Bi-Polar Disorder
My First Oral Presentation:
Recovery Inc.
Mental Wellness On The Internet
By Albert K. Ne III
Instructions For This Report
My
oral presentation is based on a website that focuses on individuals with mental disorders. In the past, anyone interested in subject matter such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, depression and schizophrenia was usually referred to practitioners in the field or found such information in medical literature and libraries. Those sources of information were usually very intimidating to the average citizen. More recently though, information concerning mental disorders have found new venues in which they are revealed. For example, syndicated columnist Ann Landers and television shows such as 20/20 and Dateline have given the topic of mental disorders a new forum to get the information out into the public and arena this comes by way of the media.
Now, the internet has found its way into this domain and the information that we are able to acquire is more vast and less technical than in the past. My assignment was to research a website called Recovery Inc. This site is about a self-help group that was founded by the late neuropsychiatrist Abraham A. Low, M.D. He wrote a book that contained a 12-step program to help individuals who were affected with mental disorders. In his book, Dr. Low taught individuals to identify their difficulty. Then, by using the information that was found, people could personalize the suffering that he or she was undergoing. Finally, each individual would plot the best possible course of action through the input acquired from both the individual, as well as the others participating in the program to help find the best possible solution.
Questions & Answers
Russ Muramatsu asked:
Q: Do you think that it is feasible for a self-help group to run itself without any outside help? What are advantages and disadvantages?
A: I think that it is quite possible for self-help groups to not only run itself, but be very successful in doing it. However, one drawback with groups trying to make it on their own is that in order from them to be successful, a lot of exposure must be made on behalf of the group to ensure continued support for the participants involved in the program. Without continued support or outside help, I think these programs would be exposed to uncertain futures.
One advantage of being independently operated is the simplicity with which decisions can be made. There is usually very little "red tape" or politics that you encounter when you use such models. However, for that simple fact, the disadvantage would be the closer scrutiny that one would have to endure because they were not sanctioned by some kind of government or professional agency.
Sheri Lieberman asked:
Q: In your opinion, are self-help groups more beneficial than empirically supported treatments for these disorders? Explain.
Are these self-help groups used only for anxiety disorders and depression and are they only for adults or children as well?
A: I have never personally encountered any such self-help groups here in Hawaii that deals with mental illness exclusively. However, I do believe that the best possible course of action for people suffering with these illnesses is combining both the self-help technique with the scientific supported treatments. I think that this methodology would complement one another making the treatment that much more successful.
According to the article on the website the six different illnesses that the program manage are:
All of the personal examples that were used in the article identified only adult participants taking part in the actual group meetings. Children were used in context to describe what the participants were feeling toward them while undergoing episodes with the individual illnesses.
Craig Kawamura asked:
Q: Do you think that this self-help group would make an impact in Hawaii?
A: Well, with the current financial situation that the State of Hawaii is facing concerning the State Hospital in Kaneohe, I believe that they will need to examine all of the possible options that they are presented with even if some may seem to be too exotic. I believe that self-help groups do make an impact on those who participate in them. The key to its success however, relies entirely on each individuals continued participation in the program.
Sean Marrs asked:
Q: What is your opinion on the therapeutic value of online therapy via support/self-help groups as compared to traditional face-to-face groups?
A: I think that there is some therapeutic value for certain individuals. For example, virtual online communities offer links to other individuals that may be suffering the same symptoms. This process is instantaneous and it offers an immense amount of related information. It is very convenient and lets the user remain anonymous. This may be one of the advantages of online therapy.
However, I believe that some kind of personal interaction should take place. I think that when social contact is made between individuals participating in the group meetings, they benefit from sensory stimuli such as seeing, hearing and smell. This cannot be accomplished by staring at a 15" monitor and using a keyboard.
Kyle Micibata asked:
Q: Is the program based on online interaction or personal interaction?
A: Recovery Inc. is based on a 12-step program created with personal interaction in mind. Individuals who are fortunate enough to find the program in their states, meet on a weekly basis in small groups. The participants in the group talk about experiences that they encountered during the past week and others try to find solutions based on the criteria set by the program. Unfortunately, Hawaii does not have the self-help Recovery Inc. program established here yet.
Hyechin Kim asked:
Q: Can you get help for any problems from this site or do they focus on just a few illnesses? Is there any supervision for group interaction and do the sites offer outside help?
A: The site specifically deals with mental health issues. As stated earlier in this site the six most prominent topics that were discussed in the Recovery Inc. program were
Bi-Polar Disorder, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Depression, Eating Disorder, Schizophrenia, and Anxiety/Panic Attack. No other mental health topics beside those listed were considered.There are group leaders whose sole responsibility is to ensure that the meetings are conducted in accordance with program standards. A mental health professional is usually present at each individual site to provide the participants with alternative medical treatments that the Recovery Inc. program may not be able to fulfill.
Corey Egami asked:
Q: What about criminals who use the insanity plea as a defense? How will they be affected by the closing of the State Hospital? Self-help and support groups have some drawbacks, namely that the participants want to get better. That is part of the success.
Who will regulate medication if the new alternative to the hospital is community based? Maybe closing the hospital will be a blessing in disguise. Moving the treatments into a community based care system will bring greater awareness of mental disorders.
A: Governor Cayetano and State of Hawaii Health Director Bruce Anderson have each said that if State government decides to close the State hospital mental care patients who are criminally incarcerated will be transferred to institutions on the mainland. As for the regulation of medication, the State of Hawaii still does not have any immediate plans to close the hospital without first weighing all the pros and cons. When the State of Hawaii finally decides to shut the doors of its hospital, I am sure that they will already have anticipated what strategies to employ for the distribution of medication for community based projects.
Evelyn Moss asked:
Q: Do you think that self-help groups really help if you have a serious mental problem?
A: Well, yes and no. I believe that self-help groups give individuals a sense of independence and inner-strength that they usually don't experience when receiving medical treatment through licensed institutions. They are able to react to others in a spontaneous manner without being sedated with drugs or other medications.
However, individuals who participate in self-help groups should also seek professional medical assistance and should not rely solely upon the self-help concept to cure their illnesses.
Carolyn Agmata asked:
Q: What's one advantage and disadvantage of self-help groups?
A: One advantage of self-help groups is the flexibility with which they are able to operate. Their participants have limited restrictions in how they conduct themselves during group meetings (as long as they pose no threat to others as well as themselves) and thus are willing to be more foreward about their conditions.
One disadvantage is that self-help groups are not medically recognized as legitimate solutions for mental health disorders. They are frowned upon by those in the health service industry because they don't believe that self-help groups provide services that are in accordance with medical standards.
Jocelyn Manibusan asked:
Q: Would it be more beneficial to transfer patients from the State hospital to community based programs?
A: In the long run I think that it will. The State of Hawaii has neglected to monitor both their financial and personal responsibilities at the State hospital and in doing so, failed to meet guidelines set by the Federal government. The transfer of patients from the hospital to community based programs will only enhance the environment in which its patients reside.
Wilfred Lee asked:
Q: What was the main problem that caused the overspending? Why was there no one monitoring the budget to stay on track?
A: I certainly do not know what caused the overspending but I do have an opinion on what I think caused it. We have politicians in state government who did not pay attention to, or simply chose to avoid what was taking place at the state hospital until it was to late. Now, some of them are saying that they did not know that the financial situation there was so bad. This claim is so ludicrous. How can anyone elected to run a state government not know that they are in financial woes?
REACTIONS
I thought that the subject content was very interesting though I did not understand what the connection was between mental health and the psychology curriculum we are currently working on (web pages). However, I found that doing the research for the website was very challenging. Not only did I have to search extensively for related material on the internet, I had to develop other avenues of approach on the subject such as State agencies, the State library and finally the mental health community.
I was also impressed by the responses that I got during the question and answer section. The questions were very well thought out. I hope the responses that I gave can be helpful to those seeking knowledge about the subject of Mental Health.
SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS
One suggestion for future generations is to not procrastinate on projects that you know will present problems for you later. Always ask questions about anything and everything that you are not sure of, and never be uncomfortable to help others who are to ashamed to ask for it.
For this presentation, I did not have any experience with the mental health issue here in Hawaii, so I had to seek resources outside the University of Hawaii system. That in itself was a challenge, but all in all everything turned out quite all right.