Familys Ethnicity or Group Diversity

Familys Ethnicity or Group Diversity

October 20, 2013
Professor Arveta Grady-Fletcher
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Familys Ethnicity or Group Diversity

There is not an exact cause for mental illness, but through

research it has shown that many conditions are caused by a
combination of genetic, biological, psychological, and environmental
factors. Mental illness is not from personal weakness or a character
defect, and it cannot just simply go away with the will or self-discipline.
My Great Uncle was diagnosed at twenty-two years old with Bipolar
Disorder and psychotic features. His disorder has limited him from
performing in many activities and living a normal life. I seen from my
own eyes how this disorder has taken over his life and from the
experiences we have faced as a family, it has taken a toll on all of us.
My Great Uncle may have this disorder and might not be the most
stable person, but without him our family would not be the same. This
is a mental illness, but it does not define him as a person.
Mental illness can run in families, suggesting that it is passed
down from parents to children through genes. However, just because
your mother or father had a mental illness does not mean you will have
one. It just means that you are more likely to get the condition than if
you did not have an affected family member. In our family history, my
great uncles paternal uncle may have had a form of bipolar, but was

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never treated for it. This could have been a factor for my great uncle
being diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Bipolar disorder is diagnosed
with an individual presenting pathological mood swings, which
fluctuate from mania to depression. It can start in mid teens up to mid
twenties, and they do not know the exact cause for this disorder. My
great uncle was intentionally diagnosed with bipolar, when he
presented an episode of mania after returning from Vietnam. He
proceeded to escalate into a psychotic state and was admitted to a
naval hospital, in California. There, he was treated with medications,
to stabilize his mood and to bring him out of the psychotic state.
Clinicians argue that mental disorders are not diseases but deviant
behaviors that have been molded and stabilized by the same forces
that shape normal roles (Rakfeldt, 2011).
My great uncles illness has been very difficult to manage for him
and our family for years. Although he has been faithful in taking his
medications, he tends to be stable for periods of time, but then
deteriorates either into a depressed state or manic state. When my
great uncle goes into these episodes, he has to increase his
medications and sometimes will have to be hospitalized for
stabilization. He does not know what triggers the episodes, it seems to
present itself with no rhyme or reason. He has suffered greatly since
he has always tried to manage this illness responsibly. This means, he
has maintain diligent psychiatric care, has abided by the physicians

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recommendations and still remains unstable. The frustrations that he

has endured in his life is that those with bipolar disorder are either; not
following treatment with medications and tend not to proceed with
their medical care.
Many studies have reported that people with psychiatric
disabilities have fewer social contacts than others. It is very difficult
to maintain relationships with this illness. My great uncle experienced
hyperactivity as a child with attention deficit. This enabled him, even
as a child, it was hard to have relationships with people. Since he was
so hyper, it was difficult for other kids to understand him. His teachers
viewed him as a very challenged child due to the fact that he could not
focus on one task. This caused severe learning disabilities, which
hindered him from progressing beyond a 5th grade reading level. In
his adult life, he was very limited in his working and social abilities. In
his case, the severity of the illness disabled him mentally. In many
cases, the individuals with bipolar disorder are very intelligent and can
maintain a fairly normal life if they stay on their medications faithfully.
Looking at bipolar disorder at the micro and macro scale, you see
that mania and depression are at the macro level and having mood
swings are at the micro level. On the macro scale, hypomania and
severe depression are the factors that fit under this level. This can be
controlled with medications and treatment, but if medications fail, the
physicians may resort to electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). That is a

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procedure that triggers a brief seizure and brain stimulation, which

helps the brain to function more normal and brings the patient out of
mania or depression. On the micro scale, my great uncle will always
go through intense periods of high energy and low. Many things can
cause this, such as seasons, emotional or situational triggers, diet,
sleep or pain.
People that are mentally and emotionally challenged face
multiple hardships through their lives. Many of them are discriminated
or treated poorly due to individuals thinking they are odd or not
wanting to deal with them since they are not normal. My great
uncle has experience all of this, and it has made me very sad to see
people treat others like this. Although, my great uncle has dealt with
many challenges in his life, he has still been confident about
everything. I commend him for that and could not imagine what he
has gone through. Unfortunately, in this society there is so much more
that individuals can do to help the mentally ill and recognizing it at an
early age that we could address and provide the help they need. This
could not only help us but to change the future of the mentally ill as a
whole.

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References

King, Thomas., Interview. (2013).

Rakfeldt, J. (2011). Ableisim: Menatlly and Emotionally Challenged
People. Diversity,
Opression, and Social Functioning. Boston, MA.

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Lofthouse, N., & Fristad, A. M. (2004). Bipolar Disorders. 211-221.