M
Walk a Mile in their shoes
This is something I wrote for a friend of personally having experience with a mental illness and knowing people close to me who do . I wrote it in a more formal style of writting I use you could say at a university level why? Because when you want to be understood and to gain respect its best when its in writting or maybe speech to have well constructed ideas and information to communicate to a wider audience - its more far reaching but you can tell I wrote its probably not all there 'grammatically' . Would love to hear your thoughts please be positive this is a sensitive topic and not one to be overlooked because simply mental illnesses are crippling and debilitating you will step on toes if you do otherwise .This is my explanation its no concrete answer its not black and white Im no expert however I have basic understanding through reading information on psychology and knowing those who do and I asked another friend when he read this could he relate ? He said for the most part yes. So you will find this helpful too. For the Mental Illness groups on CC your welcome to copy and paste . Peace out! Missy
Psychosis in Mental Illness - Experiences and explanation:
Mental illnesses have emotional and spiritual components they are intertwined with the mental component however what is mentioned here is mostly focusing on the mental component as sometimes the spiritual component is not adversely (adversely meaning in this sense contrary) affected as much as the mental component. The mental component can be more affected than the spiritual; it is different for each person. Some people know that it is all three components that are affected just as much as one component they realize it is a spiritual issue as much as it is an emotional or mental issue. However regardless of one’s spiritual position in relation to God or relationship to God the mental component will be seen the most as it is apparent – the mind shows the visible actions and decisions of the mind, it is visible somewhat when the un-well person speaks and acts what the person is thinking and what they have decided to do. So to summarize the effects of the mental component for all mentally ill people will be seen the most in comparison to the other two, it is apparent but also for some people the spiritual component is resultant for the cause of both the mental and emotional parts of a person being affected. Regardless of whether it is a spiritual issue the person is mentally unwell their mental state is not functioning well and they need a lot of care it is not a minor issue as you will soon see it is a major challenge. Psychosis affects a person’s intellect majorly, some major functions of the brain or mind is affected and under real stress and pressure to function properly.
The mind is affected, so as the mental state goes on that downward slide or track, a switched is turned on – it is like a switch being turned on that the state of mind changes for the person , life is not the same when Psychosis is experienced, something doesn’t feel right, the mentally ill feel out of control. The mind becomes delusional such as abnormal thoughts occurring. The intellect/ mental capacity/ functionality is affected , these areas that are affected are : concentration, memory which results in memory loss, listening and interrelated to listening is comprehension/ understanding and then articulation – articulation – the ability to respond is most difficult as the mind is intense and intensely in a battle to think and respond ,so responding through an unwell busy cluttered mind and too contrasting with memory loss makes communicating or responding is very difficult an almost impossible task! (This happens all at once in these affected areas as it is the state of mind)
Thus this person may feel emotional, upset, weepy, overwhelmed as they feel out of control. The mind is so unbalanced or unstable due to the intellect being affected that affected memory and thought processing which results in indecisive actions and extreme difficulty in articulation and communicating. It can be likened to the disease Alzheimer’s to a degree as there is memory loss resulting in poor or nil communication due to parts of a sentence or topic being remembered and understanding partially relayed back to the speaker of the speakers conversation (person talking to them) or forgotten completely. Some major functions of the mind /brain is affected. Overtiredness, tiredness and/or stress, extreme stress can drive the persons mind overboard and into un-wellness in this case Psychosis. So when a person is tired, they have done too much in a day if they should become unwell their tiredness will impact the memory loss that occurs in psychosis which will be even greater.
To illustrate, Person A says to person B (who is psychotic at the time): “My red dress is cool because it goes with my jacket”. Person B may have remembered for 1-2 seconds even a split second is what it feels like, the sentence in part or has completely forgotten the whole topic/ sentence all together. So their responses may be either based on remembering the first part of the sentence or the last part of the sentence , let’s just say it was the first part of the sentence the fact that the red dress was cool, Person A then asks : “ So what do you think, does the red dress go with my jacket or not?
The person who is mentally unwell will respond: “Yeh the red dress is cool” - they have completely forgotten about the last half of the sentence and there is a major difficulty which is confusing to respond to with good understanding due to memory loss and concentration because it is lost after those first two seconds of the sentence Person A mentioned. Articulation is very difficult because the mind is stressed to the maximum to give a response while it is not functioning properly, it can get to the point where the person may use one word or a few word answers to a question like : “yeh”, “sure” “yeh its nice” due to fading or fleeting concentration and memory loss . To give care, love and understanding notice the symptoms in the mentally ill and respond appropriately. Actions can be taken such as not asking too much questions, doing most of the talking. Don’t expect them to talk much, don’t ask too much of them, simple tasks can be a mission and don’t ask questions as simple as they may be that require them to think. Please look after their safety such as helping them or being present when they cross the road, drive the car for them – they are unwell and quite unsettled inwardly their mind is not functionally well and is not at its best.
*Notes:
*The mental state of the un-well person is the state of their mind- the person does not create in their mind or make up a mental illness. It is not someone attention seeking or playing games in other words the mind feels unwell because it is unwell. It is a feeling that comes on a person or switch that comes on which is due to usually to outward circumstances such as a stressful situation or the person becoming too busy and tired being the cause. There are triggers. Triggers may be memories that have nothing to do with outward circumstances but rather what is going on inwardly in a person’s mind the memories they are thinking of that is not related to the place time or people they are with at the time of un-wellness usually.
*Mental illnesses are complex it can be broken down to two parts 1) The abnormal thoughts: the unhealthy thoughts a person thinks about themselves, others and the world. 2) The mental capacity of the mind not functioning well such as articulation, listening or comprehension. These two parts mean that it is very difficult to communicate and think because the person has so much going on in their head!
It is not just solely delusional thinking but a breakdown in the mind to function well. However these people are not special, and they are not intellectually challenged. The mentally ill can live quite normal lives. So too those who are intellectually challenged.
*Caregivers, friends and family: The reason why you shouldn’t expect them to talk too much is because articulation is so difficult. The fact that the psychotic person has such short memory and cannot hold on to concentration for very long which makes psychosis an aspect of mental illnesses quite serious and therefore again too much should not be expected of them in terms of communication and listening nor simple tasks due to indecisiveness of a confused, affected mind.
The person is dealing with their own inward abnormal thoughts which are personal to them and a mind not functioning well and then to initially try and do something then they find they are not sure of how to go about it and are already anxious and troubled inside enough from being unwell, the indecisiveness will make them even more nervous. If someone is watching they may feel even more nervous because of being watched realizing both of them know they can’t or are struggling with doing a simple task. This can seem embarrassing and even shameful. Know the warning signs so that you can help the person so to not be uncaring towards their needs.
This is something I wrote for a friend of personally having experience with a mental illness and knowing people close to me who do . I wrote it in a more formal style of writting I use you could say at a university level why? Because when you want to be understood and to gain respect its best when its in writting or maybe speech to have well constructed ideas and information to communicate to a wider audience - its more far reaching but you can tell I wrote its probably not all there 'grammatically' . Would love to hear your thoughts please be positive this is a sensitive topic and not one to be overlooked because simply mental illnesses are crippling and debilitating you will step on toes if you do otherwise .This is my explanation its no concrete answer its not black and white Im no expert however I have basic understanding through reading information on psychology and knowing those who do and I asked another friend when he read this could he relate ? He said for the most part yes. So you will find this helpful too. For the Mental Illness groups on CC your welcome to copy and paste . Peace out! Missy
Psychosis in Mental Illness - Experiences and explanation:
Mental illnesses have emotional and spiritual components they are intertwined with the mental component however what is mentioned here is mostly focusing on the mental component as sometimes the spiritual component is not adversely (adversely meaning in this sense contrary) affected as much as the mental component. The mental component can be more affected than the spiritual; it is different for each person. Some people know that it is all three components that are affected just as much as one component they realize it is a spiritual issue as much as it is an emotional or mental issue. However regardless of one’s spiritual position in relation to God or relationship to God the mental component will be seen the most as it is apparent – the mind shows the visible actions and decisions of the mind, it is visible somewhat when the un-well person speaks and acts what the person is thinking and what they have decided to do. So to summarize the effects of the mental component for all mentally ill people will be seen the most in comparison to the other two, it is apparent but also for some people the spiritual component is resultant for the cause of both the mental and emotional parts of a person being affected. Regardless of whether it is a spiritual issue the person is mentally unwell their mental state is not functioning well and they need a lot of care it is not a minor issue as you will soon see it is a major challenge. Psychosis affects a person’s intellect majorly, some major functions of the brain or mind is affected and under real stress and pressure to function properly.
The mind is affected, so as the mental state goes on that downward slide or track, a switched is turned on – it is like a switch being turned on that the state of mind changes for the person , life is not the same when Psychosis is experienced, something doesn’t feel right, the mentally ill feel out of control. The mind becomes delusional such as abnormal thoughts occurring. The intellect/ mental capacity/ functionality is affected , these areas that are affected are : concentration, memory which results in memory loss, listening and interrelated to listening is comprehension/ understanding and then articulation – articulation – the ability to respond is most difficult as the mind is intense and intensely in a battle to think and respond ,so responding through an unwell busy cluttered mind and too contrasting with memory loss makes communicating or responding is very difficult an almost impossible task! (This happens all at once in these affected areas as it is the state of mind)
Thus this person may feel emotional, upset, weepy, overwhelmed as they feel out of control. The mind is so unbalanced or unstable due to the intellect being affected that affected memory and thought processing which results in indecisive actions and extreme difficulty in articulation and communicating. It can be likened to the disease Alzheimer’s to a degree as there is memory loss resulting in poor or nil communication due to parts of a sentence or topic being remembered and understanding partially relayed back to the speaker of the speakers conversation (person talking to them) or forgotten completely. Some major functions of the mind /brain is affected. Overtiredness, tiredness and/or stress, extreme stress can drive the persons mind overboard and into un-wellness in this case Psychosis. So when a person is tired, they have done too much in a day if they should become unwell their tiredness will impact the memory loss that occurs in psychosis which will be even greater.
To illustrate, Person A says to person B (who is psychotic at the time): “My red dress is cool because it goes with my jacket”. Person B may have remembered for 1-2 seconds even a split second is what it feels like, the sentence in part or has completely forgotten the whole topic/ sentence all together. So their responses may be either based on remembering the first part of the sentence or the last part of the sentence , let’s just say it was the first part of the sentence the fact that the red dress was cool, Person A then asks : “ So what do you think, does the red dress go with my jacket or not?
The person who is mentally unwell will respond: “Yeh the red dress is cool” - they have completely forgotten about the last half of the sentence and there is a major difficulty which is confusing to respond to with good understanding due to memory loss and concentration because it is lost after those first two seconds of the sentence Person A mentioned. Articulation is very difficult because the mind is stressed to the maximum to give a response while it is not functioning properly, it can get to the point where the person may use one word or a few word answers to a question like : “yeh”, “sure” “yeh its nice” due to fading or fleeting concentration and memory loss . To give care, love and understanding notice the symptoms in the mentally ill and respond appropriately. Actions can be taken such as not asking too much questions, doing most of the talking. Don’t expect them to talk much, don’t ask too much of them, simple tasks can be a mission and don’t ask questions as simple as they may be that require them to think. Please look after their safety such as helping them or being present when they cross the road, drive the car for them – they are unwell and quite unsettled inwardly their mind is not functionally well and is not at its best.
*Notes:
*The mental state of the un-well person is the state of their mind- the person does not create in their mind or make up a mental illness. It is not someone attention seeking or playing games in other words the mind feels unwell because it is unwell. It is a feeling that comes on a person or switch that comes on which is due to usually to outward circumstances such as a stressful situation or the person becoming too busy and tired being the cause. There are triggers. Triggers may be memories that have nothing to do with outward circumstances but rather what is going on inwardly in a person’s mind the memories they are thinking of that is not related to the place time or people they are with at the time of un-wellness usually.
*Mental illnesses are complex it can be broken down to two parts 1) The abnormal thoughts: the unhealthy thoughts a person thinks about themselves, others and the world. 2) The mental capacity of the mind not functioning well such as articulation, listening or comprehension. These two parts mean that it is very difficult to communicate and think because the person has so much going on in their head!
It is not just solely delusional thinking but a breakdown in the mind to function well. However these people are not special, and they are not intellectually challenged. The mentally ill can live quite normal lives. So too those who are intellectually challenged.
*Caregivers, friends and family: The reason why you shouldn’t expect them to talk too much is because articulation is so difficult. The fact that the psychotic person has such short memory and cannot hold on to concentration for very long which makes psychosis an aspect of mental illnesses quite serious and therefore again too much should not be expected of them in terms of communication and listening nor simple tasks due to indecisiveness of a confused, affected mind.
The person is dealing with their own inward abnormal thoughts which are personal to them and a mind not functioning well and then to initially try and do something then they find they are not sure of how to go about it and are already anxious and troubled inside enough from being unwell, the indecisiveness will make them even more nervous. If someone is watching they may feel even more nervous because of being watched realizing both of them know they can’t or are struggling with doing a simple task. This can seem embarrassing and even shameful. Know the warning signs so that you can help the person so to not be uncaring towards their needs.
