Thinking About Prevention

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1.David Brenna ~ June 13, 2008, 10:13 a.m.

I've always thought it interesting that words like "productive" or "quality relationship" are used to describe mental well-being. Those are terms that can be just as elusive in trying to measure one's mental health. It seems to me that before we can effectively market mental health, we need to be able to describe it!

2.Jenn Stuber ~ June 13, 2008, 10:34 a.m.

How do you educate the "public"? Notion is too broad as there is no one universal public. Doing this work for a while now has lead me to the conclusion that such a campaign, must be multi-pronged, Recovery Happens, Prevention Works, Stigma Gets in the Way. You can't move one message without moving the others.

3.Linda Smythe ~ June 13, 2008, 10:53 a.m.

Awareness starts with taking responsibility for seeking help with mental issues when necessary, and this may include taking psychotropic medications. However, insurance companies systematically exclude (& stigmatize) persons from buying life insurance policies if there is any mental diagnosis that may indicate a "risk" for life expectancy. My husband was automatically denied life insurance through my Thurston County benefits because he had been treated for depression in the past, although this was beneficial & resolved his symptoms. So, why would people be open to treatment if there are detrimental consequences of all kinds to include financial? Any campaign should include pressure on insurance carriers as well as information to the public.

4.Kari McDonald ~ June 13, 2008, 11:21 a.m.

We are looking into making a t.v. viewing Dakota Bill. Mental health for children is real. It needs to be spoke by those who have been part of the system. With emotional care we need your support too. It has been discussed - We would like to have the WA. states and other states support as well.

We feel and will have a meeting today in Tri-cities in support of suicide community education for all. From those who are in the power and control will also get this education. They are very much in need of learning what causes troubled families with children driving to these suicide acts. The why? what? how? and what we can do to prevent. The signs are for us all to read we all have a part in helping the system be better so families can be better as well.

5.Andres Aguirre ~ June 13, 2008, 11:52 a.m.

I think a marketing plan would be very beneficial. I like a current Public Service Announcement (PSA) which shows a person with many people behind them. As the narrator describes varies situations that indicates true friendship, the people in the background start disappearing until only one is left. Then the narrator talks about mental health and mental illness.

I think a PSA for youth could show the day in the life of a student and talk about similar situation and how people are helping and how others can help.

6. Chris Poor ~ June 13, 2008, 3:18 p.m.

I think when the idea of mental health is presented it should be called "mental wellness". I also think that the idea of mental wellness should be presented as a spectrum in which everyone continually moves from healthier states to less healthy states all the time. For example, someone who has had a loved one suddenly die may quickly move to a less healthy place on the spectrum but in time this will change. I guess the main point is that we all need to see that everyone has the capacity to be sick and well. It should not be that the diagnosed become the "sick people" while the undiagnosed are all "healthy". To see mental wellness in this way could help reduce stigma. how about a color coded scale of mental wellness. People reading the poster or seeing the ad (or whatever) could judge their own mental wellness based on the scale and decide if they need some help or not. Places they could go find help would be provided with the ad. In other words an easy way for people to do a little "self diagnosis" and then make a better educated choice to seek services or not. This may help the whole system leave the crisis mentality it runs on.

7. Kathryn E. Barnard ~ June 15, 2008, 8:39 p.m.

I think a campaign focused on mood regulation would be very well received by the public. It is one of the wellness issues faced by all ages. Infants need to learn to regulate their mood, and the brain is not mature enough until about 2 for them to get out of a highly negative state, so they need soothing with help from the caregiver. They need to learn how to react successfully to stress. Also school age children need to know how to handle the anxiety and stress that comes with learning and making transitions. Likewise new parents, especially mothers need to regulate the emotional and physiological stress that comes with pregnancy and birth. Young adults need help with regulating emotions and intimacy and the process of relating to a partner. Older adults and seniors need to learn to maintain their support systems to assist in regulating there maturation, loss of function and need for help.

8. Donna Obermeyer ~ June 16, 2008, 9:02 a.m.

I like the previous comment that talks about spectrum and would like to see marketing about how we check to see if we are healthy that might include ages/stages, times of transition or big events that happen in our lives. Heart-smart activities and foods are marketed, so why not market ways to keep ourselves mentally healthy too, as part of health care in general? Medications of all sorts are marketed directly to the public daily, targeting sickness and disease and how medication can help (quick-fix). I think we can turn this focus on illness around to a focus on wellness, but it may require a phase-in period with a spectrum of presentations that are respectful, culturally sensitive and may require a different approach to specific populations, systems and agencies throughout our state. I hope that there is a detailed plan in place, but if not you might consider using a marketing firm to help with getting buy-in from the public as you launch this campaign.

9. Renee Martin ~ June 20, 2008, 5:31 p.m.

Mental health must be put on parity with physical health (in the private insurance industry)to help facilitate those who have the ability to carry private insurance obtain mental health care. We are still limited to 8 visits per year unless the provider completes a long form, on their own time, to document a treatment plan. THEN the provider and patient have to wait for approval from the insurance company, which determines how much therapy they will approve. This is discrimination; medical treatments are not required to go through this process.

10. Gwen Gadberry ~ June 20, 2008, 8:00 p.m.

I want to look at existing "mental health" programs/resources for older adults from a positive "wellness" perspective and begin by marketing what we have to offer now. Positive results will pave the way for additional services.

11. Karen Trayler ~June 24, 2008, 8:49 p.m.

I think PSA's are a good place to begin working on awareness and prevention (for example, FASD caused by alcohol use during pregnancy). The cliche "A picture is worth a thousand words" is true. Our 4 adopted children are not only FASD, but have several related mental health diagnosis attached to that. They have been teased and abused by students, TEACHERS, other parents, and strangers because they look normal but are not. They only want to be accepted. Not being accepted has lead to dangerous behavior in their quest for acceptance. I would like to see PSA's, along with "real life" awareness/trainings that include parents/MH professionals in schools, churches and community. A different approach with my children may have made the difference between productive, successful lives, and them giving up on themselves. I am happy to help in this effort in any way I can.