly, apparently my LinkedIn password was one of those taken, and with that, my e-mail contacts which were linked to my LinkedIn account as well as access to my blog as well. So my apologies for any spam messages posted. I'm working on removing access and applying further security measures for my social networking, e-mail and blog accounts, so I've resolved this issues on my end. Now as to what future security measures LinkedIn takes to prevent such an occurrence in the future, remains to be seen...

New Years Resolutions and Changes

Just wanted to drop in and let my readers and visitors know blogging will be light over the next several months, as I'm making some major changes in my life right now. It's nothing radical, my New Years Resolution is to get healthier, but it's personal and I'm not ready to discuss it publicly at this point.

Texas Mom Denied Foodstamps for Months, Shoots Own Kids

This is sad...

Texas Welfare Office Shooting: Mom Denied Food Stamps For Months, Shoots Own Kids
PAUL J. WEBER   12/ 6/11 09:24 PM ET   AP

SAN ANTONIO — A Texas woman who for months was unable to qualify for food stamps pulled a gun in a state welfare office and staged a seven-hour standoff with police that ended with her shooting her two children before killing herself, officials said Tuesday.

The children, a 10-year-old boy and a 12-year-old girl, remained in critical condition Tuesday. The shooting took place at a Texas Department of Health and Human Services building in Laredo, where police said about 25 people were inside at the time.

Authorities identified the mother as Rachelle Grimmer, 38, and children Ramie and Timothy. Laredo police investigator Joe Baeza said Grimmer had recently moved to the border city from Zanesville, Ohio, about 30 miles east of Columbus.

Grimmer first applied for food stamps in July but was denied because she didn't turn in enough information, Texas Department of Health and Human Services spokeswoman Stephanie Goodman said.

Goodman didn't know what Grimmer specifically failed to provide. In addition to completing an 18-page application, families seeking state benefits also must provide documents proving their information, such as proof of employment and residency.

"We were still waiting, and if we had that, I don't know if she would still qualify or not," Goodman said.

Goodman said Grimmer's last contact with the agency appeared to be a phone call in mid-November. When the family entered the Laredo office on Monday shortly before 5 p.m., Goodman said Grimmer asked to speak to a new caseworker, and not the one whom she worked with previously.

Shortly thereafter, Goodman said, Grimmer was taken to a private room to discuss her case. She said it was there the mother revealed a gun and the standoff began.

Police negotiators stayed on the phone with Grimmer throughout the evening, but she kept hanging up, Baeza said. She allegedly told negotiators about a litany of complaints against state and federal government agencies.

Despite those complaints, Baeza said it wasn't clear what specifically triggered the standoff.

"This wasn't like a knee-jerk reaction," said Baeza, adding that Grimmer felt she was owed restitution of some sort.

Grimmer let a supervisor go unharmed around 7:45, but stayed inside the office with her children. After hanging up the phone around 11:45, police heard three shots, and a SWAT team entered the building. Inside, they found Grimmer's body and her two wounded children.

The children were "very critical" and unconscious when taken from the scene, Baeza said.

Multiple family members in Ohio and Missouri did not immediately return phone messages Tuesday. The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services said the agency had no information on Grimmer.

A YouTube channel the family appeared to have created in 2009 includes a profile that reads, "We are Shell, Ramie and Tim. Mom, daughter 10 and son 8. We like turtles, horses, and being outside. The kids have two turtles, an alligator snapper and a red eared slider. We work on naturalizing them and try to give them the most natural setting possible."

There are no videos uploaded. Tagged as favorites are an eclectic mix of nearly two dozen videos, ranging from a solar panel installation to a live clip of the band of AC/DC. The "Hometown" category reads: "We don't have one."

Goodman credited an office supervisor, a 24-year veteran of the agency, for ensuring the release of the other employees.

"He had told her he would try to help her, and that if she would let everyone else leave, he would talk to her," Goodman said.

Goodman didn't know whether Grimmer had a job, or whether her children were covered under Medicaid or the state children's health insurance program. The family had no history with the Texas Department of Child Protective Services.

The family's move from Ohio may have complicated Grimmer's application if the family had no Texas records the agency could check electronically, Goodman said. Grimmer also would have been denied benefits if she was receiving welfare assistance.

Grimmer also appeared to fall out of touch during her pursuit of food stamps. The mother originally applied July 7, but Goodman said Grimmer missed her first interview and didn't call back and reschedule for a few weeks. Her case was closed Aug. 8 for lack of a full application, Goodman said.

How much food stamp money a family receives depends on their income level. The average family on food stamps in Texas receives $294 a month.

Three months later, Grimmer called the agency's ombudsman Nov. 16 and requested a review of how her rejected case was handled. Goodman said the agency found that caseworkers acted appropriately after looking over Grimmer's file, and a supervisor called Grimmer's cell phone last Thursday to tell her the outcome. No one answered and the phone's voicemail box was full, Goodman said.

"The indications she had she was dealing with a lot of issues," Goodman said.

State welfare offices have come under scrutiny in the past for being overburdened, but Goodman said the agency has made significant strides in the past three years. She said wait times are shorter, and that Grimmer was scheduled for her initial interview just one day after applying. Grimmer didn't make the appointment, she said.

Goodman said it's not unusual for caseworkers to confront angry or confused benefit-seekers, but that it's very rare for a situation to escalate to violence.
___

Associated Press Writer Christopher Sherman in McAllen, Texas, contributed to this report.

Also, see Texas mom shoots self, kids after welfare standoff

Unfortunately there are those who'd politicize this tragedy in the name of the pro-choice view point. Pro-choice activists at the Facebook group Pro-Choice/Pro-Life Open Forum are quick to blame political opponents and assume this is the result of unwanted children. However, no where in the article does it state whether the children were planned or not. Also, I find it rather patronizing to assume one's children are unplanned or unwanted based on one's income and the number of children. Followed to it's premise, one could deduce  from the above discussion (at Pro-Choice/Pro-Life Open Forum), this incident could of been prevented if this woman only had access to birth control and abortion, which I feel is classist and the antithesis to "choice", akin to telling low-income women they need to be limit their family size and get "fixed" like a stray animal for their own good. Also, they are missing the bigger picture of the many socioeconomic factors which contribute to poverty and desperation, such as in this case, which can't be fixed by pushing for birth control and abortion access as a cover all solution. I see an overwhelmed mother, with an untreated mental illness, who did not have access to community resources and who fell through the cracks of an overwhelmed, flawed bureaucratic welfare system (which, in my opinion needs reformed, not removed).

The Joys and Challenges of Fostering

This past month, I took in and helped care for a neighbor's neutered male diabetic cat, named Cartman, on a temporary foster basis with my neighbor's blessing, to provide him with more individualized care and attention and hopefully to get his blood sugar under control. Cartman was a very loving cat. He was diagnosed with diabetes by a vet 2 years prior, but my neighbor was unable to afford the veterinarian care he needed and has a multiple cat household. She tried to manage his diabetes with diet with canned food (although inconsistently), and complicating this, Cartman was a picky eater. He was under-weight and I suspected his blood sugar levels were elevated. Unfortunately, my husband and I didn't have the money either for veterinarian care and insulin, so we took a conservative home treatment approach (in an other-wise healthy diabetic cat, this is acceptable, however in Cartman's case, this wasn't such a good idea, as I'll explain later). Since coming to my home, Cartman was put on a special diet of Fancy Feast White Chicken Appetizer/Friskies Chicken pate, Iams Kitten Pro-Active dry food (this was later phased out of his diet due to dry kibble having a high level of carbohydrates), and I supplemented this with Vita Gravy (for cats) and Cat-Sip mixed in his wet food, which he loved and lapped up, to help with weight gain. Also, I wanted to get a blood glucose meter to home test and keep an eye on his blood sugar levels and was waiting until payday, when someone on the Feline Diabetes Message Board told me about Newbie Kits for Cats, a volunteer effort which receives donations of diabetic testing supplies and puts together kits (with a blood glucose meter, testing strips, lancets, and special extras such as home-made catnip toys, a warming sock, and low-carbohydrate treats) which they then distribute to individuals who have difficulty affording these supplies. I received my kit today and was very grateful for this gift. Life with Cartman has been...interesting. Our weekday routine starts with Cartman meowing and demanding his food anywhere from midnight to 2am and breakfast at 6 am, which in the mornings, I feed him and ran interference so he doesn't get under hubby's feet while he gets ready for work. Then I lay back down for a bit, usually waking to a meowing kittty either laying on or next to my head and kneading my face. Because of his diabetes, Cartman is hungry more often than most cats and needs (or should I say "demands") to be fed wet cat food every four to six hours. After breakfast he typically would sleep for the rest of the afternoon. Because I work on weekends, Cartman goes back home to be cared for by his mom (my neighbor) and I pick him up either on Sunday night or Monday afternoon and we start the routine all over again :) Yes, it was a lot of work, but rewarding in having Cartman's companionship and unconditional love, and definitely worth it!  

Update: On Monday, October 17th, Cartman took a turn for the worse, resulting in an emergency trip to the vet. Not good news.He was in acute renal (kidney) failure and shock. The vet informed us that the average life span for a cat once they're diagnosed with diabetes is 2 years and Cartman wasn't diagnosed until 2008 (when he was 7 yrs old) and his diabetes have been not well controlled for a few years. The vet informed us there wasn't much we could do, he may make it maybe another 24 hrs at most. We were both devastated. My neighbor was given the option of euthanasia or taking him home to make him comfortable as possible until he passes, where he'd be in familiar environment (which is what the vet felt was best) and she  opted to bring him home. Cartman passed away in his mother's arms on October 18th a little after 5 o'clock in the afternoon, following complications of diabetes. Fly Free Cartman, land every so softly back in both your mommies hearts

Cartman Hall

March 2001-October 18, 2011

Help Stamp Out Stigma This Halloween

It's that time of year again...It's the season for ghosts and goblins, and unfortunately stigma for those living with a mental illness. Every year, some local haunted house attractions take the form of "insane asylums," featuring "mental patients" as murderers or ghouls. Halloween costumes, displays, or other products may reflect similar themes with straightjackets and statues.While it is often claimed such costumes and fun houses are only in humor and fun, not ment to depict mentally ill individuals, such depictions are based off of a sordid history of early mental health treatment, depicting actual hospitals and conditions the mentally ill endured during that time period. Also, when such stereotypes are used, where mentally ill individuals are only portrayed only as antagonists or villains, portrayed as violent, or when offensive or insensitive symbols (e.g., straitjackets), these perpetuate stigma and stereotypes which can be quite hurtful and damaging to those living with a mental illness today:

•Straitjackets represent extremely painful, traumatic experiences. Their image is hurtful to individuals and families who struggle with mental illness.

•Using straitjackets for entertainment demeans individual dignity and trivializes mental illness.

•Straitjackets are often associated with violence.

•Violent stereotypes are inaccurate and offensive. Most people who suffer from a mental disorder are not violent there is no need to fear them. Embrace them for who they are normal human beings experiencing a difficult time, who need your open mind, caring attitude, and helpful support.”(Grohol, 1998) Grohol, J. M. “Dispelling the violence myth.” Psych Central. (June, 1998).

•Lunatic" is an obsolete, stigmatizing, offensive term—just like racial and ethnic slurs that once were used in the past. "Pyscho" also is insulting and further perpetuates stigma, along with themes like "Halloween of Horrors."

These images reinforce shame and create the kind of stigma that the U.S. Surgeon General has found to be a major barrier to people seeking help when they need it. Remember, offensive portrayals of heart or cancer patients would never be tolerated. The issue isn't "political correctness." It's about human dignity and a public health crisis. Usually, no one intends to offend, but they need to understand that the effect is not only offensive, but also generates stigma. Here's what you can do if you encounter such displays and costumes:

•Complain directly to a store manager of an offending item and ask that a store product be removed from shelves. For chain stores, ask to contact the regional manager.

•Complain to the owner or sponsor of a Halloween attraction especially if it involves a service club and ask for the attraction theme to be changed. The sponsors may apologize but be unwilling or unable to change the attractions this year. If so, ask instead for a public statement or written promise to use a different theme in the future. Also, if the sponsor is a club, ask to make a presentation on mental illness at one of their meetings.

•If dialogue fails, have NAMI members, family and friends phone, send letters, or e-mail the sponsor—as well as to any newspaper or radio station running a promotion. Letters from allies such as hospital directors or medical societies may especially have an impact.

•Contact local newspaper editors and television news directors. Use the controversy as a "teaching moment" about mental illness and the need to eliminate stigma.

Together, you can help stamp out stigma this Halloween.