More PCon Notes: Cathy Barber's presentation: How Can I Help? Crisis Intervention Tools for Clergy
I remember her from last year, she did a nifty presentation on how to tell if you're having divine experiences or if you're going crazy.
Cathy has a ton of experience working with chronically mentally ill populations along with drug and alcohol recovery, both for nonprofits and for insurance companies and Kaiser.
People turn to their clergy for help, but faith-based interventions aren't always enough.
This presentation is designed to help us learn to identify warning signs of crisis and symptoms of mental illness, find appropriate interventions as needed, and review the meds and supplements commonly used to treat mental illness.
Definition of crisis: symptoms are intolerable. Ability of desire to function is severely impaired and immediate treatment is necessary to re-establish balance. Person is struggling to maintain relationships and may have lost relationships due to symptoms. The person's work is suffering and others may notice it; ability to perform self-care or care for dependents is suffering.
Definition of non-crisis: symptoms are uncomfortable and difficult to live with. Symptoms create problems in life, interfere with job, relationships, and overall ability to function, but the person can tolerate the discomfort while seeking out help to reduce the discomfort.
Crisis warning signs: threatening to hurt or kill oneself or talking about wanting to hurt or kill oneself. Talking about desire to hurt or kill others. Looking for ways to kill oneself or others by seeking access to firearms, pills, or other means. Talking or writing about death, dying, or suicide when these actions are out of the ordinary for the person.
Diff between suicidal thoughts and actual suicidal ideation: talking passively about it (my family would be better off without me) and talking actively about it (I am making plans to do it).
Additional warning signs: feeling hopeless, feeling rage or uncontrolled anger or seeking revenge, acting reckless or engaging in risky activities - seemingly without thinking, feeling trapped - like there's no way out, increasing alcohol or drug use, withdrawing from friends, family, and society.
Additional warning signs: feeling anxious, agitated, or unable to sleep or sleeping all the time; experiencing dramatic mood changes, seeing no reason for living or having no sense of purpose in life; feeling agitated, hearing voices, or seeing things not there; feeling threatened, paranoid, or delusional.
Characteristics of mental illness: A person's experience of the world, thoughts, or emotions have become intolerable, painful, or distressful. The person's thoughts or feelings generate behaviors that are potentially destructive to themselves or others. Control is lost over time. Symptoms worsen.
Mental illness is like other chronic illnesses: some people can manage a chronic illness with lifestyle changes, some need medication. Some have trouble controlling a chronic illness with all available medical treatment. Some people who have mental illness may control it with lifestyle changes. Some may need medication or ECT. Others may see the illness as a character weakness.
Symptoms, taken from www.nimh.nih.gov (so I'm not going to list 'em here)
It's okay to ask someone if they've tried to kill themselves before or if they're thinking about it!
Assessments and initial interventions: what do you do when you identify someone is having a crisis/illness?
Conduct an interview, get professional help as needed.
Interview: listen, don't talk. Take time to get the full picture. Then ask pointed questions: How do you feel? Are you depressed, manic, suicidal, in crisis? Do you see or hear anything unusual or frightening?
Note: if they're having olfactory hallucinations (smell), it's usually a sign of a physical brain problem, like a stroke.
Things not to say: “I totally get where you're coming from.” Cos you don't! Even if you've had a similar experience, it's not the same. And avoid “should” or “ought to.”
In crisis, who do you call? Crisis hotlines, 911, therapist, general practitioner, psychiatrist, drop-in clinic, emergency room/EMS, insurance company.
Be careful not to go down and meet the person at the bottom of the hole. You need to stand on the lip of the hole with a rope tied to a strong tree behind you and help talk the person up the rope. Use warding/shielding/etc techniques to stay in yourself.
Useful supplements: omega-3 fatty acids/fish oil; folic acid/B-complex vitamins; 5-HTP; multivitamins; SAMe, Vitamin D, GABA (good for twitchy people)
Phone numbers to know: 911, 211. Check out 211.org
Cathy has a ton of experience working with chronically mentally ill populations along with drug and alcohol recovery, both for nonprofits and for insurance companies and Kaiser.
People turn to their clergy for help, but faith-based interventions aren't always enough.
This presentation is designed to help us learn to identify warning signs of crisis and symptoms of mental illness, find appropriate interventions as needed, and review the meds and supplements commonly used to treat mental illness.
Definition of crisis: symptoms are intolerable. Ability of desire to function is severely impaired and immediate treatment is necessary to re-establish balance. Person is struggling to maintain relationships and may have lost relationships due to symptoms. The person's work is suffering and others may notice it; ability to perform self-care or care for dependents is suffering.
Definition of non-crisis: symptoms are uncomfortable and difficult to live with. Symptoms create problems in life, interfere with job, relationships, and overall ability to function, but the person can tolerate the discomfort while seeking out help to reduce the discomfort.
Crisis warning signs: threatening to hurt or kill oneself or talking about wanting to hurt or kill oneself. Talking about desire to hurt or kill others. Looking for ways to kill oneself or others by seeking access to firearms, pills, or other means. Talking or writing about death, dying, or suicide when these actions are out of the ordinary for the person.
Diff between suicidal thoughts and actual suicidal ideation: talking passively about it (my family would be better off without me) and talking actively about it (I am making plans to do it).
Additional warning signs: feeling hopeless, feeling rage or uncontrolled anger or seeking revenge, acting reckless or engaging in risky activities - seemingly without thinking, feeling trapped - like there's no way out, increasing alcohol or drug use, withdrawing from friends, family, and society.
Additional warning signs: feeling anxious, agitated, or unable to sleep or sleeping all the time; experiencing dramatic mood changes, seeing no reason for living or having no sense of purpose in life; feeling agitated, hearing voices, or seeing things not there; feeling threatened, paranoid, or delusional.
Characteristics of mental illness: A person's experience of the world, thoughts, or emotions have become intolerable, painful, or distressful. The person's thoughts or feelings generate behaviors that are potentially destructive to themselves or others. Control is lost over time. Symptoms worsen.
Mental illness is like other chronic illnesses: some people can manage a chronic illness with lifestyle changes, some need medication. Some have trouble controlling a chronic illness with all available medical treatment. Some people who have mental illness may control it with lifestyle changes. Some may need medication or ECT. Others may see the illness as a character weakness.
Symptoms, taken from www.nimh.nih.gov (so I'm not going to list 'em here)
It's okay to ask someone if they've tried to kill themselves before or if they're thinking about it!
Assessments and initial interventions: what do you do when you identify someone is having a crisis/illness?
Conduct an interview, get professional help as needed.
Interview: listen, don't talk. Take time to get the full picture. Then ask pointed questions: How do you feel? Are you depressed, manic, suicidal, in crisis? Do you see or hear anything unusual or frightening?
Note: if they're having olfactory hallucinations (smell), it's usually a sign of a physical brain problem, like a stroke.
Things not to say: “I totally get where you're coming from.” Cos you don't! Even if you've had a similar experience, it's not the same. And avoid “should” or “ought to.”
In crisis, who do you call? Crisis hotlines, 911, therapist, general practitioner, psychiatrist, drop-in clinic, emergency room/EMS, insurance company.
Be careful not to go down and meet the person at the bottom of the hole. You need to stand on the lip of the hole with a rope tied to a strong tree behind you and help talk the person up the rope. Use warding/shielding/etc techniques to stay in yourself.
Useful supplements: omega-3 fatty acids/fish oil; folic acid/B-complex vitamins; 5-HTP; multivitamins; SAMe, Vitamin D, GABA (good for twitchy people)
Phone numbers to know: 911, 211. Check out 211.org