Mentally ill, but not crazy
Because of the nature of our work, we are often in contact with people who have mentally challenged family members in prison. It's the worst place in the world for them. Prison staffers aren't trained to handle the mentally ill, and prison facilities are not appropriate for those who can't watch out for themselves.
A mother was just telling me this week that her son's behavior has gone awry because of a change in medications. He was apparently doing all right on a certain medicine, but she said the change was made strictly for saving money and with no regard for patient care. I have no way to challenge her assertion. She said her son also keeps asking to meet with his psychologist, to no avail. He explains the side effects that he is experiencing from this new medicine, but that gets him no where.
Mental illness leads to confrontation issues with guards, and so this past week, one of the officers came to her son. They had just dealt with a matter of misbehavior, and the guard said to the prisoner, "You are crazy. I've been dealing with your kind for 13 years." And then he started laughing at him. This made her son mad, soon he and the guard were in each other's faces. But the guard, who should know better, then says, "I want to beat your ass. Let's take this away from the cameras." Meaning the video cams that are on around the clock. Fortunately, another prisoner had the cooler head and persuaded her son to go back to his cell. You see, in his altered state of mind, this lad just doesn't realize that he cannot win. The guards always win. He was ready to fight.
It's a way of life in the prison system with the mentally ill. It goes on every day, and if the account of the dialog is accurate, one wonders if the term crazy better describes the other participant.
Think what the release of mentally ill prisoners would do for our prison budgets, let alone for the health and welfare of challenged inmates.
It's gotta change!
A mother was just telling me this week that her son's behavior has gone awry because of a change in medications. He was apparently doing all right on a certain medicine, but she said the change was made strictly for saving money and with no regard for patient care. I have no way to challenge her assertion. She said her son also keeps asking to meet with his psychologist, to no avail. He explains the side effects that he is experiencing from this new medicine, but that gets him no where.
Mental illness leads to confrontation issues with guards, and so this past week, one of the officers came to her son. They had just dealt with a matter of misbehavior, and the guard said to the prisoner, "You are crazy. I've been dealing with your kind for 13 years." And then he started laughing at him. This made her son mad, soon he and the guard were in each other's faces. But the guard, who should know better, then says, "I want to beat your ass. Let's take this away from the cameras." Meaning the video cams that are on around the clock. Fortunately, another prisoner had the cooler head and persuaded her son to go back to his cell. You see, in his altered state of mind, this lad just doesn't realize that he cannot win. The guards always win. He was ready to fight.
It's a way of life in the prison system with the mentally ill. It goes on every day, and if the account of the dialog is accurate, one wonders if the term crazy better describes the other participant.
Think what the release of mentally ill prisoners would do for our prison budgets, let alone for the health and welfare of challenged inmates.
It's gotta change!
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