Stem Cells of People who experience Schizophrenia Could Lead to Breakthrough in Treatment

A new method for recreating the brain cells of patients with schizophrenia is being described as a breakthrough in treating the condition. Scientists used a technique to reprogram the skin cells of schizophrenic patients to become stem cells and then coaxed them become neurons. These were then compared to brain cells derived from the skin cells of healthy volunteers. That would allow scientists to test the effects of antipsychotic drugs. (Voice of America, 4/13/11)

Scientists Find How Antidepressants Make New Brain Cells

Scientists Find How Antidepressants Make New Brain Cells

Scientists report they have found out how antidepressants make new brain cells. The finding should help researchers develop better and more effective drugs for depression. In a study published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry, researchers found that the drugs regulate the glucocorticoid receptor, which is a key protein involved in the stress response. They used human hippocampal stem cells, the source of new cells in the human brain, to investigate the effects of antidepressants on brain cells in a lab dish. (Reuters, 4/12/11) Reprinted at darkestcloset.blogspot.com.

Mental-health advocates decry mug shot contest

Mental-health advocates decry mug shot contest

Published: Monday, April 25, 2011 10:14 AM MST Reposted at http://darkestcloset.blogspot.com/

PHOENIX (AP) — Mental-health advocates are complaining about a new online contest launched by the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office that asks people to choose the most popular jail booking photos posted on its website.

The Arizona Republic reports that more than 25 percent of Maricopa County’s inmates admit to having been diagnosed with a mental illness at some point in their lives, and at least 20 percent of inmates are prescribed psychiatric medicine in jail.

Charles Arnold, an attorney who’s a longtime advocate for the mentally ill, says the outcome of the online mug shot game was predictable given that many people in Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s jails are dealing with some combination of substance abuse, mental illness and physical ailments.

“While we might risk advancing (Arpaio’s) publicity component, I think it’s critical that we try to get in the way of this and stop this kind of exploitative behavior — because that’s exactly what it is,” Arnold said. “What he’s doing seems to be to be exploiting people who have been defined in our state as vulnerable adults. That’s offensive.”

Arpaio says his office isn’t making fun of the mentally ill. “The photos are there anyway,“ Arpaio said. ”What difference does it make if you ask them which one they like? They don’t know the history of the person.“

The Sheriff’s Office says Arpaio’s new Web page attracted more than 135,000 visitors in its first four days of existence. The same page drew 191,000 visitors over the 30 days before that.

Arpaio’s track record of publicizing inmates in Maricopa County jails laid the groundwork for the response to the mug shot game.

In 2001, Arpaio began streaming footage online from the booking area at the old Madison Street Jail. Inmates sued in federal court and won an injunction against the webcast. Arpaio appealed the ruling and was denied by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

After the mug shot game was unveiled this week, Scott Ambrose, a Phoenix attorney who represented inmates in the webcast case, found himself wondering how Arpaio’s latest gimmick served any legitimate purpose.

“It’s the same type of offense,” Ambrose said. “He’s clearly using these people who are not guilty of any crime for an entertainment factor, which I find offensive and quite possibly illegal.”

Proving the contest is illegal, and getting Arpaio to take the feature down, is another matter, Ambrose said.

“Can you show that the most pathetic, sad, downtrodden, disabled people are routinely being presented as the Mug Shot of the Day?” Ambrose asked. “That’s when you would have a good argument that this is a form of punishment.”

Arpaio says that booking photos are aired in the news media every day.

http://www.trivalleycentral.com/articles/2011/04/25/front/doc4db5a5cbb174a271955815.txt

I like Bi-Winning.

In a recent article by Amy Yashinsky* of the STOMP Newsletter, by a group of mental health advocates in Michigan, whom I respect, she wrote:

“I want to cringe every time I hear someone speak incorrectly about bipolar disorder (or any mental health challenge, for that matter!), and as such, the last month of Charlie Sheen’arama has been one big cringe-fest!

Whenever someone asks me about him, my reply has been ‘he’s making it difficult for me to do my job! When comics are comparing him to Gadhafi, how am I supposed to teach people that those dealing with a mental health challenge are not dangerous or unstable?!’”

I was with Amy when she spoke about the inappropriateness of armchair analysis, but here I must differ. It is a “cringe-fest,” but I am right there with Charlie when he says “I’m bi-winning!”  He is not making your job harder, mental illness, and hundreds of years of ignorance, discrimination, fear, prejudice and mistreatment make it difficult for people with mental illness to recover and others to understand and welcome into the greater community.

Some people who experience who experience mental illnesses are dangerous, some are unstable, most are not. The same can be said for the general population. Education about discrimination and fear is very difficult. Charlie Sheen’s story provides an opportunity to talk about things which are hard to bring up in day-to-day conversation with the general population. Opportunity is a good thing.

I do not know, nor have I ever met Mr. Sheen, his friends, or family. MY impression has always been that he is an intelligent and funny guy who likes to live his life on his own terms. Am I interested in what the media or parasitic friends and “professionals” have to say about his motivation or behavior? No.

I am more disgusted by the talking heads and mental health experts who have come forward to explain his behavior than I could ever be by something that Mr. Sheen has said in public. It is inappropriate to speculate or worse, “diagnose” someone from a taped interview or public behavior. These mental health experts crawling from the woodwork to pontificate on what Mr. Sheen needs are shameful leeches.

He true friends may express concerns if his behavior becomes dangerous to himself or others. Mr. Sheen determines what is a priority for his own wellness. He has been open for many years about his sexual and social preferences. He is a wealthy may who engages in consensual activities. This is none of my business, or anyone else’s.

There have been some individuals who expressed sincere concerns about whether he is being exploited in a vulnerable period of his life. It is possible to be an ass and still be vulnerable. Writer, actor, comedian, Rickie Gervais has expressed these concerns, in a caring way.

If Mr. Sheen is experiencing a mental health crisis, I hope that he seeks help from someone he can trust. The general public cannot determine if he is, or is not, simple because he acts in an outrageous way. Many performers and no-performers act in outrageous ways for many reasons that have nothing to do with mental illness. He does not have to disclose his illness, if he has one, to the public, regardless of what it may be, ever, for any reason. Being an actor, or an activist, or a famous person does not justify making you a target.

Recovery is a non-linear process. Everyone’s process is different. Respect Mr. Sheen’s right to express himself as he wishes, whether you like what he has to say, or not.

As for me, I like the way “Bi-winning” sounds.

Posted at *http://www.cnsantistigmaprogram.org/stomp_newsletter_2011-04-15/newsletter.html#7 Reposted at http://keystothecloset.blogspot.com/

Charlie Sheen sets up bipolar awareness walk

Actor has only admitted he's 'bi-winning,' but he makes pitch for cause in Toronto

Posted at http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/42612186/ns/today-entertainment/    Reposted at http://darkestcloset.blogspot.com/

By Lindsay Powers Hollywood Reporter Hollywood updated 4/15/2011 2:54:27 PM ET 2011-04-15T18:54:27 

LOS ANGELES — In a series of new tweets, Charlie Sheen has announced that he is organizing a bipolar awareness walk in Toronto Friday evening.

He has asked fans to meet him at his Ritz Carlton hotel and walk with him 1.2 miles to Toronto's Massey Hall, where he performed to mixed reviews Thursday night and is set to take the stage again tonight.

"Stop the Stigma!! Bipolar Awareness Walk!! Please join me at 6pm at the Ritz tonight! Raise Money! Raise Awareness! #BIPOLAR #BIWINNING," read one message.

Sheen tweeted that he plans to take donations for the Canadian group OBAD, the Organization for Bipolar Affective Disorders, and is "matching all donations $ for $"

A rep for the actor tells THR: "Charlie wants to bring awareness to bipolar and he has lined up with OBAD to do this walk. And it was totally his idea."

A Sheen pal tells THR the walk has nothing to do with actress Catherine Zeta-Jones' announcement this week that she has sought treatment for the disorder.

Sheen has denied having bipolar disorder. When ABC News' Andrea Channing asked him about rumors last month, he said that he is "bi-winning." He admitted that his brain is "maybe not from this particular terrestrial realm."

The Sheen insider tells THR that the actor is just "really passionate" and a "hoot."

Zeta-Jones may help dispel stigma of bipolar disorder

By Rebecca Dube  TODAY TODAY  updated 4/14/2011 Reposted at http://darkestcloset.blogspot.com/

Oscar-winning actress Catherine Zeta-Jones suffers from bipolar disorder, and checked herself into a mental health facility earlier this month, her publicist has confirmed.

The news may be shocking to fans who associate the actress and wife of Michael Douglas with her image of polished glamour. But bipolar disorder – which used to be called manic depression – can take many different forms, psychiatrist Gail Saltz told TODAY.

"It can look like a very high-functioning person who is just super 'up,' " Saltz said.

Zeta-Jones is diagnosed with bipolar II disorder, which is less severe than bipolar I. People with her condition swing between major depression and what’s called hypomania, which can include intense irritability, sleeplessness, relentless optimism or grandiose elation.

Zeta-Jones’s publicist, CeCe Yorke, blamed stress for the actress’s recent hospital stay. In the past year, her husband was diagnosed with advanced throat cancer; he’s also been battling a lawsuit from his ex-wife seeking half of his recent movie earnings. Zeta-Jones and Douglas have two children, ages 7 and 10.

Stress can indeed be a trigger for bipolar episodes, Dr. Nancy Snyderman, NBC’s chief medical editor, told TODAY. And a brief stay in a hospital would not be uncommon, either to bring a manic episode under control, or to tune-up medications for more effective treatment, Snyderman and Saltz noted. Bipolar disorder can usually be controlled with a combination of medication and therapy. Lithium is one of the most common treatments.

Researchers aren’t quite sure what causes bipolar disorder -- a combination of genetic and environmental factors seem to come into play. They do know the disorder is associated with an imbalance in the brain chemicals called neurotransmitters.

Bipolar disorder affects about 2.5 percent of the U.S. population, around 6 million people. Mental-health advocates hope Zeta-Jones’s public struggle will help dispel some of the myths and fears about mental illness.

"There is a ridiculous stigma in this country about this," Snyderman said. "We have to get over it. People get sick, our job as doctors is to get them well."

Saltz applauded Zeta-Jones for announcing that she has bipolar disorder after the National Enquirer reported that she had checked in to a psychiatric hospital.

"I think it’s tremendously brave of her to come forward and I’m delighted that she’s doing that," Saltz said. "There are many people getting a new diagnosis, and we want them to know they have every hope, if they get treatment, of having wonderfully productive lives."

Yorke, Zeta-Jones’s publicist, said the 41-year-old actress is "feeling great and looking forward to starting work this week on her two upcoming films." © 2011 MSNBC Interactive. 

Mental Disorders & Medical Comorbidity

In the wake of national health reform, tens of millions of Americans will become newly insured. Given the high rates of uninsurance among people with mental illness, as well as the high rates of comorbidity between mental and medical conditions, the nation’s policy-makers will soon be confronted with how to best serve this newly insured population. To improve quality and reduce the growth of health spending, policy-makers must focus on particular subgroups most at-risk for high cost and poor quality—among them—those with mental health and medical comorbidities.

A new report from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Synthesis Project provides an overview of medical and mental comorbidity, with an eye toward current federal health reform efforts.
The Synthesis report includes the following key findings:

• Comorbidity is the rule rather than the exception. When mental and medical conditions co-occur, the combination is associated with elevated symptom burden, functional impairment, decreased length and quality of life, and increased costs.
• The pathways causing comorbidity of mental and medical disorders are complex and bidirectional. Medical disorders may lead to mental ones, mental conditions may place a person at risk for medical disorders, and mental and medical disorders may share common risk factors.
• Models that integrate care to treat people with mental health and medical comorbidities have proven effective. Despite their effectiveness, these models are not in widespread use.

Read the report and related materials.
Reposted at http://darkestcloset.blogspot.com/

Follow-Up Study of Online Suicide Prevention & Gatekeeper Training Simulation

Posted at http://darkestcloset.blogspot.com/

 

A follow-up study conducted at 68 U.S. universities and colleges found that At-Risk, an online gatekeeper training course for faculty and staff, increases the number of students exhibiting signs of psychological distress whom faculty and staff refer to their counseling center.

At-Risk is a simulation that teaches learners to identify, approach, and refer students exhibiting signs of psychological distress, including depression and thoughts of suicide. The study included 420 participants who completed an online survey after taking the training and were then surveyed again 3-4 months later.

AFSP and SPRC add Parents as Partners: A Suicide Prevention Guide for Parents to the Best Practices Registry

The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) and SPRC have added this nine-page booklet produced by the Suicide Awareness Voices of Education (SAVE) to Section III: Awareness/Outreach programs of the Best Practices Registry. The booklet includes information about depression, including its symptoms and causes; information about the warning signs of suicide; recommendations for how to address possible suicide risk in your children; and sources of additional information.

It is available from Suicide Awareness Voices of Education (SAVE) for a small fee. Programs listed in Section III of the BPR address specific objectives of the National Strategy for Suicide Prevention and have been reviewed for accuracy, safety, likelihood of meeting objectives, and adherence to prevention program guidelines. For more information, visit http://www2.sprc.org/sites/sprc.org/files/ParentsAsPartners.pdf.

Reposted at http://darkestcloset.blogspot.com/

Guide for Advocacy Countering Criminalization of Mental Illness

The Urban Justice Center and the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) of New York State have published a guide for family and friends of people with mental illnesses who go to prison. The guide outlines services available for people with mental illnesses in prison and describes how family members can advocate for the person in prison while getting support for themselves. It also details how to become active in larger advocacy efforts countering the criminalization of mental illness.

The publication can be downloaded at: www.urbanjustice.org/pdf/publications/mhp_08sept10.pdf  Published in "National Association of Peer Specialist Newsletter—Fall 2010" reposted at http://darkestcloset.blogspot.com/

Recovery to Practice Center Initiative

What is “recovery” in relation to mental illness? And what implications does this concept have for transforming mental health practice to become “recovery‐oriented”? To begin answering these questions, and to promote the transformation of mental health care to a recovery‐orientation, on October 1, 2009, the Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS), Office of the Associate Director for Consumer Affairs, within the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), contracted with Development Services Group, Inc. (DSG) to launch a five‐year Recovery to Practice (RTP) initiative.

Within SAMHSA’s workforce development priority area, this initiative seeks to advance a recovery‐oriented approach to mental health care by developing, promoting, and disseminating training curricula on how to translate the concept of mental health recovery into practice; and by providing a Recovery to Practice Recovery Resource Center for mental health professionals engaged in this work. For more information about this center and to subscribe to their newsletter, visit: http://www.dsgonline.com/rtp/resources.html. To receive all Resource Center communications and join the listserv, visit http://www2.dsgonline.com/rtp_listserv/. New resources are being added to the Resource Center on an ongoing basis. Contributors are invited to submit suggestions for useful articles, videos, curricula, and personal stories—as well as announcements about upcoming relevant conferences and meetings—to keep the center robust and current. Reposted at http://darkestcloset.blogspot.com/

New Free On-line Webinar on Recovery Avaialble

SAMHSA’s Recovery to Practice (RTP) Live Meeting PowerPoint presentation and recording for the April 11th Webinar,

“Step 2 in the Recovery-Oriented Care Continuum: Person-Centered Care Planning,”

is now available for download from the  

 RTP Resource Web page at:

http://www.dsgonline.com/rtp/resources.html

Announcement reposted at darkestcloset.blogspot.com

U.S. Panel Suggests Research Into Causes and Prevalence of Health Issues Facing Gays

By ROBERT PEAR Published: March 31, 2011, reposted at http://www.keystothecloset.blogger.com/ and http://www.darkestcloset.blogger.com/

WASHINGTON — The federal government should systematically collect demographic data on gay, lesbian and transgender people and should conduct biomedical research to understand why they are more likely to have certain chronic conditions, the National Academy of Sciences said Thursday.

In a report requested by the National Institutes of Health, the academy proposed an ambitious research agenda to investigate the prevalence and causes of obesity, depression, cancer, heart disease and other conditions among gay people.

Federal officials had asked the academy’s Institute of Medicine to identify gaps in research on the health of gay Americans. Dr. Robert O. Graham, the chairman of the panel that did the study, said that was impossible.

“The available evidence on the health of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people is sparse,” said Dr. Graham, a professor of family medicine at the University of Cincinnati. “Researchers need to do much more than simply filling gaps.”

The panel, appointed by the Institute of Medicine, said the government should finance research to develop standardized measures of sexual orientation and gender identity — “one’s basic sense of being a man, woman or other gender, such as transgender.”

Gay people often face “barriers to equitable health care,” decline to seek care in times of need and receive substandard care when they seek it, the report said.

“Fearing discrimination and prejudice,” it said, “many lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people refrain from disclosing their sexual orientation or gender identity to researchers and health care providers.”

In addition, the report said, many doctors lack the necessary training. “Medical schools teach very little about sexuality in general and little or nothing about the unique aspects of lesbian, gay and bisexual health,” it said.

The panel said the National Institutes of Health should strongly encourage researchers to include “sexual and gender minorities” in studies whenever possible, just as they include women, blacks, Asian-Americans and Hispanics.

In its report, which offers a comprehensive survey of information about the health of gay Americans, the panel made these points:

·          “On average, men tend to show greater interest in sex and express a desire to engage in sex more frequently than women. These patterns appear to occur in both heterosexual and homosexual populations.”

·          Gay youths and adults are typically well adjusted and mentally healthy, but some research indicates that they are more likely to be depressed, have suicidal thoughts and attempt suicide.

·          “Lesbians and bisexual women may be at higher risk for breast cancer than heterosexual women.”

·          Some studies suggest that long-term use of hormone therapy by transgender people may increase their risk for cancer, but more research is needed.

·          In addition, the report said, “Some research suggests that lesbians and bisexual women have a higher risk of obesity than heterosexual females.” Lesbians may also have higher rates of smoking and alcohol consumption than heterosexual women, it said.

A version of this article appeared in print on April 1, 2011, on page A16 of the New York edition.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/01/health/policy/01gays.html?_r=1&ref=research

Health Disparities Among Older LGBTIQ Community

By RONI CARYN RABIN Published: April 1, 2011

Older lesbian, gay and bisexual adults in California are more likely to suffer from chronic physical and mental health problems than their heterosexual counterparts, a new analysis has found. They also are less likely to have live-in partners or adult children who can help care for them.

Related :U.S. Panel Suggests Research Into Causes and Prevalence of Health Issues Facing Gays (April 1, 2011)

The research brief was based on data from the California Health Interview Survey gathered in 2003, 2005 and 2007 by the Center for Health Policy Research at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Older gay and bisexual men — ages 50 to 70 — reported higher rates of high blood pressure, diabetes and physical disability than similar heterosexual men. Older gay and bisexual men also were 45 percent more likely to report psychological distress and 50 percent more likely to rate their health as fair or poor. In addition, one in five gay men in California was living with H.I.V. infection, the researchers found. Yet half of older gay and bisexual men lived alone, compared with 13.4 percent of older heterosexual men.  

Older lesbian and bisexual women experienced similar rates of diabetes and hypertension compared with straight women of their age, but reported significantly more physical disabilities and psychological distress and were 26 percent more likely to say their health was fair or poor.

More than one in four lived alone, compared with only one in five heterosexual women.

Steven P. Wallace, associate director of the U.C.L.A. Center for Health Policy Research and lead author of the brief, said it was important to raise awareness of these disparities. “The gay culture tends to be youth-driven, and the aging community network doesn’t usually think about gay and lesbian elders,” he said.

A version of this article appeared in print on April 5, 2011, on page D7 of the New York edition.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/05/health/research/05gay.html?_r=1 Reprinted at http://keystothecloset.blogspot.com/ and http://darkestcloset.blogspot.com/

Peer Support Services for LGBTIQ Community

by Ronald E. Hellman, M.D., FAPA, Director,

LGBT Affirmative Program of South Beach Psychiatric Center published in Recovery To Practice Newsletter, reprinted at http://keystothecloset.blogspot.com/

The LGBT Affirmative Program (LGBTAP) of South Beach Psychiatric Center was initiated in 1996 as one of several multicultural services provided by this large, public sector community mental health center in New York City. The program is based at the Heights–Hill Mental Health Service in downtown Brooklyn, one of seven outpatient clinics at South Beach, which serves a multi-ethnic, low socioeconomic population with serious, chronic mental illnesses.

Several years into the program, we observed that our sexual minority population, much like our general psychiatric population with significant disabilities, had great difficulty reintegrating within the larger LGBT community and the general community at large, despite the provision of LGBT–affirmative therapies. We came to believe that it was incumbent upon us to facilitate the creation of a socio-cultural component within a recovery model, in addition to the psychosocial and medical services already offered.

This resulted in the creation of an affiliated membership program, the Rainbow Heights Club (RHC). As members, individuals did not have to be enrolled at the clinic, and this allowed LGBT patients from all over the New York metropolitan area to attend. The larger numbers helped to approximate the diversity found within the city’s LGBT community. And, with the creation of an LGBT consumer advisory group, members came up with a name for the club and helped steer program development.

LGBT individuals with major mental illnesses can be reluctant to engage in psychiatric treatment and adhere to treatment regimens over time, because they are less likely to identify with mainstream settings. They are a minority in these settings, and are also subject to stigma in the LGBT community because of their mental illness and in psychiatric settings because of their sexual minority status. And, unlike other ethnic and racial minorities, their families typically do not share their sexual identity. Thus they can be particularly prone to a lack of affirmation and supports.

LGBT patients have to adapt to largely heterosexual, cisgendered (those comfortable in their gender of birth) mental health settings in virtually all areas of service delivery. Well-intentioned, “integrated” settings fall short when they do not provide safe, culturally relevant opportunities for the alienated LGBT patient. Culturally appropriate programming, fostered at all organizational levels, has the power to transform these patients into LGBT persons in recovery.

A crucial component of recovery for the LGBT consumer is peer support. LGBT peer support allows for a process of authentic identification with others like oneself. It promotes forms of socialization, role modeling, and individuation not otherwise available in the generic setting. Mainstream cultural settings often inadvertently rob the LGBT patient of their experience as a sexual minority person with a different, yet valid, worldview. LGBTAP and RHC were organized to facilitate peer support by bringing a “proto-community” of individuals together that had never previously connected.

Separation from the dominant heterosexual, cisgendered world and connection with sexual minority peers is a common step in the healthy psychological development of sexual minority individuals. Major mental illness can tear people away from that process, and mainstream psychiatric settings typically provide no substitute. LGBTAP and RHC created the conditions and opportunities for these individuals to connect with each other, thereby creating a unique cultural community in which pride, place, self-esteem, support, and hope could be nurtured, as the weight of mental illness became merely a shared part of that larger process.

As a unique, regional program, RHC has served almost 500 members. Collaborating with staff and peer specialists, members have made their needs and interests known, the result being an ever-evolving program of groups, support, skills training, and advocacy. An outcome study of this recovery model found that participants attributed significant improvement in adherence with treatment regimens, reduction in psychiatric symptoms, enhanced self-esteem, improved stress tolerance and hopefulness to the program, despite an average of 16 years of previous psychiatric treatment.¹ To appreciate the depth of this program, please visit http://www.rainbowheights.org.

¹ Hellman, R.E.; Huygen, C.; Klein, E.; Chew, M.; & Uttaro, T. (2010.) A study of members of a support and advocacy program for LGBT persons with major mental illness. Best Practices in Mental Health: An International Journal, 6(2), 13–26.