Depression

Is Mental Illness A ‘Luxury’ Disease?

by Bill Brenner October 17, 2011 Addiction

There’s an interesting debate unfolding on The New York Times website about mental illness in America. What got my attention was the suggestion that mental illness and the related treatments are luxury items. Mood music: The debate — between a variety of professionals in the mental health field — runs the spectrum from suggesting mental illness is still misunderstood and undertreated to being over diagnosed and used as an excuse to hide from personal responsibility….  [Read More]

Support Your Local Crisis Hotline Person

by Bill Brenner October 13, 2011 Courage

One of the byproducts of writing this blog is that old friends and strangers have reached out to me for chats about what they’re going through. Mood music: http://youtu.be/mso6N_eqg_k You could say I’m doing an increasing amount of unpaid, uncertified counseling. I’d like to think it’s just me trying to be a good friend and following up on what I do here. It can be a bit much sometimes. That’s not a complaint. It’s just…  [Read More]

Season of Depression

by Bill Brenner October 13, 2011 Depression

Like everyone else, I love the colors and crisp air of autumn. But there’s something else about fall that I hate: It’s the beginning of the mood swings and depression. Mood music:  When the days get shorter and I find myself driving to work in the dark, it has an effect on my brain. Welcome to my annual class on S.A.D. People who suffer from chemical imbalances in the brain are directly impacted by daylight…  [Read More]

How To Talk To A Liar Who’s Been Caught

by Bill Brenner October 12, 2011 Addiction

A reader who recently found the two posts I wrote on addicts as compulsive liars had a sad story to share. Her husband, a compulsive spender, gambler and drinker, lies to her all the time. He apparently sucks at it. She always finds out. Mood music: How, she asked me, does she deal with a person like this? She still loves him, and in many respects he’s still the great guy. But lies are a…  [Read More]

Happy Birthday, Old Friend

by Bill Brenner October 7, 2011 Depression

It just dawned on me that today would have been Sean Marley’s 45th birthday. You’ve seen much here about how his life and death shaped me. But right now I just want to point out all that was cool about him. Mood music: –He was a gifted guitarist. He could learn to play just about anything, and could write great musical bits when he wanted to. He gave me my first guitar for Christmas in…  [Read More]

Mentally Ill Behind Bars

by Bill Brenner October 4, 2011 Communication Skills

Came across a disturbing report by Steve Visser in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that clearly illustrates how far we have to go in getting the mentally ill the help they need. Mood music: The headline: Mentally ill inmates languish in local jails From the article: Detention Officer Terroyanne Harris considers the inmates she oversees on 3 North as much patient as prisoner. They suffer from schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress and other mental illnesses. Some walk aimlessly around…  [Read More]

Three Years (Almost) Clean

by Bill Brenner October 1, 2011 Addiction

Three years ago yesterday, I went on my last binge. Actually, it was more like reaching the end of a final, two-month long binge. The abstinent and sober life hasn’t been perfect by any stretch. But it beats the hell out of where I was at the start. Mood music: http://youtu.be/IKpEoRlcHfA Compulsive overeating was my biggest, most destructive addiction. It led to health problems that only got worse with time. I became a waste of space and fell short…  [Read More]

Depressed? Drink More Coffee

by Bill Brenner September 29, 2011 Addiction

People often shudder over the amount of coffee I down each day. Even after I point out that it’s the only vice I have left, they still look at me like I’m nuts. But I’ve found new allies at Harvard’s School of Public Health. My new academic friends say those who drink two or three cups a day have a 15 per cent lower incidence of depression than those who rarely do so. Their point…  [Read More]

Steve Clark Lost His Battle But Helped Me With Mine

by Bill Brenner September 29, 2011 Addiction

I’ve been listening to a ton of Def Leppard this week. It started when I caught two documentaries on the making of “Pyromania” and “Hysteria” on Youtube. I’m remembering what this band did for me during my troubled teenage years. Mood music: http://youtu.be/DOxHmzO1498 One of the big points in both documentaries is that those albums wouldn’t have been the classics they became without the late guitarist Steve Clark. When we think of this band, we…  [Read More]

Finish What You Started

by Bill Brenner September 28, 2011 Adventures in writing

Funny thing about people who suffer from serious mental illness: They tend to make all these big plans but never really follow through with anything. I don’t fault them. For one thing, they have an illness. Also, I used to be just like them. Mood music: [spotify:track:37A5wFomo4EVz5tGInAynI] Watching the start-stop-start-thud behavior of a friend is reminding me of what I used to do. My friend, who I won’t name, always has some big plans afoot….  [Read More]

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