A mutual friend introduced me to Mark Gale shortly after my son had his first mental break  — the one that ended up with him being arrested. Mark’s son also had gotten into trouble with the police.  As two concerned parents we immediately connected and, in our own way, took action. I decided to write my book, CRAZY: A Father’s Search Through America’s Mental Health Madness. Mark jumped right into NAMI.  Occasionally, we would see each other at NAMI conventions and I always admired his dedication to NAMI and his determination to help his son and others with mental illnesses.

Mark sent me an email after he read my blog about The Changing Face of NAMI and I asked him if he would share his thoughts in a guest blog because NAMI plays an important part in his life. 

Pete,

Thank you for writing your article about NAMI and its present posture on issues regarding voluntary and involuntary care.  The mental health community is paralyzed and polarized by the ridiculous conclusion that if one is for the former, one must be against the latter.

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FROM MY FILES FRIDAY    I’ll be speaking in Iowa in a few months and also moderating a Minds on the Edge panel. I’ll present a scenario about a college student in the midst of  a psychotic break. What would happen to that student in Iowa?  Panel members generally include a parent, consumer, law enforcement officer, judge, psychiatrist and mental health provider. 

This format was used effectively in the Minds on the Edge telecast shown on PBS in October 2009. In this January 2010 blog, I  gave readers peek at how the program evolved. Sadly, PBS hasn’t aired Minds on the Edge for several years. That’s unfortunate because the issues raised by the show are still pertinent.

BEHIND THE SCENES OF MINDS ON THE EDGE

Not long after CRAZY: A Father’s Search Through America’s Mental Health Madness, was published, I received a telephone call from Arthur Singer who invited me to lunch in Manhattan.

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What interested me the most about my blog last week entitled The Changing Face of NAMI is that many of the nearly 100 comments were about Assisted Outpatient Treatment, Dr. E. Fuller Torrey, the Treatment Advocacy Center and Robert Whitaker. Anytime there is a  mention of requiring someone to take medication, battle lines are quickly drawn.

I wonder if we have lost sight of the war because we are so busy battling amongst ourselves.

The shootings at Newtown, Aurora, Tucson and Virginia Tech, have finally turned a spotlight on our broken mental health system. Now is the opportune time for us to join ranks and attack the larger issue of STIGMA.

While this window of opportunity is open, we need to hammer home three points.

1. Mental illnesses, such as bipolar disorder, depression and schizophrenia, are real. 2. They are not the fault of the individuals who get them. 3. Most people who do get them can recover if given meaningful community services.

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Two of the heroes in my book, CONFESSIONS OF A SPY, have written their own insider account about the hunt for CIA traitor, Aldrich Ames, and it’s a simply terrific read.

CIRCLE OF TREASON is a joint effort penned by Sandy Grimes and Jeanne Vertefeuille. Both of them and their book will be featured Sunday night [March 24] during a segment on Fox television’s FOX FILES.

I will be interviewed on that same program, but Sandy and Jeanne will be the stars.  Check local times for when it will air.

I kept in touch with Sandy and Jeanne after my book was published and encouraged them to write CIRCLE OF TREASON because there were stories about Ames and the men and women whom he betrayed that only Sandy and Jeanne could tell.

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The National Alliance on Mental Illness is searching for a new executive director and one of the first challenges that its next leader will face is helping determine who NAMI represents and what principles it supports.

Mike Fitzpatrick, who has successfully led NAMI with a steady hand for ten years, announced in January that he is stepping down. He has done a great job.  The NAMI that his predecessor will inherit is a much different organization from the one that Mike took over  in 2004.

In recent years, more members with mental illnesses have joined NAMI and they have brought with them a different perspective from the group’s traditional base — parents of persons with diagnosed mental disorders.

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FROM MY FILES FRIDAY

My son and I spoke last week at a meeting of the Loudoun County Crime Commission.  Mike Chapman, the Loudoun County Sheriff, is doing a fabulous job there of getting his officers Crisis Intervention Team training. Along with his wife, Annie, the Chapmans have become strong advocates for improving mental health services in their county, which is adjacent to Fairfax County, where I live.

This was only the second time that my son and I have appeared together, and I was surprised when he mentioned things about his breakdown that I’d not heard before. It was a reminder to me about how important it is to listen to persons with mental illnesses when they are stable so that we can better understand what they experienced when they were in the throes of a breakdown.

The meeting, which you can read about here, was exciting for me because of the Chapmans’ genuine concern and because of the cooperation that I saw between mental health professionals, local National Alliance on Mental Illness members, law enforcement and lawyers who attended the meeting.

Sadly, I’ve not seen any such concern or cooperation in Fairfax, one of the wealthiest and best educated counties in the nation. I’d like to report that conditions had improved since I wrote this blog in July 2011 but I’d be lying and all of us who live in Fairfax are worse off because of it.

A LACK OF LEADERSHIP HURTS FAIRFAX COUNTY 

Originally published July 25th, 2011.

As my recent flight began its descent into Dulles International Airport, I felt a sense of frustration, embarrassment and irritation. The cause is a lack of leadership in my home county by the Fairfax County Bar Association, Commonwealth’s Attorney, and our local judiciary. Those of us with loved ones who have severe mental disorders deserve better.

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