[orgagsUpsepsy]

...in our society, mental illnesses have been occurring much more frequently than ever before...something which our mainstream psychology and psychiatry fields seem to have missed.

what you have written is partially correct. i would offer the perspective that in western society, with the reductionist mentality, everything can be "fixed with a pill'. this led to a pharmaceutical revolution, in which doctor's prescribe government approved poisons to people, which have limited effectiveness, and usually create more problems than they were designed to "solve". so, whether or not it is in fact occuring much more could be correltated to sales of medication, correct?

i have the courage to admit that i have gone through the "pill" route several times - post traumatic stress disorder, depression, and anxiety (pretty much all tied together from the unexpected death of my mother and subsequent difficulties in life during those 5 years of grieving). i've often been told that during those times on medication, i was devoid of any emotion. so, while they were slightly effective at countering depression or anxiety, they also destroyed any ability for compassion, joy, and even the negative emotions like grief. i often felt like a "robot" that was living a "prescribed lifestyle". there was no desire to explore, no sense adventure in life. without these desires, i had no appreciation for the beauty of each day, no sense of the infinite possibilities that each day brings.

since those struggles i've come to realize the importance of understanding "stimuli that produce stress" and how stress can manifest negatively:

- depression (i could be diagnosed with seasonal affective disorder - the midwest is notorious for three straight months of gray skies during winter; living in the mountains of western nc, the winters are filled with many more sunny days, so thats a simple solution to a "problem that i discovered was recurrent :d )

- anxiety (being overwhelmed at work - "working a job i hated to buy s@*t i don't need - changing careers from engineering to teaching has brought me the personal and professional satisifcation that i craved, that i needed to be successful. if you don't feel this way about your job, you should really consider changing careers - i know its difficult and uncertain, but you'd be amazed at how your life will change!)

stress can be channeled into positive energy though. don't run from stress, learn to master it. if you know someone who could use a "shift in perception", maybe this could help (although i do not suggest anyone abruptly stop taking medication!).

we as a society need to accept the fact that the american medical system is dominated by pharmaceutical companies that make tidy profits from ordinary people taking their drugs. their greed reigns supreme, with the welfare of the people a distant second. now i'm making a gross generalization here, so please don't be offended - there are many good people out there thinking they are doing the right thing, and in fact, many are.

i once heard that 60 million americans are taking medication for depression. that is 1/5th of the population. and if 1/5th of americans were experiencing life the way i did while taking antidepressants, no wonder this country has so many issues. apathy abounds. there is no desire to enrich one's life, they have been labeled, and fall into the victim mentality.

these companies have a reductionist viewpoint, which, while effective at understanding alot of things, does not reveal the whole picture. in all derivatives of "reductionism", the "holistic" (unified, no separation) approach is beginning to take hold due to better results. general healthcare is becoming more integrated - soon it shall be so with "mental illness" as well. i am a strong advocate of lifestyle change - diet and exercise, in addition to meditation, for treating depression and anxiety. understanding who you are and how you work are very helpful in understanding why certain stimuli create stress, and ultimately, one can come to control how they react to stress.

i remember taking responsibility for my own life and well-being at some point ... looking back--that moment of taking responsibility for myself was the most empowering choice.

she'd been through dark nights, only she wasn't aware that she could choose whether she was going to accept someone's truth outside of her who gave her a label, or whether she was going to challenge it and take responsibility for learning to love unconditionally herself and to treat herself with compassion rather than looking for someone outside of herself to do it first--basically, to validate her beingness.
well said! simply beautiful. thank you for having the courage to write about a "topic" that most people shy away from. this is a very real issue that we'll have to solve at some point. i'm afraid that if 1/5th of the american population is under the "spell" of "mind-altering" drugs, they have no choice, no free will to participate in the spiritual revolution of oneness... these drugs change neurochemistry and may have the potential to block incoming energies...

similar to the analogy of sunlight exposure: the threat of skin cancer and subsequent decrease in exposure has created more problems through vitamin d deficiency, which can lead to cancers throughout the body. in the end, the view that we should limit exposure has hurt more people than it has helped. i propose that in the following years, we will also come to the same conclusion with many medications, up to and including antidepressants, etc.

i look forward to continuing the conversation.

art