#3: Mentally ill youth (video)

I am an avid fan of the TV show 60 minutes and I remembered watching a segment on mentally ill youth. The title of the video says it all: Nowhere to go. The video begins with the issue of the Virginia State Senator Creigh Deeds that was attacked by his 24 year old son as a result of one of his furious outbreaks due to mental health problems. The son, Gus Deeds, was a good student but he started having problems so his father decided it was time to get help. Unfortunately, there were no spots available for him at any hospital the night of the fatal incident so the demons in Gus' head got the best of him and as a consequence of attacking his dad, he shot and killed himself. There are various mothers in the video that have formed a support group for their mentally ill children. They all feel that the system has completely failed them and they have been struggling for years without appropriate help. The problem is that if there aren't any beds in the psychiatric wing at any hospital, then parents are forced to bring their children to the emergency room to get the medication they need. Furthermore because of insurance they will most likely be discharged quickly with nowhere to go and they will definitely be a threat to themselves, their family and the society around them.

Nowhere to Go: Mentally ill youth

I was absolutely shocked to find out that the only option most mental health patients have in the United States is the emergency room. We are one of, if not the most advanced country in the world yet we cannot help young people and adults with the demons in their heads and the constant struggles they are forced to go through. Society doesn't understand that these individuals are truly ill. The most horrifying incident in the video was that one of the women was told that her only option was to give her daughter up to the state in order to be fully covered by the insurance company. This is outrageous, I can't believe how many tragic flaws are in the system in this nation. It's almost as if the US wants to avoid this whole topic and a phrase by the interviewer describes it perfectly "Don't want to fund it. Don't want to talk about it. Don't want to see it". When will the government realize the issues will only grow and why haven't they taken action yet?

#2 Intro to Mental Health: Madison Holleran

“Never judge a book by its cover”, this is the exact phrase that described the wonderful girl Madison Holleran was. She was a standout student, a history making track star and a kind hearted young woman. Her sights were set on attending Lehigh University to play soccer but after becoming a late bloomer in the track world, the University of Pennsylvania showed interest in recruiting her. A few months later, upon starting her senior year, she committed to UPenn and was happier than ever because most of her dreams were fulfilled. Madison always had a wide network of close friends, she always had a smile on her face and was in good spirits but little did everyone know that this was only the case on the surface. The girl with such a bright future ahead of her was battling chronic depression for years because of all the pressures put on her. She was seeing a counselor but unfortunately it wasn’t enough. Despite maintaining a 3.5 GPA, performing well athletically and being on course to triple major something clicked in her mind, she reached a low point and committed suicide by jumping off a parking garage. It was determined by investigators to be planned because she left notes and gifts for her family. The North Jersey community was in complete shock and utterly devastated, she was the last person expected to do something so violent and everyone asked themselves why wasn’t she helped and why didn’t she speak up?

This case has gained a lot of attention because she was such a perfect girl but maybe striving to be too perfect? It is often discussed that if someone has mental health issues, they must stay silent because this issue is still considered to be taboo in our society. This MUST be changed, the negative stigma can no longer exist in order to prevent people from committing such horrific actions. I believe that the US government has to greatly increase the funding in the mental health field to improve our society and help people live happy, safe and successful lives. If the problems are never faced, they will not magically go away. In Madison’s case, I think that many universities that have prominent sports teams should begin to hire mental health specialists and counselors that specialize in assisting and curing the athletes. If these types of people were present and the coaches made a requirement for every student-athlete to meet with them a certain number of times, problems can be easily traced and these young men and women can stay on the right track. There are problems all around the country with the system that need to be recognized and for now I would advise anyone struggling to speak up and seek help because it can save your life.



Article: Madison Holleran

#1 Topic: Mental Health

As my topic for this Sociology course I chose to specifically focus on Mental Health. I am intrigued by the human mind and how chemical alterations can change so many aspects. Most of all I would like to learn how mental health is viewed in society, why there are so many negative views on it, why there is a stigma about it and how society deals with these problems. I want to tackle this topic because my cousin is a therapist for mentally ill children and her experiences throughout the years have been nothing but eye opening.