Shh! Don’t say anything to anyone, please!

Mental illness has for many generations been something most families have been reluctant to address from within their midst. Fortunately, attitudes are changing rapidly as we all become more aware of what mental illness is. In our present time, more than at any previous time in recorded history, there are fewer stigmas perpetrated against people who experience a mental illness. What is it that starts off that spark of thought within our mind about us or about a loved one? Perhaps you are aware that something is not quite right about your own behavior, thoughts and or feelings? Could it be that something is not quite right about the way someone close to you is behaving?

In Australia, there is an enormous amount of support available for people who would like to know more about mental illness. Community Mental Health Centres, Community Health Centres, General Practitioners, Hospital Social Work Departments, and also many NGO’s (Non-Government Organisations) are able to give you information, where ever you live. In Australia, SANE Australia provides good on-line information, fact sheets covering a wide range of mental illness, books to purchase and other appropriate information. Their web site is http://www.sane.org/ and for those who may be interested and live in Australia, their telephone number is 1800 18 SANE (if you do not have a keypad phone, SANE is 7263). Alternatively, you are able to access SANE Australia's Helpline via their site as stated above. SANE Australia offers information and advice between 9.00AM and 5.00PM weekdays, EST (Eastern Standard Time).

SANE Australia’s Fact Sheet 22 discusses “Something is not quite right about the way someone close to you is behaving.” This fact sheet assists you to ascertain whether or not your concern is serious or perhaps related to other factors. There are two checklists on this fact sheet to help you clarify what is normal behavior for the person you are concerned about and what behaviors you consider abnormal for that person. There is some information about alcohol and other drugs, and how these factors may have an influence on mental illness. Some really good information is included suggesting how to approach the doctor of your choice.

Where ever you live, I hope you have time to check out either this site (http://www.sane.org/) or a site belonging to a treatment or information centre nearer to you. Sometimes, it is good to just know about issues associated with mental health.

In my family, my youngest son is surviving schizophrenia. He requests that I let you know, his pathway to good mental health has been painful for him. This pathway has also been of great concern to my late husband and me as well as to the rest of our family. My son aged 36 years is now in good health. He takes a minimal amount of medication, is now my carer and also my primary support person. I am so very proud of him and of what he has achieved in his recovery from such a debilitating illness.

Good mental health to you all and please, feel free to leave a comment if you wish.

Sue Bayliss. Cairns, Australia.

Faith, hope and … umm … what is that other thing again?

Stress! That is it, S T R E S S. Think about it. We will always have some degree of stress in our life. This is a perfectly natural state and is quite unavoidable. It is the ebb and flow of strength and fragility throughout our life. When we get really stressed out and our stress becomes distress, what is it that actually holds us together? Faith and hope are the two variables we tend to fall back upon. Although as individuals, we probably each go about things a little differently. Some folk choose to do things really differently to most and that is okay. Underlying feelings seem to be much the same though, even when expressed in different ways. Feelings of stress are the effects of strain. This strain may be physical, psychological or emotional. Sometimes, we experience a combination of all three.

Hopelessness! Despair! Depression! All pretty rotten kinds of feelings. Thoughts that sneak in at these times are invariably of the stinking thinking kind, to say the very least. These feelings and thoughts seem to go hand in hand with all kinds of stressors and crises during our lives. It is a natural reaction to seek emotional protection from any state of distress and hope for something better.

Hope and despair are at opposite positions on a continuum with varying degrees of happiness and depression in-between. Most of the time, we fit in there somewhere between hope and despair. When we are feeling the effects of stressful situations, it is hope that gives us relief from feelings of tension and frustration. Hope is the promise of improvement in the future. The promise of hope relieves stressful situations associated with our health, coping with a disability or with any life situation.

There are very strong elements of emotion involved with hope. These emotional elements are what we refer to as faith. Faith is the very stuff we hope with. Evidence of what we can not see but we know within our heart and our mind that it exists. We talk about religious Faiths, the major religions within the world all proclaiming faith in the one true God. Some people call this belief a strength or force greater than themselves. Every evening when we go to bed we do so in faith that the sun will rise in the morning. We believe we will do things we are planning, before the time is even in existence. As children we believe in and rely upon our parents, sometimes on others carers and or family members, to care for us and protect us as we grow. These are all examples of faith and also of hope.

I hope this article is giving you something to think about in your life in relation to stressful situations you may experience. My experience of stress in relation to my spasmodic dysphonia and also cervical dystonia is that I develop a fear of speaking on the telephone and a fear of falling over or not being able to see what is at my feet when my head pulls back from muscles tightening. I do have faith that the medical team working with me will be able to offer on-going relief for me with botox injection treatment, speech therapy exercises and physiotherapy. My hope is that I will continue to live as independently as I can and enjoy my relationships with family and friends.

Would you like to read about other stress related topics such as stress management or any other areas of interest? Please let me know by leaving a comment or you are welcome to email me at s.j.bayliss@bigpond.com.au and I will get back to you.

Sue Bayliss. Cairns, Australia.

Okay. So! Away we go . . .

Dystonia has, I am told, been recognized as a physical or organic medical condition since approximately the mid 1990s. Prior to that time, forms of dystonia were believed to have been of a psychiatric or emotional origin. In my experience, there are still some medical practitioners, psychologists and other medical professionals, believing many side effects of this condition are psychiatric or psychological traits. Research does not support any suggestion that cervical dystonia is of psychiatric origin. It is firmly established, cervical dystonia is of neurological origin. However, it can still be somewhat difficult to diagnose.

Good neurological assessment is essential. Cervical dystonia is sometimes confused with other diseases of neurological origin. Therefore, many people suffering with cervical dystonia may experience significant delay in obtaining an accurate diagnosis. This frequently leaves people with feelings of extreme irritation, frustration and embarrassment. Without private health insurance the diagnostic procedure can be very expensive. Although a variety of tests are frequently requested, they usually return negative results.

X-rays and blood tests currently available do not provide positive diagnostic identification of cervical dystonia. However, these tests may identify other possible diagnoses, thus ruling out cervical dystonia. Best practice for accurate diagnosis includes appropriate professional clinical opinion based upon patient history. Additionally, assessment of neurological signs combined with visual assessment of the patient’s presenting symptoms provides an as accurate as possible diagnosis at this point in time. Remember, speaking to your general practitioner is the best place to start.

Well, now. You have aches and pains? So! What do you know? How about a whole new outlook on that age old saying, “what a pain in the neck!” Cervical dystonia is indeed, just that.

You can refer to the information provided in this blog in The Info Book from www.asta.asn.au or search for information in your own country of origin. Look for cervical dystonia or spasmodic torticollis. Thinking of leaving a comment? I would love to hear from you. Alternatively, my email is: s.j.bayliss@bigpond.com.au