C. U Cs
a community
health newsletter
Vol. 4, No. 3
Summer 1986
Treatiig Mentl Illess:
Catherine McAuley Health Center Looks to the Future
W by was this happening to
Robert? A handsome 27-year-
old with a wife and daughter Robert
was having trouble coping with the
stress in his job. The tougher his work
life became, the more difficult it was
for him to go home. Even though
they'd been married only two years,
Robert and his wife argued more than
they ever used to.
Soon Robert had trouble eating.
Many times Roberts wife noticed him
crying for no apparent reason. Then
he began to talk about it. Robert
wanted to kill himself
The stigma of mental illness
It is estimated that 19 percent of
the population suffers from some
form of psychiatric disorder. About 5
percent of those affected seek treat-
ment. The good news is the number
of individuals seeking treatment
seems to be increasing and Gerard
Schmit, MD, acting head of the De-
partment of Psychiatry at Mercywood
Hospital, believes the stigma attached
to mental health therapy is decreasing.
"The stigma of mental illness is
diminishing, although much too
slowly," Dr. Schmit says. "In the last
three to five years, the trend toward
acceptance has been more pro-
nounced. Today, more people are
seeking help for mental or emotional
problems than in the past."
Gary Miller, director of Clinical
Services, Mental Health Services and
Social Work at Catherine McAuley
Health Center, thinks it's a good sign
the number of people seeking treat-
ment is increasing. Just coping with
everyday life isn't always easy, he says.
Sisters of Mercy serving our community s
"As we live in a
more complex soci-
etv, both anxiety and
depression are on
the rise," Miller says.
"Many times, depres-
sion can be a result of
stress."
According to Dr
Schmit, the trend to-
ward accepting men-
tal illness and its
treatment has been
influenced by the
recent advances in
using medicine to
treat mental illness.
Now when someone
has a mental prob-
lem, we better under-
stand its biological
origins, Dr. Schmit
says.
"There's this
thought that if you
have a mental or emo-
tional disorder all
you have to do is pull
yourself up by your
bootstraps, " says
Christeen Holdwick, -
director of Psychiatric Mercywood
Nursing at Mercy- includes af
wood. "That kind for adolesc
of thinking can keep not of real
people from seeking
help. Treatment of mental illness,
like treatment of any physical illness,
requires professional help. There
should be no shame involved in a de-
cision to seek help. At Mercywood,
patients and families are treated with
respect."
Roberts wife encouraged him to
go to the Maple Health Building
where he spoke with an oCtpatient
therapist. Because of Roberts serious
's individualized care for patients
our- to six - week program specifically
ents. (The photos for this article are
patients)
suicidal thoughts, the therapist recom-
mended inpatient treatment at
Mercyu (ood.
During Robert's two weeks in
iMlercj'u'ood, he was treated by apsy-
chiatrist and a number of specialty
therapists including recreation
therapists, occupational therapists
a id social 1vorker s. Follo' ing inpa-
tient treatment, Robert progressed
Continued on next page
ince 1911