Okay, I am not sure if I am right in stepping in, but let me.

*puts up flags, re-aranges her room in UN style, dresses in preppy clothes and speaks from the further-up-from-the-center-spot meekly*

Furthermore, you seem to imply that those with MI generally cause problems for the greater society, and therefore has to be kept under the constraints that are in place. Can you really say it is not possible for someone to not only not take suggested medications and treatment, but also be a successful member of society?


It really bothers me when we self-stigmatize within our community (which we did not even chose to be members off). It reminds me of all the Tyra shows in black people who they diss others because they wear hair naturally or choose to wear weaves, because they are too ghetto or too preppy and insult each other that the other one is either not African American enough or they give the group bad name.

There are many people who are on the meds and still not contributive to society. I won't go as far as "meds contribute to violence", but such stories are out there. So it is not as simple as good crazies take their pills, bad crazies wreck havoc.

In the end it's up to the person. As much as "lack of insight" is spouted by many advocacy groups, I think it is rare the person would not know what is up with them. And contrary to what some might think, everybody suffers from cognitive disortions. So is your mind really better then my mind.... especially when it comes down to my mind? I am not sure.


It's frustrating that being unmedicated your voice is dismissed, bcoz a) You're obviously on a self-destructive path b) you don't know real suffering or c) you're luring people onto the wrong path.

Oh yeah, pretty frustrating. And it's so hard to disapprove.

I am definitely not pro-meds.....HOWEVER, when I was followed for 40 miles by a guy on the California freeways who after the police came to deal with him after he was taken down by mace in the street because he wouldn't leave the guard station we drove to, said that he knew me & then claimed that the he was the cause of the Viet Nam war. He had just been released from the mental hospital associated with the jail the day before. How do we know which person with mental illness will be a problem to society? Do we wait & find out? I believe in working with those who feel that taking meds is not what they want to do as long as they haven't already proven themselves to be a problem to society or they feel the need to take a weapon with them out into society to protect them from their perceived enemy.


Sadly, we don't know if person is dangerous, until they prove themselves otherwise... but well, that is the price of freedoom. Seemigly normal people snap. But I prefer to take the risk of this to living in police state.

And do meds really prevent bad behavior in 100% cases?


If a person's mental illness has no dangerous tendencies, then the choice of meds or not seems appropriate.....otherwise.....I think there are some that prove the need for meds....it's either that or keep them locked up & away from society. It doesn't seem fair to keep those who are dangerous locked up when meds could make a huge difference in their life.....but then in reality......that also should be their choice not ours. There are always consequences for our actions & choices.....that's just a fact of life.


Well, of that is no doubt. But the author of the article was not a dangerous person most likely.


Thanks for the article. I feel discriminated against because of my resistance to meds. I was cut off access to other psych services until I got on the meds. I relented when I realized I was not going to qualify for disability without the doctor reporting 'compliance with treatment'. I started taking the scripts but I didn't pop the pills. I just needed to 'appear compliant'. The doctors weren't interested in the 'effective non-drug' approaches I was taking to learn how to cope rather than mask or lessen the affects of symptoms.


Yeah, this is pretty sad. The dehumanized "stop being problem for us and suffer quietly" aproach.

We all need to be given treatment choices even if the choice is to manage an illness without p-meds. Meds should not be a prerequisite to other psych treatment. No meds does not mean I don't want to live better. It doesn't mean I don't work at getting healthier. It doesn't mean I want to be left on my own to find my way towards recovery. It just means I want to work with other approaches than meds. Why is that so hard for the pros to understand?

Yeah, I agree with you here. It seems their approach is very narrow and many don't want it, but we are not taken seriously, because we are crazy after all.


So this is just one more angle to contemplate, for the medicated and unmedicated alike. When we retreat into ourselves and get lost in the maze of our own making, it is reasonable to assume that we have lost some touch with reality. Meds can make a difference in this respect, as can supplements, as can cognitive work, as can diet and exercise. True, no one size fits all. But all of us, whichever camp we fall into, should remember that whatever our actions, none of them occur in a vacuum; rather, our actions continually reverberate through other peoples' lives. So, it is SELFISH to think that simply by taking some prescribed medication you have dealt with the problem. How has your behavior changed in day-to-day situations such that others are brought some measure of relief (less concern for you) by your actions? However you are tackling your illness, if it results in more awareness of ones actions (and their effects), then your efforts may be considered successful. If you are convinced that you are "fine", but without a single thought about what your loved ones are going through, then you are only halfway there with your recovery.


I agree mostly, but on the other hand, sometimes the "loved ones" are the problem and shouldn't be loved in the first place. I remember Paulina Porizkova sharing her experiences with ADs, how she became a stepfort wife and did not argue with husband anymore. After she went off (because despite her feeling "better" once her friend told her she is acting as a doormat), her husband told her he prefered her on AD and he didn't even mind she did not want to sleep with him. SO if somebody cannot take what might be your personality... are their worth of being your friends or lovers?

It is a balance. We should try for sake of others and our sake... but not to everybody is worth the efford. As somebody on Icarus once said "You don't like me? Well, then YOU take the pills".

It is often superhard to balance though.

It is always easy to say after the fact that a person who suffers a major psychotic break was not 'taking their meds'. The message to the public then translates to ..... if you know someone with mental illness who is not taking meds than YOU are in danger. Encourage them to stay with their meds and watch your back. Stay safe.


But should we right here and others with issue try to avoid this self-stigmatizing? Shouldn't we accept that even with our mental quirks we are still people who deserve a choice? That is what bothers me.


We can force people to comply for a short time by authority or we can encourage people by loving them and being there for them; giving them hope; reinforcing their value as a human being. We need more people loving people through MI. We need to see medication as one piece not the whole. We need loving relationships if any sort of treatment option is going to be effective. We can’t abandon people to medications that could in themselves trigger psychosis. We must stand with people in need. Give of ourselves to people in need. Not enough of that happens amid the fast paced lives commanding the world today.


That is the thing. It takes time and we think economically. Hell, we even measure cost of MI in how many days of work the person missed never asking if they wanted to work in that particular job either and leading them to find more suitable path for them............


geez it was those so-called loved ones that messed me up to begin with. I don't want them calling me and bothering me. I finally got them to stop - kind of. per doctors orders. no love is better than bad love.



oh yeah. I remember the docu medicated child (i know it is extreme, but still) wiht "my daughter is my best friend when she is on meds". And dog on anxieties... mostly for acting like a dog. Sometimes crazies have better insight than those around them.