My hope is that last week’s horrific murders in Seattle, by a mentally disturbed man, will bring help for family and friends of mentally ill people as well as those who are ill. It is time for society to wake up and stop ignoring our mentally ill.
Up until a few years ago, I was one of the majority in society that avoided people with mental issues. Now my wife and I are a mentally ill family member’s support system. A couple of years ago we became involved with the National Alliance on Mental Illness. This organization is not a big corporation; it is run by volunteer family members with loved ones who have mental issues. We attended free family-to-family classes and these opened our eyes. If you have any family or friends with mental illness, or know of anyone that has a friend or family member with mental issues, please have them contact NAMI, there is help out there. Don’t feel alone. Visit www.namisnohomishcounty.org.
We as a society need to stop the stigma about mental illness, so that people will seek treatment. There is treatment out there that actually will help. Mental Illness is not going away and ignoring it does not help. I am very encouraged by the news of the possibility of an additional 105 beds that may soon be available for Snohomish County, but that is just a start. People need to get involved concerning mental illness. Write your elected officials about mental health funding; go here for contact info: www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml.
Let’s start treating mental illness like it’s an emergency, just like any other life threatening illness. Let’s stop ignoring it. Mental illness is not going away. Let’s start to be part of the solution to reduce its effects on society.
Jim Michaud
Marysville
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