Whoa! I have had one hectic week! Most of it has been work-related, so I’m not complaining (when one is a freelance writer and editor, one doesn’t complain when work gets hectic), but I’ve barely been able to leave my desk long enough to take Chopper outside.

Next week is going to be just as hectic, but that’s mostly because of all the big plans I have for Mental Health Notes, as well as something special all of us in the b5media Health & Wellness Channel are cooking up.

Oooh, I bet you’re curious now.

Have patience and, in the meantime, enjoy this week’s Saturday Sanity!

This week at Mental Health Notes, Aside from telling you about brain foods for vegetarians and the history of the emoticon, as well as making a few announcements (see below), I didn’t do a whole lot of writing (I told you – it was a hectic week!). Fortunately, Airdrie Miller (remember her?) wrote a very special four-part guest series for Mental Health Notes about her battle with depression. If you missed it, backtrack and catch up with part one, part two, part three, and part four. I feel very blessed that she shared her story here.

Regarding mental health advocacy, Project Helping Hands is now also offering mental health resources to Hurricane Ike victims, NAMI has established a special fund to help Gustav and Ike victims, Mental Health America has launched its Vote for America’s Mental Health campaign, and the DBSA has launched a support group for parents of people with mood disorders.

In the world of mental health news, mental health professionals seem to be choosing methods that aren’t proven effective over methods that are proven effective when treating children suffering from PTSD, researchers are still linking pot and psychosis (did I read another study about that once?), overbearing parents may be fostering obsessive children (hmm…kind of like college students having low self-esteem because of their parents’ high expectations?), and homosexual men are experiencing poor mental health due to homonegativity (which is a “negative attitude towards homosexuality”).

Here at b5media’s Health & Wellness Channel, we’re as busy as always:

• Kelly at Grounded Fitness wants to tell y’all about her GoTrybe.com one-year membership giveaway.
• Marijke at Womb Within wants to promote National Seat Check Saturday (which takes place today!).
• Karen at Pink Ribbon Review is recruiting people to join her team for Lee National Denim Day.
• Liz and Mary Emma remind us that today is the deadline to submit to the All About Alzheimer’s Carnival.

Enjoy your Saturdays!

Image: SXC

Post from: Blisstree

Saturday Sanity: Putting An End To A Hectic Week

If you’re the parent of someone with a mood disorder, and you’re free tonight at 8 p.m. Eastern Time (or 7 p.m. Central, 6 p.m. Mountain, 5 p.m. Pacific, 12 a.m. Tuesday GMT), then I have news of interest for you.

The Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA) is launching an online support group for parents of people with mood disorders. You can learn more about this DBSA online support group – including its regular schedule – at DBSA Online Support Groups.

You may even find another one you’d like to attend.

Oh, and the DBSA is looking for your opinions about their online community. If you’re interested in sharing, check out the Online Community Use Survey.

For more posts related to online support groups, visit:

• Online Resources For Parents Of Children With Mental Illness
• Review These Online OCD Support Resources
• National Council Uses Second Life For Mental Health Advocacy
• Who and How to Choose Your Support Group

Imae: Newscom

Post from: Blisstree

Online Support Group For Parents Of People With Mood Disorders

So far in the “Top 5 Ways To Be A Mental Health Advocate” series here at Mental Health Notes, I’ve given you reasons to stop promoting stigma and a list of large mental health advocacy and research organizations with which you can get involved.

Today, let’s talk about the importance of smaller mental health support groups, how you can get involved with one, and how you can even start one if there are none in your area.

Number Three: Become a mental health advocate when you get involved with mental health support groups, or start a mental health support group.

Seek out mental health support groups in your area. You may find that your community mental health center or one of the larger mental health advocacy organizations already have support groups to join. You can also check out your state’s Department of Health and Human Resources (this organization may also be called Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Division, or Division of Public Health), or join online mental health support groups.

If your area doesn’t have a mental health support group, there are several ways you can start one. Start by contacting your local community mental health center, your Department of Health and Human Resources (or similar name), or one of the larger mental health advocacy groups. You may find that one of the larger groups would love to help you start an affiliate group in your area. (That’s how I started my area’s NAMI affiliate support group.)

Whether it’s you or someone you love who has a mental illness, mental health support groups are great ways to learn more about mental health, find resources, and talk to others who know what you’re going through.

Stay tuned for tomorrow’s information about educating yourself and others about mental health, but in the meantime, share your thoughts here about mental health support groups.

• Do you belong to a mental health support group? How has it worked for you, or helped you better understand mental health?
• Have you been successful at starting a mental health support group in your area?

Image: SXC and iofoto.

Post from: Blisstree

Get Involved With Mental Health Support Groups

Ever want to know more about online support groups? Been curious and tempted to join one, but skeptical or unsure of how you’d benefit?

Well, you’re in luck. The Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA) is having another online chat today, and this time the “guest” is DBSA Chapter Recruitment Manager Elizabeth Siegel who will talk with chat participants about the benefits of DBSA online support groups.

Chat times are:

Eastern: 4:30 p.m.
Central: 3:30 p.m.
Mountain: 2:30 p.m.
Pacific: 1:30 p.m.

To find out more about the chat and sign up, visit DBSA Chat: Online Support Groups–Benefits & Challenges.

Image: Newscom

Post from: Blisstree

Join The Latest DBSA Chat To Learn More About Online Support Groups

Good news! I did some snooping around and found several OCD resources online. Based on factors such as visibility, reputation, and activity I narrowed them down to the top five.

Check them out!

1. The Obsessive-Compulsive Foundation, or OCF, was founded in 1986 and provides education, assistance, and support for people with OCD and their family and friends. As far as I can tell, the OCF doesn’t have any online support groups, but they do provide a search tool you can use to search for OCD support groups in your area.
2. In addition to a pretty thorough overview of OCD, the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) provides the Living with OCD Discussion Group. You’ll need to create an account with NAMI to access the discussion group, but it’s fast and free.
3. The Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA) also provides online support forums. The forums are divided into topics, and the Anxiety and Mood Disorders Forum would be your best bet as OCD is an anxiety disorder. The DBSA also requires you to create an account to access the forums, but like NAMI’s accounts, they are fast and free to create.
4. Daily Strength is a beautiful Web site that has over 500 online support groups, including an online obsessive-compulsive disorder support group Similar to the NAMI and DBSA support groups, you have to create an account with Daily Strength. Again, it’s fast and free. However, with a Daily Strength account, you can write blogs, upload pictures, and add friends, too – if you choose to do so. I really like that site.
5. In addition to OCD news, treatment information, and research information, OCD-UK provides my friends across the pond with the OCD Discussion Forums. You must create an account, but from the header I see links for blogs, galleries, and an arcade.

Have you had success with any of these online obsessive-compulsive support groups, or do you know of any that should be added to the list? Share in the comments!

Image: Newscom

Remember! You have until May 31, 2008 to enter the Mental Health Notes Birthday Giveaway, and forever to join the This Is Why I ROCK! series!

Post from: Blisstree

Review These Online OCD Support Resources

Let’s see how much you know about mental health and factors that can actually predict the status of a person’s mental health.

Choose which of the following factors you think is the most effective in predicting a person’s mental health status:

• Race/ethnicity
• Age
• Education
• Income
• Literacy skills
• Employment

If you chose literacy skills, you’re absolutely correct. And it’s deeper than just being able to read and write – it’s also being able to understand health-related information. In other words, it’s your health literacy.

According to The Partnership for Clear Health Communication, or PCHC, individuals are more likely to have trouble with their health if they aren’t able to read and understand things like prescription medication instructions and self-managed treatment materials. They’re also less likely to seek medical help when they suspect a problem, as well as less likely to ask the doctor questions if they don’t fully understand the steps they need to take to get well.

Having health literacy issues doesn’t mean you’re uneducated, too young or too old, or poor. You could be a 30-year-old millionaire attorney, and still have trouble understanding health material.

At the same time, issues such as shock, fear, and stress can impair your health literacy. It’s not shocking to imagine someone who has a stressful home life and has just been diagnosed with more than one health problem might have difficulty understanding what they must do to treat or manage the problems.

Today’s Mental Health Month tip? Brush up on your health literacy.

The PCHC has developed a program called Ask Me 3, in which patients are encouraged to ask their doctors three questions: What is my main problem?, What do I need to do?, and Why is it important for me to do this?

I have a few suggestions of my own to help boost your health literacy:

• Upon diagnosis of your mental health condition, ask your doctor for information about support groups in your area. Not only will support groups help you deal with your diagnosis, but they’ll also help you better understand it – as well as your treatment – since they’re full of “veterans,” so to speak.
• If you’re not comfortable joining a local support group, consider an online group. You can do this through email groups, message boards, and even chat rooms.
• Soak up as much information about the mental health condition as possible. Visit websites dedicated to providing easy-to-understand information, as well as tools designed to help you manage your condition.

Have you had issues with health literacy? How did you remedy the problem?

Image: Newscom

Post from: Blisstree

Mental Health Month Day 24 – Brush Up On Your Health Literacy