Mental Illness Myth Rant

I found my social work class today to actually be pretty interesting. (Unfortunately, this is a rarer occasion than I would like.) We had a social worker from Wasatch Mental Health as a guest speaker. He works at the Wasatch House, a clubhouse for those who struggle with mental illness. His presentation was titled "The Stigma of Mental Illness" and a huge part of this presentation was debunking myths of mental illness. A few things I found interesting in his presentation was that only 6500 people are treated for mental illness in Utah County while it is estimated that 50,000 people suffer from mental illness here. Another thing I found interesting was that there are an estimated 44 million people in the United States that suffer from some form of mental illness. That's a lot of people. Most of them are untreated.

He had two friends come to present with him. These friends were from the Wasatch House. One of them suffered from bipolar disorder with psychotic features and the other suffered from major depression and borderline personality disorder. Their stories were incredible and heartwrenching. The person who had depression and borderline personality was a middle aged LDS woman. She said a lot of her struggle came from people not understanding her and herself not understanding that no matter how faithful she was in the Church, her illnesses were real and would not just go away if she were more righteous.

I HATE THAT MYTH. I hate that it is promulgated throughout the Church by faithful but ignorant members who have never suffered from mental illness themselves. I hate that well-meaning friends and family members make problems of mental illness worse because of their ignorance. Encouraging friends suffering from mental illness to read their scriptures, pray, and attend the temple more is good advice. Telling them that is the way to get rid of depression is idiotic. Mental illness is like any other illness- it is a real tangible illness with symptoms that can greatly affect the daily lives of those who suffer from it. No one would tell someone with diabetes that if they would just pray every day and read their scriptures in the morning and evening that their diabetes will be healed. No one would tell someone with cancer that if they would just go talk to their bishop about what they're struggling with that the cancer will go away. No one should say these same things to people struggling with mental illness and yet they do. And they do it all too often.

I remember the last time I was in the hospital after an overdose. A social worker was assessing my current mental status and trying to decide whether or not to admit me to the psychiatric ward at the hospital. (Side note: I've stayed in a psychiatric ward once and will never do it again. Never ever ever. WORST experience of my life. Actually the worst experience was probably having to ingest the charcoal to treat that overdose before staying. Not that it was my choice at the time and if it came down to it, which hopefully won't happen again, probably wouldn't be later.) He was LDS and asked me if I was LDS. I told him yes and then he proceeded to "educate" me on the consequences of suicide if I truly believed in the Gospel. Which, by the way, he was completely wrong about. (If you want to read about what church leaders have said about suicide see here.) Basically, this social worker was telling me that I was a bad member of the Church because I had overdosed on acetaminophen (as well as a nice combination of aspirin, diphenhydamine, dextromethorphan, doxylamine succinate, pyrilamine maleate and caffeine). He focused on the action only, failing to take into account that I was probably experiencing something other than a desire to be disobedient. I'm sure I could have found something more exciting than downing multiple pills if I was trying to satisfy some craving for rebelliousness. I recall him letting out an exasperated laugh as he talked to me. He was not a nice social worker. I did not appreciate him nor his efforts to "help" me. I'm really not sure if he was well-intentioned or not in this case. If I had remembered his name, I would have filed a complaint. He was really that rude. His comments were incredibly hurtful and I still remember their sting. There I was, in a hospital room, with an IV in my arm, having just overdosed, with him telling me I sure am lucky I didn't die because I would have gone to hell if I did and I better not try it again because as far as he knows hell is not a fun place. I have names for that man that I cannot say aloud or online. I shouldn't even think them. I have some stuff I need to work on...

It just bothers me so much that people who struggle with mental illness, particularly depression, are being told that if they tried harder, if they did better at following the commandments, building a relationship with God, reading the scriptures, praying, fulfilling their callings, they will feel better; they will be better.

Let's try to understand this: a person that has depression struggling with feelings of worthlessness, inappropriate guilt, self-hate (in addition to at least four other symptoms of depression) is then advised by a well-meaning, ill-informed friend that if they prayed more their bad feelings will go away. These bad feelings don't go away because depression is an illness that if left untreated will worsen (LIKE ANY OTHER ILLNESS). What is a person struggling with depression supposed to think when after taking this advice (praying more, meeting with his/her bishop, fasting, reading his/her scriptures more) his/her feelings worsen? He/she may be thinking
a) "I am not good enough. I am still not trying hard enough. It is my fault I am not better."
b) "I must be a very horrible person for God to not answer my prayers. God must not love me."
c) "God doesn't exist. I am not getting better because there is no one to answer my prayers."
I give these examples from personal experience. Others may think of different reasons why their prayers for relief from depression are not answered. These are just examples I have personal experience with.

A meeting with a bishop doesn't replace therapy. Praying doesn't replace needed medication. These things (therapy, medications) exist for us to utilize when necessary.

I don't mean to diminish the healing power that comes from Jesus Christ's Atonement in any way. I know that when I relied on therapy and medications alone, I was struggling much more than I needed to. It wasn't until after I had turned to the Lord with my broken spirit and asked for His help, trusting in Him, did I find complete peace. (This in addition to the antidepressants and therapy every other week.)

This reminds me of a story Elder Oaks shared. He said, "The use of medical science is not at odds with our prayers of faith and our reliance on priesthood blessings. When a person requested a priesthood blessing, Brigham Young would ask, “Have you used any remedies?” To those who said no because “we wish the Elders to lay hands upon us, and we have faith that we shall be healed,” President Young replied: “That is very inconsistent according to my faith. If we are sick, and ask the Lord to heal us, and to do all for us that is necessary to be done, according to my understanding of the Gospel of salvation, I might as well ask the Lord to cause my wheat and corn to grow, without my plowing the ground and casting in the seed. It appears consistent to me to apply every remedy that comes within the range of my knowledge, and [then] to ask my Father in Heaven … to sanctify that application to the healing of my body."

I really appreciated Elder Alexander B. Morrison's article on myths of mental illness. I particularly appreciate his closing remarks with which I want to close this entry. He said, "With knowledge and understanding come love, acceptance, empathy, and enfoldment. May God bless us to love all His children, to abandon none, and to lift up and strengthen those suffering and in pain."