Monday, July 23, 2007
The Illness of the Mind
A good friend of mine decided to blog a blogathon, blogging in remembrance of a dear friend and to raise awareness of the state of mental health in Malaysia and this is done in support of Malaysia Mental Health Association.
Elena: Do you know Malaysia has a Mental Health Association?
Richard: Well, it is common sense for each country to have such an association.
Elena: But do you know Malaysia has a Mental Health Association?
Richard: Well, no, I did not know. Are they in charge of Hospital Bahagia and Tanjung Rambutan?
SEEEE!!! I am not the only ignorant brat in the Malaysian healthcare system that did not know the existence of the Malaysian Mental Health Association.
And this I blame IMU and the education system of the hospitals. And myself for my ignorance.
But they said ignorance is bliss. And truly it was.
I always thought that mentally ill patients are those with psychosis and are mentally retarded, who sit in chairs the whole day drooling with no memory of who they are. They are the one who grinned and laughed for no apparent reason, they have hallucinations and are often delirious.
But that is not the case. Mental illness covers an enormous spectrum, and schizophrenia and mania is only a minuscule part of this illness. I never knew depression and anxiety was regarded as a mental illness, I always thought people who 'act out' are people who had nothing better to do or LOA (lack of attention).
This may be because of the Asian upbringing which does not believe that mood disorders and eating disorders is a disease.
"It is all in the mind..." - Zen saying
Admitting that you are depressed is like giving up, it shows that you are useless, a pessimist who has no hope left. If you suffer from panic attacks, you are just melebeh-ing. You have anxiety, you are just 'kan chiong'. You attempted suicide, people think you are crazy, or you lost big in the stock market, or you owe the loansharks a lot of money. You starve yourself, people think you are just stupid. You have horrible mood swings, people think you got problem.
I do not think this is stigmatisation. I think it is just pure ignorance.
But then I came to Australia and found out that actually this is actually a diagnostic illness certified by the DSM. In Malaysia, we were never taught that depression was because of chemical imbalances in the brain, we were never taught that suicidal thoughts and self-harming are symptoms of certain mental health illness. It is considered sad when I, a medical student, learnt a little about mental health from DEBATING!!! And I still lack a lot in the knowledge department.
And I still have trouble acknowledging these illnesses because unlike a heart attack or a stroke, diagnosing these illnesses is difficult and vague and so fucking subjective. And unlike diabetes and asthma which can be treated with just medication, treating depression and anxiety is again so vague and the patient must be cooperative, and you do not get results... It can be so fucking frustrating at times.
So what am I trying to say again?
The bottom line is, our family members and friends could be suffering from such mental illness for all we know. And we do not know, because we are not aware of it. So for just one day, in remembrance of a friend that we could not help because we were not AWARE... let's just join hands with Yee Pei to pay tribute to that friend and together create awareness of the state of the mental health system of our country.
This is to WALK ON BY, in support of the Malaysia Mental Health Association. Blogathon starts at 9pm (GMT+8) on the 28th of July. Come online and support the blog.
And to the blogging team, I dedicate this little poem:
bold = patient
italics = doctor
CONVERSATION
Hello, you came again,
How are you today?
I am great, eating bait,
Fate and number eight.
You look good in the rain.
Did your wife send you that bouquet?
Yes, beautiful flowers,
From the king’s towers,
In the state of Maine -
What did you ask again?
Do you still having grandiose delusions?
Nope, I am still god.
How about exaggerated self-esteem?
I am still greater than god.
Any hallucinations or illusions?
Nope, but the voice in my head,
Is telling me you are to be dead.
What about yesterday’s dream?
You know the men in white?
They give me a fright,
They are going to kill me,
So dream is no good, save me.
Are you feeling any better?
I never felt as good,
Ever since I met that dude.
Which dude? What’s the matter?
The voice of love says kill you,
She says that you are a frengetu.
Hotdogly you may be a friend,
But we have to kill you in the end.
Now, please put that pen down,
Calm down, stop fooling around.
Baby… natural… inches… heart…
Test… relief… easy… smart…
Stay away, leave me alone,
Over this cuckoo nest I’ve flown.
Nurse, hurry, he is psychotic!
He is psychotic, you miserable cur!
We will triumph, bathed in myrrh!
Let me go, the aliens are here,
Let me go, you have lots to fear!
Pump it up, those hypnotics.
No… I don’t want to go back,
Not to those king, queen and jack.
No… I am… not… in..sa..ne…
Will…you…come…see me…a…gain?
Take him back to his room, nurse,
Talking to him is a curse.
The… world… is…no…good… no more…
I am…not…crazy…I … snore…………………
The patient is clearly schizophrenic with thought disorders. For explanation of thought disorders, click HERE
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