Dear Governor Bush,

The title of this blog is vague yet I hope will get people’s attention who normally would not read blogs I write.

It is sad, but true, that if I wrote something like “I used to live in Florida and wanted to thank you for what you did for the mentally Ill”  it would be ignored by almost everyone except mental health  advocates.

That is because the topic of mental illness and the failing mental health system is a taboo subject in this election. The media and candidates refuse to talk about how they would solve the crisis that affects us all.  Some of the candidates contribute to the stigma that is attached to the mentally ill.  Do you not believe me? Then, read Where the 2016 Candidates Stand on Mental Health Issues by Time Magazine.

I am writing to you, Governor Bush, because I attended UCF and taught for about 9 years where you were governor.   I recently found out that you had played a part in people with mental illness receiving  better access to services. I thank you for that. I just wish you could have done more as governor and talked more about it during your campaign.  Solving the problem is so important to so many people. In fact, 25% of the people in America have a mental illness.  All the advocates really want to know what the candidates are going to do about this issue that is just as important as the other issues that are talked about.  Ref1

I now live in a state where we have not yet voted. I am an independent voter and I am so undecided that the idea of writing in Mickey Mouse is becoming a reality. I am writing to you to see if you can somehow get people talking about the issue of mental health to help other advocates and I decide who we should vote for.  I know it is too late for you to make your case and get elected. However, while you are in the national spotlight, it would be really admirable if you could insist that the media demands answers from the candidates of how they are going to SOLVE the problem.

I want this question answered: Candidates-Do you care about the 25% of Americans who have a mental Illness? PROVE IT!

Mental Illness and the Mental Health Crisis affects every single American! Think about it: It does not just affect the mentally ill (many veterans) and their families. It has an impact on those who have lost loved ones at the hands of someone with a severe mental illness or the people who were traumatized because they were there.

If you don’t know anyone who has a mental illness and were never at a tragedy scene, have you ever watched the media coverage of one? If you have, I would say you are affected too. If it were me, I would be worried that an unstable person with a mental illness would come in and start shooting at my workplace, my child’s school, where I worship, or at a public place where a lot of people are.

Therefore, I would have to say that pretty much every American should want to know what their future president is going to do about this issue. The voters want to know how they are going to solve it, and don’t want candidates to just brush it off and say a few words about it. It is just as important as many of the other issues discussed and definitely more important than the entertaining theatrics.

I want you to know the things that the mentally ill face:

• not knowing what symptoms to look for because the public is not educated
• embarrassment  to get help
• not knowing where to get help
• can’t get help when they nee it
• being jailed instead of hospitalized
• the revolving doors because they can’t get outpatient care
• mistreatment by staff members in hospitals
• being ignored when they try to reach out to supervisors or patient relations after mistreatment
• being ignored after they plead the people who represent them in Congress to do something to help them and others- They get no response from emails, snail mail, phone calls, and social media
• being ignored by the media when they offer to tell their story and they want nothing to do with it and very rarely even talk about the mentally ill at all, especially patients who are dying due to mistreatment at hospitals and jails
• insurance companies  deciding that they can’t get meds that have worked for a long time
• not being able to afford medications
• Discrimination and Stigma- If you don’t think we are discriminated against, then read I have a Dream Re: Mental Illness

A a mental health advocate and someone who struggles with a mental illness, I have written many articles and made many attempts to contact the media and politicians over the years without success. The thousands of people who read my blogs are usually other advocates and they encourage me with my efforts. The problem is that I need you and other people with influence to hear my voice and theirs.

The mental health crisis and the mentally ill can’t be kept out of the country with a wall.  We are here and should have a voice. We are human beings who have endured not only our illness, but the stigma and discrimination that goes with it.  We are Americans just like everyone else and even though many candidates might think we  are not smart enough or too crazy to find our ways to the polls, we will.  We just need to know what candidate is going to be on our side so we know who to support and vote for.  (Please see below my signature all the other blogs I have written regarding mental health advocacy and asking the media and politicians for help.)

Sincerely,

Michelle Clark

Bipolar Bandit blog  Twitter Facebook Pinterest 

Founder of FB page Mental Health Advocates United

Founder of FB Group:  Advocates for People with Mental Illnesses

Bipolar Bandit blog  Twitter Facebook Pinterest 

Picture credit: USA Today (captured from video)

Candidates-Do you care about the 25% of Americans who have a mental Illness? PROVE IT!

Did you miss the debate? Mental Illness Was Not Discussed

Mental Health Should be a Priority

40 Million Voters Ignored

Why June 3rd Is an Important Day in the US, Who is Invited, and What is the Agenda?

Advocates for People with Mental Illnesses Need to Unite

What can a mental health advocate do to help people with mental illnesses?

What is required to be a Mental Health Care Advocate?

Encouragement from a Political Mental Health Advocate and News Channel

Mental Health Awareness Day & Thanks to Some Governors

Appeal to the media and politicians: Does anyone care that it is Mental Illness Awareness Week in America?

Major Overhaul Needed Re: Mental Health System

Dear Senator Rand Paul,

The title of this blog is vague yet I hope will get people’s attention who normally would not read blogs I write.

It is sad, but true, that if I wrote something like “The Mentally Ill need Senator Paul’s help'” it would be ignored by almost everyone except mental help advocates.

That is because the topic of mental illness and the failing mental health system is a taboo subject in this election. The media and candidates refuse to talk about how they would solve the crisis that affects us all.  Some of the candidates contribute to the stigma that is attached to the mentally ill.  Do you not believe me? Then, read Where the 2016 Candidates Stand on Mental Health Issues by Time Magazine.

I am writing to you, Senator Paul, because you are someone  I have liked and admired for a long time. I am hoping that because you are in the national spotlight right now, you can encourage the media and the candidates to address this important issue.

I don’t usually reveal who I would vote for when writing blog entries, participating in my social media sites, or even talking to others.  However, I am very disappointed in all the candidates right now. I live in a state that has not yet voted in the primaries and have no idea who I would vote for.

This topic of mental health is very important to me among others and I hope that before I get a chance to vote I will know how each candidate would SOLVE the this problem.   If I don’t get any kind of answer, I will be writing your name on the ballot.  I have thought about others, but definitely do not have a favorite.  I want to ask them all and have with no response: Candidates-Do you care about the 25% of Americans who have a mental Illness? PROVE IT!

Mental Illness and the Mental Health Crisis affects every single American! Think about it: It does not just affect the mentally ill (many veterans) and their families. It has an impact on those who have lost loved ones at the hands of someone with a severe mental illness or the people who were traumatized because they were there.

If you don’t know anyone who has a mental illness and were never at a tragedy scene, have you ever watched the media coverage of one? If you have, I would say you are affected too. If it were me, I would be worried that an unstable person with a mental illness would come in and start shooting at my workplace, my child’s school, where I worship, or at a public place where a lot of people are.

Therefore, I would have to say that pretty much every American should want to know what their future president is going to do about this issue. The voters want to know how they are going to solve it, and don’t want candidates to just brush it off and say a few words about it. It is just as important as many of the other issues discussed and definitely more important than the entertaining theatrics.

I want you to know the things that the mentally ill face:

• not knowing what symptoms to look for because the public is not educated
• embarrassment  to get help
• not knowing where to get help
• can’t get help when they nee it
• being jailed instead of hospitalized
• the revolving doors because they can’t get outpatient care
• mistreatment by staff members in hospitals
• being ignored when they try to reach out to supervisors or patient relations after mistreatment
• being ignored after they plead the people who represent them in Congress to do something to help them and others- They get no response from emails, snail mail, phone calls, and social media
• being ignored by the media when they offer to tell their story and they want nothing to do with it and very rarely even talk about the mentally ill at all, especially patients who are dying due to mistreatment at hospitals and jails
• insurance companies  deciding that they can’t get meds that have worked for a long time
• not being able to afford medications
• Discrimination and Stigma- If you don’t think we are discriminated against, then read I have a Dream Re: Mental Illness

A a mental health advocate and someone who struggles with a mental illness, I have written many articles and made many attempts to contact the media and politicians over the years without success. The thousands of people who read my blogs are usually other advocates and they encourage me with my efforts. The problem is that I need you and other people with influence to hear my voice and theirs.

The mental health crisis and the mentally ill can’t be kept out of the country with a wall.  We are here and should have a voice. We are strong human beings who have endured not only our illness, but the stigma and discrimination that goes with it.  We are Americans just like everyone else and even though many candidates might think we  are not smart enough or too crazy to find our ways to the polls, we will.  We just need to know what candidate is going to be on our side so we know who to support and vote for.  (Please see below my signature all the other blogs I have written regarding mental health advocacy and asking the media and politicians for help.)

Sincerely,

Michelle Clark

Bipolar Bandit blog  Twitter Facebook Pinterest 

Founder of FB page Mental Health Advocates United

Founder of FB Group:  Advocates for People with Mental Illnesses

Bipolar Bandit blog  Twitter Facebook Pinterest 

Picture Source: Twitter (otherwise unknown)  

Candidates-Do you care about the 25% of Americans who have a mental Illness? PROVE IT!

Did you miss the debate? Mental Illness Was Not Discussed

Mental Health Should be a Priority

40 Million Voters Ignored

Why June 3rd Is an Important Day in the US, Who is Invited, and What is the Agenda?

Advocates for People with Mental Illnesses Need to Unite

What can a mental health advocate do to help people with mental illnesses?

What is required to be a Mental Health Care Advocate?

Encouragement from a Political Mental Health Advocate and News Channel

Mental Health Awareness Day & Thanks to Some Governors

Appeal to the media and politicians: Does anyone care that it is Mental Illness Awareness Week in America?

Major Overhaul Needed Re: Mental Health System

March Madness usually refers to college football. I think this year it will refer to the madness   of how the candidates can’t prove what they stand for and the campaigns all rely on mudslinging. arch Madness usually refers to college football. I think this year it will refer to the madness   of how the candidates can’t prove what they stand for and the campaigns all rely on mudslinging.

For the most part, the colleges get along when playing basketball and most of them play with good sportsmanship. Very rarely do you see them attacking them about their beliefs, religion, and character. In fact, if they were to openly do that, they would not be able to play.

However, our candidates are allowed to do anything they want without consequences. Well, of course there are consequences. Just like a college team can lose, a candidate can lose an election.

It is time to start rallying around the team you want to support and the one you think can win the championship. Just like basketball, it is time to start seriously consider who you want to win.  Many times the teams you have chosen to win the championship are not included in your brackets. However, that point  you still need to cheer for someone.  You might not have the two candidates to choose from when it comes to the general election, but you better start facing it, it might not be who you want.

If that is the case, you need to put all the crap that they will be slinging at each other and choose the candidate who can best help America the best. In order to pick one, you must know where they stand on certain issues and what they are going to do about them.  Clinton likes to promise everything and say she will do better than the Republicans no matter what. However, she has not come up with a valid plan as to how she will do it.  Trump likes to point out all the things that are wrong with America, but offers very little ideas of how will “Make America Great Again” It is wishful thinking that things are just going to get better when we have a new person in the White House.

As voters, we need to make a decision not based on who can call the other person the most names or point out all the things their opponent has done wrong. We need to make a choice as to who we think will run the country like we would want them to.  We should want proof that they care about certain issues and have devised a plan to fix the problems that face America.

One such issue is the mental health issue.  I pose this question to all the candidates: What will you do to help with the mental health system?  Will you at least talk about it so that the people with mental illnesses don’t feel discriminated and forgotten? Will you promise to do something about the stigma, the overcrowding of hospitals, the lack of quality care, the mistreatment of psychiatric patients, the homeless who end up there because they can’t get adequate care for their mental illness, and stop having revolving doors in psychiatric wards and prisons.  Prove to 25% of your voters that you do care.  We are Americans and we will vote and we could just make a difference as to if you win or not.

Did you miss the debate? Mental Illness Was Not Discussed

Candidates-Do you care about the 25% of Americans who have a mental Illness? PROVE IT!

Mental Health Should be a Priority

40 Million Voters Ignored

Why June 3rd Is an Important Day in the US, Who is Invited, and What is the Agenda?

Advocates for People with Mental Illnesses Need to Unite

What can a mental health advocate do to help people with mental illnesses?

What is required to be a Mental Health Care Advocate?

Encouragement from a Political Mental Health Advocate and News Channel

Mental Health Awareness Day & Thanks to Some Governors

Appeal to the media and politicians: Does anyone care that it is Mental Illness Awareness Week in America?

Major Overhaul Needed Re: Mental Health System

PICTURE CREDIT: http://www.dailykos.com/

                                                          Picture Credit: CNN.com

I have to admit that I did not watch the debate even though I had planned to. I did read the recaps this morning.  It is sad that it seemed more like an entertaining piece where thy pretty much attacked each other and not much was talked about the issues.

Once again, Americans don’t have much to base their decisions on other than who can be the one with the best character or worse in the case of some others I won’t mention.

I don’t know how any American can vote in the primaries not knowing much about how the candidates stand on most issues.

I have not voted yet as my state has not had its primaries yet. However, I hope to vote on the person who I know is going to actually “Make America Great Again’  I am not using that quote because I support or don’t support Trump. I am saying that is what needs to happen and I will vote for the person who I am convinced will make America great again. By the way, I am registered independent and therefore will not reveal who I am leaning towards voting for because that is not the point.

If you have read any of my recent blogs that I have shared on Twitter, Facebook making sure that I have tagged all the #election2016 hashtags. I also tweeted to all the media outlets that I could think of and all the candidates. I have had no response from any of them. I do have to say I have had responses from others and many retweets and likes and comments. However, the people who need to hear my points are either ignoring them or not getting them. I really think I, along with other people like me,  are being ignored and that just emphasizes my earlier point. They don’t want to talk about about the issues.

I have written to all candidates via their websites. I have not heard anything. I would be willing to bet that they do respond to most of the other emails they receive. If they don’t then they should not be president in my opinion.  To not listen to the voters is incompetent and frankly should be grounds for impeachment.  They would not be doing their jobs and with any other job, they would get fired if they weren’t doing it.  A good president would not just listen to the “people by the people” they would have good relationships with the Senators and Congressman in order to hear what the people want.

I now have made my points about what I think is wrong with the debates and what I am looking for in a president. As many of you know if you read my blogs, the next part will me getting on my soap box.  I read the article by the New York Times entitled “What you missed in the debate.”  Well, although I did not watch the debate, I would be willing to bet that they did not talk about mental illness or what they would do about the failing mental health system that affects EVERY AMERICAN.  I am not just talking about the mentally ill or their families. I am talking about all those who are affected or witness the horrible crimes by someone who has a mental illness.

Yes, national security is important and balancing the budget are important among many other things. However, something that I have yet to hear addressed in any large capacity is the failing mental health system and what they are going to do about it.

Trump wants to send illegal immigrants back and secure the borders by building a wall. Well, I think he along with probably most of the other candidates would be happy if we could send all the mentally ill to their own island. By not talking about it is not going to make that happen. Addressing the problem with what we are going to do about the mentally ill is just as important as any other topic if not more so.

ARE THEY EVER GOING TO TALK ABOUT IT?

My latest blog suggested things they could do and use to talk about. This is the one that I have tried sharing with all the candidates and media with no response.  If they don’t start listening to the mentally ill and the people who work and love the mentally ill  and do something and in the times before the election PROVE THEY ARE GOING TO DO SOMETHING and WHAT, then the problem will just keep growing and more tragedies will stop occurring, more people with mental illness will be jailed and mistreated and homeless.

I hope that the VOICES of the MENTALLY ILL are heard in my lifetime.  However, at this rate, I am not sure if that things will improve much in my grandchilden’s lifetime.  In fact, it is scary to think what America would be like if nothing is done RIGHT NOW to beter the mental health system.

I will now get off my soap box. However, I hope that candidates will now get on their soapboxes and talk about mental illness. By not doing so, it could be losing 25% of the voters as 1 in 4 have a mental illness. It also would be contributing to the stigma because it would be proving that it is a taboo subject. It would also, most importantly, prove that they don’t care about the mentally ill and think we are low class citizens that should not have a say. Well, let me tell you, we do have a say.  We are LEGAL AMERICANS who will be voting.

Most of the candidates have been dodging questions about the problem of mental illness in America. Some will bring it up when talking about gun control by saying things like we need to fix the mental health system or we need to help guns out of the mentally ill.

Well, when is the question going to be asked, “WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO ABOUT THE PROBLEM FACING AMERICA IN REGARDS TO THE MENTAL HEALTH SYSTEM?”

Donald Trump is going to build a wall to keep illegal immigrants out and send the people here illegally back to where they came from.  Well, Donald Trump, you can’t keep the mentally ill from entering the United States because many of us are already here legally.  You can’t send us back either. Where would you send us?

The mental health facilities are so overcrowded that people can’t get the help they need.

This is just one problem that America needs to solve.  People are too embarrassed to get help because politicians and the media contribute to the stigma that prevents people from getting the help.  People are not educated as to what signs to look for and where to go to get help.  One in four people in America have a mental illness- that means that everyone most likely at least knows someone who has a mental illness.

So, what are you going to do Donald Trump? Hillary Clinton?  Sanders?  Rubio? Cruz? Kasich? Carson?

I think the ppl who have mental illnesses, their families, and anyone who has been affected by a mental illness due to tragedy deserve a right to know.

I can give you some answers since you can’t seem to come up with any of your own. At least if you have, you have not shared them.

1. Ask the mentally ill and their families what is lacking and suggest what could help
2. Ask the employees at mental health facilities what they see as problems and see how they would fix it
3. Consider bills that are in Congress right now
4. Go visit psychiatric hospitals and see how awful most of them are. The patients are being treated worse than animals and not getting the care they need.
5. Visit the prisons and see how many people who have a mental illness are there instead of a psychiatric facility
6. Stop the revolving door for prisons and hospitals by having inexpensive if not free care after someone leaves
7. Finance things like Medical First Aid, Peer Support Specialists, NAMI, DBSA, and Mental Health Association instead of having them rely on donations
8. Ask other countries what they are doing

You can’t just throw money at the problem.  You can’t keep dodging questions, you definitely should not add to the stigma like I have heard some of you do.  Also, by not talking about it does not give the 25% of Americans who have a mental illness respecdt.

The topic of mental health deserves so much more than any candidate or media outlet gives it.

I suggest you:

• Investigate
• Ask for solutions from people who are in the trenches
• Do SOMETHING! Talk about SOLUTIONS
• PROMISE that you have things you are going to do to help the mental health system within your first 100 days in office.