Discovering

Mental Health

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The son who vanished ...

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“On a September evening

almost nine years ago, Susan

and Jay Bigelow called 911,

then sat down to dinner in

their Toronto home, waiting

for the police to come and take

away the stranger at the

dining-room table who was

once their son.”

-Erin Anderssen

(Globe and Mail, 2008)

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The son who vanished . . .

For 19 years, they had raised a

cheerful, outgoing boy named

Jesse Bigelow, who had lots of

friends, was chased by girls and

sang in a rock band called, in an

odd foreshadowing, Mental Dis-

tortion. Jay had coached his

hockey teams and travelled with

him to soccer tournaments. Jesse

wasn't the perfect kid: He threw

more tantrums than his older sis-

ter, Melissa, had. His marks were

mediocre. And his parents knew

that he smoked pot with his

friends. But he was a typical,

loud, athletic boy and, even as a

teenager, he welcomed a hug

from his mom.

Then, slowly, helplessly, they

watched Jesse Bigelow vanish,

as surely as if he had been kid-

napped. They didn't recognize

the shaggy, bearded intruder

who now lay like a zombie in the

bedroom upstairs and ranted at

them about God.

In less than a year, it had come

to this - a police car in their

driveway, the fear of a strug-

gle. They weren't without re-

sources. Jay is a successful ar-

chitect and Susan, a lawyer,

knew her way around the sys-

tem. They were friends with

several psychologists who

offered help. Even then, it had

taken one appointment after

another and many hours at

night composing an affidavit to

get this far.

Now, sitting at the table, they

worried whether their son would

ever forgive them for making the

call. When they watched the po-

lice snap handcuffs on his wrists

and guide his head into the back

of the cruiser, they had no idea

whether they had saved him or

condemned him.

What follows is told in their own

words, reconstructed from inter-

views held on several occasions

with different family members. It

is the story of the beginning and

of the end: How schizophrenia

stole Jesse Bigelow away and

how he managed, with luck and

love, to find his way home again.

To continue reading go to:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health/the-son-who-vanished/article44657/

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What is mental health?

•Mental Health is an integral part of our overall health and is essential part of our daily lives.

•Things that influence our social, physical, spir-itual, economic and mental

•If individuals are unable to maintain a healthy bal-ance between all these aspects then they be-come unable to reach their full potentials and participate in daily life

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Men

tal He

alth...

Mental Illness

Mental Illness is an alteration in a person’s thinking, mood, behavior or

a combination of all three related to distress and/or impaired

functioning. 1 in 5 Canadians under the age of 65 are affected by

mental health issues or know someone who is affected. That’s about

300, 000 Canadians at any given time.

Factors that influence mental health wellness include:

Family, friend and social support network

Gender (mental health illnesses are twice as common in

women than in men)

Traumatic experiences in life

25% of serious physical health conditions will develop major

depressive disorder along with other conditions

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20%

1%

8%

12%

4%

Most common types of mental health disorder

people living with mental healthdisorder also have co-existingsubstance abuse

have schizophrenia

major depression

anxiety disorder

moderate to severe gamblingproblem

Mental Health Disorders:

A disorder is an alternate behaviour , thinking or mood that is related

to distress, disability, or increased risk for death. Disorders are

modifiable, there are many methods and opportunities for individuals

to improve and cope with their conditions. Certain diagnoses such as

down syndrome, and mental retardation are not included in this

category because people living with these conditions cannot change

it, however, they can learn to modify their lifestyles to adapt in

various ways according to their abilities.

A high percentage of people living with mental health disorders (and illnesses) are typi-

cally experiencing addictions. Substance abuse are common methods of coping with the

mental health imbalances and becomes more difficult to withdraw from over longer peri-

ods of usage.

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A learning tool

Disclaimer:

In the next couple of pages, you will find a

modified mini mental health assessment tool that

can be used to understand how health care

professionals assess their patient’s/client’s mental

health status. Please be advised that this tool is not

official and is not intended for diagnosis. This tool

was created to educate and promote awareness for

mental health issues. It can be used as a tool of

reflection in situations where you strongly feel

there may be difficult to detect issues within a

person involving mental health.

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P l e a s e u s e w i t h c a u t i o n a n d p r o c e e d

t o t h e n e x t p a g e . . .

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Step 1: After your meeting with an individual, focus on how the individual behaved and the

responses that you've experienced with this person; was he/she acting in an unusual

way compared to their typical interactions? Is the individual living through a

traumatic experience and seems unable to cope? Before proceeding, please consider the

duration of the problem presented. If symptoms have an “on-and-off ” occurrence, or

if the problem is continuous and remains for many weeks, you should consider the

person to seek professional help. Or if you’re unsure, you may consider using this tool

to help identify the problem and suggest possible resources for community support.

Step 2:

Familiarize with the rating scale. The scale will provides a more standardize system

when assessing a person. A descriptions for each category is provided to give the user

a better understanding of what a typically mental stable person would present. Keep

in mind of the person’s other underlying conditions that may also affect their appear-

ance and behaviour. For example, a person who is recovering from stroke may have

slow speech and weak limbs. In such cases, if you feel the person is performing at their

best then a score of 3 (or 4 )would be sufficient. A comment section is provided below

for you to express other thoughts, or to justify scores given.

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Rating scale:

1

Poor

2

Fair

3

Good

4

Excellent

Please use this ranking system to provide a score that best suits the person related to the factors below:

Modified Mental Health Assessment Tool

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Step 3: Thought process and self-perception may be a little difficult to measure so try to focus

on how, or the way the person responded during conversations. For example, a person

has just recently (two week) experienced a death of a close family member and states

they have accepted the reality of death, but feels lost and incapable of doing the things

that he was originally able to do. He is also having some troubles sleeping and has loss

of appetite. The score for this person’s “Screening this thoughts” would be a 4 because

they he recognizes and understands the situation. The score for perception would be

between 1-2 because he is losing confidence in himself, he is perceiving his unable to

do things anymore. The score for “coping” given in this situation would be a 2 because

he is having some difficulties adapting to the situation however, it is not extreme and

still manageable.

Step 4: Now, add up all the scores you have given and follow the “Score Chart” on the bottom

right to determine the next best step you can take in responding to the situation.

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Modified Mental Health Assessment Tool

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Step 5: If the total score falls in the category of 22 and under then you may proceed to

the reference chart to the right and look at the situation in greater detail. Follow

the instruction from left to right to proceed with the assessment. There are a

number of symptoms listed under each corresponding category of mental

illnesses that are commonly encountered. Check off the box beside the symptoms

that best describes the person you wish to assess, if there is a greater number of

boxes checked off under a specific category, then you may suggest community

resources that help people cope with that specific type of condition.

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Re

fere

nc

e

Ch

art

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The following are possible sources to suggest

to those who may be in need of support for

mental health imbalances. Click the logo

below the descriptions to visit their websites.

Community Resources

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Al-Anon Family Group Headquarters, Inc.

Al-Anon is an organization that provides support for individuals, friends and family of alcohol abuse, providing support programs for individuals of all ages to attend.

www.al-anon.alateen.org email: wso@al-anon.org 1-888-425-2666

Withdrawal Management Center TEGH (Toronto East General Hospital)

Withdrawal Management center focuses on providing physical are for adult male with substance abuse and/or in acute state of intoxication. This agency helps individuals withdraw from harmful substances with referrals to counseling, treatment and rehabilitation programs to prevent relapse.

General line: 416-461-2010 Program facilitator: 416-923-0800

Every Wednesday from 6-8pm (no appointments necessary)

http://www.tegh.on.ca/bins/content_page.asp?cid=3-24-229

LOFT Community Services

LOFT Community Services provides supportive housing for those experiencing abuse, abandonment, homelessness, addiction, and mental health illnesses. Their goal is to restore the residents’ dignity and spirit so they can begin to enjoy life again.

15 Toronto St. 9th floor 416-979-5496

Diana Rodrigues Sousa (housing registry worker) email: drodrigues@loftcs.org

www.loftcs.org www.tosuportivehousing.ca

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Schizophrenia Society of Ontario

The Schizophrenia Society is a small community that provides programs and services for adults and youth living with schizophrenia to help cope with their conditions and experiences. They also hold many events to educate and raise awareness of this mental health illness.

130 Spadina Ave. Suite 302 416-449-6830 1-800-449-6367

email: sso@schizophrenia.on.ca www.ssoaware.com(youth) www.schizophrenia.on.ca

ConnexOntario

This is a quick hotline to service people with drug, alcohol, mental health, and problems with gambling.

Drug & Alcohol: 1.800.565.8603

Mental Health: 1.866.531.2600

Gambling: 1.888.230.3505

www.connexontario.ca

Women’s Health In Women’s Hands—Community Health Center

This agency offers multidisciplinary services focusing on women ages 16 and up. Counseling is available from physical, mental health, to pregnancy health. The programs provided will provide community health education and support for all participating members.

www.whiwh.com

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T h e g r e a t e s t w e a l t h i s h e a l t h

- V i r g i l

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References

CMHA (n.d.). FAQs. Canadian Mental Health Association. Retrieved from http://www.cmha.ca/bins/

content_page.asp?cid=4-40&lang=1

CAMH (Nov 08, 2011). Mental health and addictions statistics. Center for Addiction and Mental

Health. Retrieved from http://www.camh.net/News_events/Key_CAMH_facts_for_media/

addictionmentalhealthstatistics.html

Health Canada (July 22, 2009). Healthy Living: Mental Health. Health Canada. Retrieved from

http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hl-vs/mental/index-eng.php

Jacobs, P., Dewa, C., Lesage, A., Vasiliadis, H., Escober, C., Mulvale, G. & Yim, R. The cost of men-

tal health and substance abuse in Canada. Institute of health economics. 1-42.

Jarvis, C. (2009). Physical examination & health assessment (1st Canadian Ed.). Toronto: Saunders

Elsevier.

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