Accelerate Mental Health Research
everyminute.org is a grassroots campaign advocating for an increase in public funding to defeat depression, bipolar and other mental health problems to prevent suicide and to improve quality of life. Learn More
Recent Cause Activity
Updated: The cause has reached 3,000 members.
There needs to be more research..my daughter has bipolar, anxiety, and adhd. She is young, too young, 8 years old to be exact. I see what she goes through every single day, and I love the fact that she has the strength to keep going. Most people say their hero is a peer, or an older person..mine is my daughter.
I have been struggling for years..runs in the family..I don't recall standing on line for this gene.
My mom committed suicide in 2003 before Christmas from bipolar. Most don't understand the effects of the illness until it's too late. I have social anxiety; extreme panic attacs, depression and a mood disorder which I fight with daily. I wish more understood and could help for those who suffer daily with mental illness to live a more normal life and keep others from dying from mental illness.
I have been a survivor for 20+ years and in recovery for about 10 most of those struggling to stay afloat. I recently have made some strict changes in my life and have learned to keep my head above water. I have a disorder known as Bi-Polar I and also a Personality Disorder. I have been in therapy and rehabilitation for many years.
I first joined Victory Center in Johnson City, TN; a PsychoSocial Rehabilitation Center focused on Recovery. for people with mental health issues or substance abuse problems. The program is wonderful to me because it was the starting point
for my true acceptance of my problems. I was facing my issues alone but the Center brought me to understand that I had a place in life and I was just as important as the next person. I along with others in the program have learned considerably pertainant information that has changed my life and theirs as well. I can only speak for myself when I say that what I learned there and still do till this day is to love myself and I can be a total person again.
We are taught WRAP (Wellness Recovery Action Plan) which to me has saved my life. It focuses on wellness and when your well making a plan to share with supporters that states how you want things to go in case of a crisis situation due to your illness. You can use the WRAP to plan any thing not just mental health crisis.
In the Plan you list how you feel when your well. Then, things you must do everyday to stay well. Then, things you might need to do every now and then to stay well. After that, you make a list of things that trigger you, being completely honest with yourself is most important. Triggers are external events that you cann't change but can change the way that you deal with them. There are internal signs called Early Warning Signs that are signs that you might be getting sick. Then, there are action plans that you set to try to cunteract the triggers and early warning signs. If you can't stop the signs from comming , The part about When Things are breaking down comes in handy. In this section you are ready to give control over to your supporters and you list the things that let you know that you are breaking down. When you get to this point you would probably not do this voluntaily so it's important to have supporters who will call you on it and take over. They need to be a part of your plan and have a copy just in case.
In the plan you complete a crisis plan which tellls your wishes and demands in case of a relapse or crisis. This plan tells which doctors, hospitals and such things you prefer and make it easy for your supporters to carry out your wishes in such a situation. I then, complete the plan by deciding how my post cirisis will be handled and that is where you set goals for your self and give supporters a heads up on how you will be acting when you are well enough to take control again of your life and decisions.
There are five key concepts to WRAP (hope, personal responsibility, self advocacy, education, and last but not least support) These make it possible for this plan to work effectively. There are two other things that have been added to the mix and that is medication management, and talking to your mental health professinals.
This plan like I said has saved my life and I own alot of my wellness to Mary Ellen Copeland and her plan. Thanks to you Mary Ellen and all you co-workers.
I now know that I have a future and I can be happy with myself and love me for the first time in forever.
I hope that someone might learn from this and I recommend Rehabilitation Centers like the Victory Center. They give people with mental illness a heads up on how to recover and it's up to you then, to follow through and conquor the demon that controls our illness.
I just would like to add that recovery is not just a dream and research is extreemely nesscessary to fight the stigma and the effects that life has on mental illness. This is an extreemely important fight and I am proud to be part of that fight.
As I posted it in my Notes:
I wanted you to know…
ECT #23 is coming up in 2 weeks. Last one was on March 2nd; but I need to change the date for this next one, because it will happen the Monday of Tosca rehearsal and most likely I'll not be able to function afterwards, like so far it's been happening.
If you don’t know what ECT is, it stands for electro convulsive therapy: seizures are induced by giving an electrical shock to the brain in the hopes of changing the “wiring” of the thought processes.
It is very rough to go through them: even though every time I am put under general anesthesia and given pain killers and muscle relaxers, I wake up with a humongous head ache that can last up to 3 days, and my long muscles feel as if someone got a baseball bat and beat me up.
Some of you are aware of the reason why I get my brain zapped every few weeks.
Now I make it as public as I can at this point in my life; having my friends know, not looking for pity, nor judgment, but as part of my commitment to be an advocate for all of us who deal with this day in and day out, and for the memory of those who are no longer with us because of it.
It is because I suffer from severe depression; clinical at times when I need to be hospitalized.
-I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder about 20 years ago (though I don’t experience the highs as I used to, I miss them...), also with borderline personality disorder (hate the title, there is nothing that resembles the meaning of borderline), obsessive compulsive, post-traumatic stress disorder. Those are the ones that affect my brain and my emotions, and so my body in several ways.
Also other physical ailments and chronic pain which have not been resolved by different kinds of therapies –and believe me I’ve tried very many. These also affect besides of my body, my brain and my emotions.
I don’t know why I separate brain and emotions from body… I guess because in society that is how the brain is somehow seen, as a different thing –the mind-, not considering that the brain belongs in the body and that the brain produces the emotions.
I think our “advanced technology culture” is still in the middle ages when it comes to not seeing the body as an unified entity and treat the different problems it has as individually separate, when we all know that the “The foot bone connected to the leg bone, the leg bone connected to the knee bone, the knee bone…”
So, going back to the original intention of this note: How do I fit in my life with all these emotionally charged problems? Sometimes not well. It is very painful. So much that at times dying seems the only way to stop the suffering.
It is hard for me sometimes to get out of bed and not because of laziness though some think that’s all it is. It is hard for me to enjoy things that at other times I have enjoyed.
It is hard for me to maintain a mood long enough to be able to plan ahead; I get: “You were fine yesterday!” I can’t control as I wish I could the way I feel, so many times I try to hide it but I don’t think I am good at it. Some friends tell me to fake it until I make it; I appreciate the encouragement but it takes so much energy to cover it up and it is already depleted by dealing with the stuff that goes on that ‘putting on a happy face’ doesn’t seem to be something I can be up to, though, don’t take me wrong, I try. And no, thinking positive thoughts doesn’t work; that is part of the problem, positive thoughts can not be brought upon asking for them.
I can see that many people are not aware that these are diseases that can cause physical symptoms you see and symptoms that you can’t see. Just like other physical diseases, their symptoms can’t all be seen and controlled.
I also know that way too many people prefer to stay ignorant of these diseases and treat those who have them like strange beings or worse, see them as weaknesses or tell them: “...get over it!” As if that was an easy thing to do and an option, don’t you think I rather not live with this? Again result from their ignorance.
I am pretty sure that just about everyone knows at least one person that has an emotional problem that has been diagnosed as a mental disorder, and if it hasn’t, it would if the person were seen by a professional. That is 1 for 1. But, are they interested in knowing what it is, what it does, how it affects the person suffering from it?
Most everyone knows what diabetes is and what can happen when you have it, or breast cancer, or heart disease.
Mental disorders are as damaging to people as other physical illnesses, and they also do kill.
But we, as a society, consider mental patients as the pariah of our times, and I have lived this in my own skin. From how family relates to me, to how I’ve been treated as a patient in hospitals, to how we are portrayed in TV shows and movies.
I am not trying here to judge those who have judged me because of my illnesses; I am trying to bring light and knowledge so next time I don’t get the “what’s wrong with you?”
I don’t want to use the labels of what afflicts me as my explanation why I do what I do, why I say what I say, or why I feel like I do, but I can’t deny that when I compare the symptoms written down by doctors and researchers with what I have lived –still live, it is pretty close to match it about 95% of the time.
I am not ashamed of having to deal with this; I am sad I have to live with this.
I am not less of a human or worse as a person, but stronger for being forward with these issues and hoping that the voice is spread as much as it is for other life threatening diseases.
As I said before I don’t want your pity or your judgment, you wouldn’t do that to someone who has a physical illness. I want your understanding and your prayers that things will look up and hopefully getting the ECTs will provide the relief I need since medications don’t work on me anymore.
So glad to find this. I agree, mental health research seems like it's about 200 years behind the times...look at our communication technology, vs how much we can learn from tests on a brain. This is great, thanks.
This is probably the most important need in the mental health field. what would mental health research do for me? i would have clarity of mind and memory, focus, and i could have vital parts of my life back. You guys are doing so much to help people like me. "don't give up. don't ever ever ever give up."
Love you both!
Lisa Corbin
This is probably the most important need in the mental health field. what would mental health research do for me? i would have clarity of mind and memory, focus, and i could have vital parts of my life back. You guys are doing so much to help people like me. "don't give up. don't ever ever ever give up."
Love you both!
Lisa Corbin
This is such an incredible cause! I always drempt, talked about, ate, slept, and breathed with the notion on my mind of one day seeing such a great orginization. I have even taken the appropriate steps to sign up and take college courses and get this and that degree, so that one day I could make such a foundation/orginization; and/or easily climb some social ladder to help improve the quality of life for those who suffer from mental health problems. In a way, Everyminute.org has made my dreams come true, and I can't wait to help in everyway I can to spread the word about this great cause; I'm excited!!! and Thank you!!
This is such an incredible cause! I always drempt, talked about, ate, slept, and breathed with the notion on my mind of one day seeing such a great orginization. I have even taken the appropriate steps to sign up and take college courses and get this and that degree, so that one day I could make such a foundation/orginization; and/or easily climb some social ladder to help improve the quality of life for those who suffer from mental health problems. In a way, Everyminute.org has made my dreams come true, and I can't wait to help in everyway I can to spread the word about this great cause; I'm excited!!! and Thank you!!
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