Joined: 15 Jul 2003 Posts: 2 Location: Pleasant Prairie Wisconsin
My idea... In school MENTAL ASSESMENT TEST.... good or bad? Posted: 07-15-03 21:48pm
Hello,
My name is Quinn. I have manic
depression/bi polar. I am 14 and just
finished the 8th grade. (Last grade of
middle school). To tell you a bit about
myself: In the beginning of the 7th grade,
I became very depressed and that caused
angry tension among my parents, my
friends, and myself. I hated myself for
upsetting people and started cutting.(self
mutilation). My parents were concerned. I
would promise them it was from art class
or from falling down or something such as.
They were suspicious but left it alone for
a few days. I eventually came to my mother
crying, (she also suffers from depressions
but is correctly medicated), and I
explained the whole thing. She called my
psychiatrist who immediately sent me to a
mental rehab center. Through treatment and
a different psychiatrist and a long period
of switching medication, I am finally
feeling happy again.
My situation though, got me to thinking.
What if there was a way I could have had
this fixed at the end of 6th grade when
things started to go wrong? What if there
was a way to get this to my parents before
I couldn’t control it anymore? That’s
where I came up with the idea of a MENTAL
ASSESSMENT TEST. They already have a test
every year, rather a questionnaire, about
how the school is doing. Yes, that is
mildly important, but what if they had a
test on mental health? It would ask simple
questions that would assess any problem
that might be there. Then after the test
is completed it would be looked over and
parents would be notified if there is any
risk of depression or mental diseases such
as. The results could be put on a child’s
record and possibly make accommodations. A
program called the ‘504' helped me. It
made my school life easier by allowing
more time on tests, and such.
Sincerely,
Quinn
Please reply with your opinion to: radi
oactivbat@yahoo.com
Your reply and others will be eventualy be
sent to my school board and other places.
Whether your opinion is negative or
possitive it will be appreciated.
|
danielv
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 03 Jul 2003 Posts: 77 Location: South East, Macedonia
Re: My idea... In school MENTAL ASSESMENT TEST.... good or b Posted: 07-16-03 18:08pm
Hello Quinn.
I have had quite a few episodes of
depression and severe anxiety disorders
throughout my life and did not know what
was wrong until just recently. I simply
assumed that my feelings were caused by
some set of circumstances, and blamed
outside situations for the way they made
me feel, or for the way I couldn't help
but feel.
As for the MENTAL ASSESMET TEST, I think
that it's certainly a worthwhile idea, yet
I would like to point out some problems
with testing a general population for (any
especially these) symptoms...
- People who lack information and exposure
might not take the test seriously.
- Some may lie out of shame.
- Others still might conciously "fake"
their answers in order to illegally obtain
prescription drugs.
- There are even circumstances under which
parents may abuse their autority and
attempt to "overdiagnose" their children
to explain behaviour that the parents
dissaprove of. Throughout our youth we
internalize our parent's personal problems
and character defects, and quite often the
parents are actually reacting to their own
shortcomings when dealing withs us.
- What should happen if someone is
diagnosed with a severely unstable
condition? (Are they considered a threat
to themselves or others? Who is liable
for their treatment, diagnosis, )
- What if someone was diagnosed, received
treatment, and gets diagnosed again?
I would suggest a program which would
promote the awareness and acceptance of
such disorders, and simultaneously offer
anonymous solutions (testing, referrals,
etc) for those who are interested or
obviously struggling. I truly believe
that the best way to help someone is to
empower them with awareness, information,
and the ability to seek help that is
available.
radioactivbat
wrote:
...I became very depressed
and that caused angry tension among my
parents, my friends, and
myself.
Sounds familiar. I'm glad things worked
out for you! : )
Best Wishes,
Daniel
|
saf
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 29 Jul 2003 Posts: 1
Posted: 07-29-03 15:00pm
Dear Quinn, Congratulations on your
continued success. I have custody of my
nephew who just turned 10. He is also
listed as manic depressive/bipolar. He
was in a hospital five weeks and he goes
to a therapist and psychiatrist every
week. It is going to be a struggle but
reading the letter from you shows me that
there will always be hope for him. Thanks
again for the encouragement.
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