Gosh it's cold here. In October we were informed by the Met Office that we were going to have a 'mild winter.' On a par with their 'barbeque' summer that didn't arrive, I don't think that they do their job very well, do they? And they're telling us that by 2050 we'll have 'scorching summers'. Blah blah blah...
So this morning we skated our way around the Heath and the dog avoided the really icy bits too but he has four legs and a lower centre of gravity and there's not too much to worry about him toppling over. I only saw three people almost come a cropper this week on one particular and famous piece of glass. You'd think that the powers-that-be who work for the Heath would've done something about this. But, of course not. I remember when I last asked these gentlemen about doing something to alleviate the possibility of broken bones. 'If we grit one path,' one of them said. 'Then we'd have to grit them all...' Makes one open-mouthed in awe, doesn't it!
Lots of articles about poor Mr. Shaikh. One thing in agreement: Why was it that the Chinese authorities wouldn't allow him to see a psychiatrist? Was it because the Chinese actually wanted to execute a Westerner simply to show that no one's gonna mess with them? Well, it seemed to have worked. Who's going to boycott China?
So tomorrow it's back to normal. We have a new year and a new decade. I wonder whether it will be any better than the last. Will there be new medications discovered that work better for people with mental illnesses? Will there be more money injected into the system here for better care in the NHS for those who are vulnerable? Will there be a different attitude shown towards drug addiction and mental illness? I think it's highly unlikely that anything will change. One can but hope.
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The Dark Side of The Son
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Here I will be writing about.....
My Name is Ros Morris. This is my blog.
'Don't Wait for Me' was written in response to my own desperation for the lack of anything written in this country about the difficulties and fears living with someone with Bipolar disorder. Indeed, any mental illness.
I decided to write a blog to reflect my feelings about the mental health services, news items and current affairs. I can't say that I'm a fan of the mental health services in this country. They just don't seem to get it. Too many people slide through the bureaucracy that stymies help reaching vulnerable people. Too many people in the 'profession' do too little, constrained by their using 'human rights' as a way of keeping the desperately ill out of hospital and, effectively, on the streets.
My readers may well not agree with all that I write. You may not agree with my political views. That's fine. There's the comments section for that.
I decided to write a blog to reflect my feelings about the mental health services, news items and current affairs. I can't say that I'm a fan of the mental health services in this country. They just don't seem to get it. Too many people slide through the bureaucracy that stymies help reaching vulnerable people. Too many people in the 'profession' do too little, constrained by their using 'human rights' as a way of keeping the desperately ill out of hospital and, effectively, on the streets.
My readers may well not agree with all that I write. You may not agree with my political views. That's fine. There's the comments section for that.
The Sunday Telegraph - Stella Magazine
The Dark Side of The Son
All About Me
- Ros Morris
- London, United Kingdom
- I have lived in London for most of my life. Having once been a historian who worked on the Holocaust Exhibition at the Imperial War Museum, I'm now a writer and blogger and sculptor.
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7 comments:
It's unlikely that things will change this soon, but I'm hoping with Obama it might get better. Who knows??
Glenn Close came out with a great PSA here for mental illness, but I felt that it only catered to a small demographic.
My goal is to produce PSA's that cater to all races and mainly our youth that have a dual diagnosis. Drug addiction usually goes hand in hand with mental illness.
The real task will be to get national airtime. It's costly and the corporations out here would rather donate to Cancer, Diabetes, Asthma, HIV, Autism, anything but mental illness!
It's so sad, look at our correctional system here in the US. The prison's are filled with drug addicted young adults that are suffering from mental illness. Unfortunately, you or your parents have to be wealthy in order to get proper treatment and a good attorney!
Oh and as to "Who's going to boycott China?" That's an even bigger joke.
Hi Mia,
Thanks for commenting. I've no idea whether Obama will be able to make things any better vis a vis mental health in the USA either. So much money will be wasted on other things.
Glad that you read my book. Hope that it resonated with you too. Just tell people about it so that they will also buy it!
Our prisons are also filled with young (and old) people with mental illnesses. We need to have back the old types of homes where they are cared for - not imprisoned.
I belong to a group here in Los Angeles called NAMI (National Alliance in mental illness). They are a nationwide 501 c3 and saved me when I had no where else to turn.
I will be bringing your book to our meeting this week. It is so hard to find a good book on bipolar/drug addiction. In fact, yours was the only one I could find. I have read books like "An unquiet mind", but I could not relate to them. I desperately needed to find someone with my story as a mother and a dual diagnosed son!
It is so common, yet so not talked about! : ( I'm confident your book will bring comfort to the many parents here in the US that are still suffering.
I'm really pleased that my book helped you. I wrote it because there is no other kind of book out there like this. I was desperate for something when my son first got sick. Something that wasn't simply a list of symptoms and medications. Everything that I found was frightening and remote.
So sorry that you have to go through the whole thing too. At least knowing that you are not alone and having a group to meet with helps.
I would love my book to have a greater readership. From what I know, it doesn't have a USA publisher and can only be obtained from Amazon. Maybe if enough people buy it, a publisher will be interested and, at least, it will be cheaper to buy.
I think that there are far more organisations and groups in the USA than here.
I searched every book store and went all over the internet starting 3 years ago when my son was first diagnosed at 17. I could not find anything that I could relate to!
In December I started typing in key words on google, anything I could think of that I hadn't already done.
You're book came up finally and I was so excited I tried to put a rush on the delivery, but it wouldn't let me. So I waited, checking the mail everyday!
When the book came I could not believe what I was reading. A musical genius that traveled the world who was bipolar and also an addict. And had a sister only 3 years apart, in and out of hospitals, etc... I was reading about my own son! What were the chances of that!?
Anyway, I knew this book would help the parents at NAMI, but you're right it's not available here so that does make it a bit more difficult. However, these parents are desperate too and wouldn't mind paying the price on Amazon.
I will ask my literary agent about the publishers here. My fitness book recently came out here in the US and I was really pleased with the deal he got me.
I feel your book is a must read for all parents that even think their child may be an addict or have a mental illness. We need to bring awareness to people here in the US and educate them!
Thanks Mia. I have been in touch with my agent again and they are going to see what they can do about getting the book published in the USA. The problem is, of course, is that there are so many first-person stories out there - but very few that one can really relate to. Additionally, there are also those 'memoirs' that are actually fiction but make good stories! Good luck with your book group and your book too.
Best of luck! I really hope it gets published here. Until then, I will just keep sending people to Amazon : )
Take care,
Mia
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