Anxiety, insomnia, and other SUPER FUN mental disorders
Once in a while (not often) I like to have a piece within the Adult Aftermath group made public, so more people can read topic-matters posted/discussed.
This is one such piece.
First, I'd like to tell the story of a patient who almost lost his mind, because he felt like he was being ignored, dismissed, and treated like a second-class citizen. In practice, the professional nurse adheres to it's the nursing staff's responsibility to follow create a patient-specific care-plan for each patient, using NANDA approved terminology for each nursing diagnosis. : Risk for injury related to confusion, agitation, irritability, excitability and impaired mobility. Goal? Patient will be free of injury.
Mr G was admitted to the floor late-evening, and once he was finally settled, he fell-asleep. He woke a few hours later, and wanted to call his son. Unfortunately, the phone did not work. Mr. G assumed the house operator cut-off out-going calls, as a courtesy to others. Mr. G was reassured in the morning, after 7am, whatever the issue was, the phone-issue would be fixed. Mr G had no idea there were several crisis-situations taking place on that same floor.
Mr G went back to sleep, and woke at 7a, smack-dab at the start of the change-of-shift. Mr. G wanted to call his son, but the phone still did not work. He wanted to speak to the Nurse Supervisor. Staff nurses know, if a patient calls for the Nurse Supervisor, something must be seriously wrong. Unfortunately, at that same moment he wanted to talk to the Nurse Supervisor, another crisis hit, and the staff-members he wanted to talk about his phone could not be reached. Mr G could not understand WHY none of the nurses were coming in to help him. He was getting very upset and agitated.
In some cases, a person like Mr G would be medicated with a sedative, to 'calm him down'.
Mr G did not have such luck... the entire RN nursing-staff on his floor was busy, tending to a patient needing emergent care.
Alas, Mr G's problem was quickly solved by a nursing assistant. After a few simple questions, she learned Mr G's son's phone was a cell phone. Even if the son is 'local', the in-patient phone service would recognize the phone number as long-distance, preventing the out-going call.
Mr G's crisis was averted.
<Thank God, sighs the nursing staff>
For years, since college, I have had sleeping problems. Insomnia, nightmares, night-terrors, you name it, I had it.
When those first symptoms show-ed up, I didn't go to the school's health service. I told a friend. He told me, "Take this, it will help you relax".
My first weekend in college started and almost ended in the Emergency Room, at the local medical center.
My 'dis-orders' escalated to a variety of extreme behaviors, but I was far too young/immature to understand what it was my mind and body really craved and needed.
My behaviors were getting so bad, people started calling me 'psycho'.
Yes, I was the psycho bitch who didn't know what she wanted, and didn't know wtf she was talking about.
After 9/11, I was once again, in crisis-mode, and I needed help. I had very young children, and I needed to find a way to relax, and get the sleep I needed, so I could care for my four, while I was all alone, with no family support.
I learned then, how many doctors and therapists, with prescription pads, like to work. "This will help you relax/feel better" (or put you in the emergency room, who knows?)
I always knew what I needed. The problem was, no one around me was willing to take the time to ask a few questions, and help me figure out what I needed to do to relax and stay calm.
Instead, I was given substances like prescription drugs, alcohol, recreational drugs, even sex (ha ha) to calm me down.
It took decades for me to figure out the root-cause to all my anxiety issues. The idea came to me when I was facing another night my mind started racing, and I could not rest, relax, or sleep.
The dawning of a Eureka Moment started like this:
I need to relax, so I can drift and fall asleep. I need to deep breathe and meditate and focus on a repetitive sound, so I can push the racing thoughts out of my head, and fall into a drowsy sleep. I need to block-out the pain, the panic, and the need to jump-up and do something that will only stimulate me more, making matters much worse, later-on. What can I keep repeating to myself? <first, the sound of nothing>
Unless I know every thing is OK, I can't relax and sleep
Unless I know every thing is OK, I can't relax and sleep
Unless I know every thing is OK, I can't relax and sleep.
Where in the world did this come mantra from, and how did it start? When did the first sounds of doom register in my head, and put my body in a state of panic, making me alert and needing to DO anything but relax and sleep?!?!?
When I take the time to review my entire life-history, and insert key events, certain mind-body reactions and functions make perfect logical sense. It began when I was taken away, right after birth.
I know there are a lot of adoptive parents caring for children born with FAS and mental illnesses that in theory, were inherited. I know there are a lot of foster and adopted children, (and adults) given prescription drugs, to help them calm-down, and relax (behave better).
There are so many topics and issues that can we worked-out, without the use of hormone altering drugs
We're told to block things out... pain (being with the wrong person) and pleasure (secret wishes/desires).
This alters the ability to establish consistency, and a normal sense of pleasurable, non-pleasurable, and anxiety-producing sensations.
If we are constantly telling ourself to deny certain feelings, they may eventually be supressed (un-noticed), or they may become hyper-active, in defiance.
Re-learning is based on re-identifying pains and pleasures, and finding the balance that reduces stress, while increasing a sensitivity to pleasure.
I like to present my own life-history as a case-example where negligence, inconsistent care, and apathy can put such a source of stress on a person, the body does not know what