Managing Lifelong Mental Health as a Senior

Posted by georgette12 @georgette12, Jan 13, 2017

I have just started using this site so this is my first message.

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Mental Health Support Group.

Hi @georgette12 and All, I just noticed on one of your posts that you are having an issue with MCC and drafts. As @colleenyoung responded, I do not think that the ability to save drafts is available at this time. Frankly I am not sure whether they will ever offer it for several reasons including the amount extra space they would need and the cleanup that would need to be done on a regular basis to trash the orphaned drafts.
May I suggest that you use notebook, word or some other text app. that you can save your drafts to while you "multi-task". Once you are done with, & happy with your message you can post it via cut & paste. Viola. Not great, but an alternative.
BTW, I too learned by way of the disappearing draft!!! ha ha

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@lesbatts

These people are supposed to be Christians? I'd try another church if I were you and don't tell anyone about your background.
I do not go to church but I had plenty of it when I was a child, enough to make me not want to ever go to church again.
My family and close friends know that I am Bipolar and I never tell anyone else. I thought the bias was lifting against people with mental illnesses but I guess not.
Good luck and let us know how it goes.

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To: @lesbatts @jimhd @rspaulling and anyone else who may be having difficulty finding a church that is accepting of folks with mental illness, I'd like to make some suggestions. If possible, you might call a church in advance of visiting and explain your problem and ask if they can provide you with a person to sit with and be with during the service. Also, there is an organization called NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness). NAMI does training in churches to help congregations understand and learn about mental illness. NAMI might be able to suggest a church that has received their training or perhaps provide training for your congregation. NAMI provides great support for those suffering from mental illness as well as their family members. Best wishes to you all this Sunday morning. Teresa

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@lesbatts

These people are supposed to be Christians? I'd try another church if I were you and don't tell anyone about your background.
I do not go to church but I had plenty of it when I was a child, enough to make me not want to ever go to church again.
My family and close friends know that I am Bipolar and I never tell anyone else. I thought the bias was lifting against people with mental illnesses but I guess not.
Good luck and let us know how it goes.

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Good Sunday morning to everyone. I would like to give a testimonial for NAMI. I was a member of my local NAMI organization last year when i lived in Asheville, NC. They are really a wonderful source for all areas of this disease. The one i belonged to was for those with mental illness. At the same time that one was meeting there was another group meeting for families and caregivers for those with mental illness. I receive a weekly newsletter by email and infor re all sorts of interesting things to learn about. I personally have that at the top of my list. What is so frustrating to me is not having resources in this tiny town of Pagosa Springs, Colorado. Nearest big town is Durango or if i go in the opposite direction I would have to go to Santa Fe, New Mexico! What is saving me is this forum and the Alliance of Hope organization which has an excellent reputation, according to my personal research on it. However that is for people who have lost family or others to suicide. When my eldest son took his life August 13th of last year in another state, i was in the middle of moving here and away from all resources and my support system. So when i got here in October i was lost.
This past january the 13th was his birthday and the 5th month anniversary of his death and my only help was the Alliance of Hope. I have been in horrible shape and in this town, you do not ever mention suicide as a topic.
One thing i think is vital to those of us with serious mental health issues......speaking for myself only and people i now know, a traumatic event which is complex in its nature, will trigger whatever mental issues are going on with me, for instance. I do not speak for anyone else, of course, but i, and others i know personally, suffer from suicidal ideations after such an event especially if it is your son or daughter or a close family member. I, personally speaking, have so much guilt associated with it. Intellectually i know that we all have free will and do not have the power of life or death over anyone. But i am his mother and i refuse to let go of my guilt. I say "let go" because i personally know that it is not my fault, but that is just being rational. I am not anywhere near rational on this.
Well, i did not mean to go off on this tangent, but NAMI is a place that i am sure i can turn to on this. That is how i connected the two topics. Well, more later. I am really extremely grateful for all of you who are reading this. Blessings.

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@lesbatts

These people are supposed to be Christians? I'd try another church if I were you and don't tell anyone about your background.
I do not go to church but I had plenty of it when I was a child, enough to make me not want to ever go to church again.
My family and close friends know that I am Bipolar and I never tell anyone else. I thought the bias was lifting against people with mental illnesses but I guess not.
Good luck and let us know how it goes.

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I am so very sorry about your son, I can't imagine anything worse than losing a child! I have had many suicides in my family as I mentioned previously therefore this surely runs in my family.
Take care and I hope you get the support you're looking for.

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@jimhd

My service dog is with me every Sunday at church, and many people know she's a psychiatric service dog. I've never felt any hostility or negativity. The church I used to go to were very accepting, and were really sad when we changed to another church. The only reason we left was that the pastor didn't believe in psychology or psychiatry, and made me feel wrongly judged. I think the church is growing up in its misperceptions of mental illness. I am a retired minister, and have felt the stigma firsthand. It's unfortunate, because that's certainly not what Jesus modeled.

I just changed my profile picture to a colored pencil drawing made of my previous service dog, Barnabas, who died a year ago.

Jim

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Sounds like Scientology which as far as I'm concerned is a cult! I just got down reading a book on them YIKES!

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@jimhd

My service dog is with me every Sunday at church, and many people know she's a psychiatric service dog. I've never felt any hostility or negativity. The church I used to go to were very accepting, and were really sad when we changed to another church. The only reason we left was that the pastor didn't believe in psychology or psychiatry, and made me feel wrongly judged. I think the church is growing up in its misperceptions of mental illness. I am a retired minister, and have felt the stigma firsthand. It's unfortunate, because that's certainly not what Jesus modeled.

I just changed my profile picture to a colored pencil drawing made of my previous service dog, Barnabas, who died a year ago.

Jim

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You're right. Scientology is a cult and is scary. I belong to a conservative denomination that is very orthodox in its biblical positions. There are both loving and critical people in every organization, Christian or not, in my experience.

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@lesbatts

These people are supposed to be Christians? I'd try another church if I were you and don't tell anyone about your background.
I do not go to church but I had plenty of it when I was a child, enough to make me not want to ever go to church again.
My family and close friends know that I am Bipolar and I never tell anyone else. I thought the bias was lifting against people with mental illnesses but I guess not.
Good luck and let us know how it goes.

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Thank you! I will call NAMI. We have no sidewalks where I live. There are 2 churches nearby but I am recove ring from a broken hip as well as my mental health issues. We watch Reverend Stanley and Dr David Jeremiah every Sunday and follow Our Daily Bread every day and night. We also get monthly day to day bible studies from them. My husband and I are Christians and we pray together. Our daughter and son-in-law also pray with us. We are just not allowed to drive because he had strokes and recent seizures, and I have medicines that prevent me from driving. We know that God will place us where He wants us.

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@jimhd

My service dog is with me every Sunday at church, and many people know she's a psychiatric service dog. I've never felt any hostility or negativity. The church I used to go to were very accepting, and were really sad when we changed to another church. The only reason we left was that the pastor didn't believe in psychology or psychiatry, and made me feel wrongly judged. I think the church is growing up in its misperceptions of mental illness. I am a retired minister, and have felt the stigma firsthand. It's unfortunate, because that's certainly not what Jesus modeled.

I just changed my profile picture to a colored pencil drawing made of my previous service dog, Barnabas, who died a year ago.

Jim

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Jim- I'm a retired Army Chaplain and also with many war wounds- like most soldiers, we have 100"s of Service Dogs- for " PTSD" and many other type emotional and psychological issues and we use service dogs also ( many of us-use them all the time- in and out of church) Sounds like ( if I can say- you have a pastor who is old school, and think psychology is evil, I understand that there is those in the profession that doesn't believe or teach the bible as real- those types of counselors I don't go see- there are many that are not that way, and filler what they say with and through the Bible- as we should, I believe. But I'm a Christian, Chaplain ( same as a pastor- except my folks are all troops) And your right on- Jesus would not ask you to take the dog out of the church. Many " even pastor" are not really trained and have went to seminary to understand both and yes the Bible is first- always, but there is a place for psychology Gods animals are wonderful and can make our day with some peace and happiness we need- which GOD provides that Dog, or Horse, which is being used allot for Vets. A Christian Psychologist needs to talk to that Pastor and explain what the difference is- I think he is scar of doing that God would be angry for. I hope this helps and makes sense. Don't even up- or ever think God sees it that way- He would be sitting next to you enjoying the love of your dog with you. JJAMES

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@rspaulling

Anybody have trouble going to church because the way you are treated there with mental illness? Once people get to know me, I find they talk down to me. I find it hard to keeping attending.

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Keep trying. If nothing else works, as you know, there are some great preachers on TV. The good ones get a bad rap because of the bad ones. Could you start a fellowship group in your home? I just know how good it is to be part of a live group of fellow believers. It would be great therapy to develop friendships with trusting people, and they could be a great support group for you.

Jim

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@lesbatts

These people are supposed to be Christians? I'd try another church if I were you and don't tell anyone about your background.
I do not go to church but I had plenty of it when I was a child, enough to make me not want to ever go to church again.
My family and close friends know that I am Bipolar and I never tell anyone else. I thought the bias was lifting against people with mental illnesses but I guess not.
Good luck and let us know how it goes.

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I'm a member of NAMI, but I seem to be only on the list of people who might make a donation. How do you get to the support side?

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