Manns Medium

One would think that since mental illness is not so much stigmatized as it once were and so many health care plans now cover treatment, we would be making great strides in our ability to help those “non-functional” individuals to become more “functional”.   I say that because this appears to be the only true difference between those who suffer and those who claim to not.   The non-functionality and functionality separate those who are strong enough to get the help that they deserve and those who continually deny that they need the help.   Those who may be functional at this moment often find themselves non-functional because they did not prepare with new coping skills and continue to rely upon the old ones to navigate through their days.   I say this because unless you are a robot, trauma occurs within the life of every human being.   The degree upon which it affects that individual is the difference between what may be very traumatic to you may not be...

There are certain things that may be able to count on during the winter time and one of them is the common cold.   It’s this anticipation of the influenza season that drugs stores all around the nation stock up on over-the-counter cold remedies and people flock to their local store to stock up especially if they have school age children.   This may no longer be an option. For some time now, my five and two year old have been struggling with what would be considered as the normal cold and flu but regardless of what medicine we gave them, it appeared to have very little if any affect.   They would get better but as soon as the temperature dropped or the wind blew from any direction, they would be sick again.   The numerous doctor visits made us feel even less of a parent because following the doctor orders to the letter did not return our children to the once happy-go-lucky troublemakers of the past.   We finally got tired of this consistent circle and decided to...

For years now, I have been trying to get a handle on my depression and even though I think I have it mostly figured out, it was recently discovered that the main cause of my depression comes from disappointment. It appears that when my hopes are the highest is when I sink the lowest when those expectations are not met.   It is no one’s fault and the only real way to change it has to come from within.   I had attempted to try and lower my expectations on what I wished to happen but still disappointment seems to have a mind of its own.   The toughest disappointment does not come from expectations that I have in others but from those expectations that I have for myself.   As much as I would like to find others to blame for this disappointment, the ultimate offender is me. As far back as I could remember I had always wanted to own my own business and when the day came that I did, it was like the heavens had opened up and I could hear the angels singing.   In the m...

Lately there has been stories that not only touched our heart strings like the unnecessary shooting spree of Jared Loughner in Tucson, Arizona where Dem Rep Gabby Gifford and so many others were injured, killed and traumatized but this story about the family practice doctor who murdered and injured so many in Philadelphia.   If we look closely enough though we can also see how one story can show us where we are lacking in other areas.   With the shooting in Tucson, we see that we are lacking in providing mental health services to the lowest and middle class families as well as the need for certain parts of limiting the amount of rounds magazines can carry.   With this story of the Pa doctor we are made aware of the need to include abortion coverage in the healthcare reform for this same group so that they can get proper medical care “The "Women's Medical Society" opened in 1979 and was inspected by the state Department of Health only sporadically. The last inspection was...