
(Image: Happy Father’s Day)
Have a beautiful weekend!
Vikki
(Image: Happy Father’s Day)
Have a beautiful weekend!
Vikki
The Individual Is The Weapon, And Their Instrument Of Choice To Harm Is The Method
We have to place things in their proper order in solving this disturbing issue. That begins by recognizing some members of society:
– Came from home environments which lacked guidance, supervision, and love;
– Lack strong emotional regulation, for whatever reason (i.e., learned behavior, genetic, congenital impairment, abuse);
– Are conformists to earlier deadly instances that have occurred;
– Have learned from home environment, or peers, that conflict (real, or imagined) involves picking up a tool (whatever that may be) with the intent to harm someone in resolving conflict;
– Embrace negativity and sounds that enter their minds on a daily basis (media influences);
– Lack healthy coping mechanisms;
– Are selfish (dangerously!), with a sense of entitlement;
– Already have a need to let their personal difficulties spill out into the public arena, and care less who gets physically damaged as a result;
– Possess out-of-control anger and hostility, and
– Lacked positive role models in their developmental years.
Are these all of the variables? No, but they’re a good start.
If America wants to find solutions in combatting violence in society, it begins with identifying the actual source of the problem, instead of working backwards.
Vikki
Students within the American public school system have to be taught the following basic disciplines:
Spelling
Writing
Reading
Arithmetic
Geography
Science
History
The curricula are the most important aspects in developing well-educated students. Along with the disciplines, students need intellectual curiosity about the society in which they currently live, and the eras which came before they were even born.
When there is a concerted effort to toss out publications considered offensive, sanitize history to make it less disturbing, that is the wrong approach in educating students within the public school system.
The approach can be looked upon as narrow-minded, selfish, and an instrument in promoting disharmony.
American history is imperfect! It always has been and always will be. Be that as it may, hiding said history from students does nothing but make them intellectually weak, contrary to the premise of public schools as an educational body.
As an aside, the constant listening to music with disgusting lyrics is one of the most crucial aspects in society guaranteed to destroy a young person’s psyche.
Where’s the noise on that subject?!
To the educators:
Teach students to read extremely well (which is actually the most important skill a person can have!), and then let them read:
Twain
Baldwin
Frost
Shakespeare
Ishiguro
Dostoevsky
That famous yin and yang: Washington & DuBois
Steinbeck
Lorraine Hansberry
Thoreau
The Diary of Anne Frank
Hemingway
Langston Hughes
Richard Wright
…which is a mere sampling of excellent reads!
Removing certain publications from the educational discourse take away important conversations between the young and their parents, opportunities to learn about the sufferings other racial and ethnic communities experienced, and closes the mind entirely. Removing certain publications from the educational discourse is analogous to believing that members of society always had cell phones and computers in their households, which is totally inaccurate.
Intellectual curiosity fosters healthy, smart dialogues, with the possessor having a skill to use in many areas of life. A life being unafraid, and least offended because they understand that imperfection.
Vikki
There’s been a disconnect for the longest time regarding when people had their initial symptoms for depression, and when they made a concerted effort to receive professional diagnosis and treatment (Dattani, 2022).
Members of the public may have feared being ostracized if others found out they suffered from a mental health condition (Community Reach Center, 2019). They may have thought their symptoms would miraculously disappear. To expand further, they may have been unaware of the procedures in obtaining mental health services, while others may not have had mental health services readily available in their locale (Community Reach Center, 2019).
Regardless of the explanations for not getting mental health services, a mental health condition is probably the most intrusive ailment a person could ever encounter because the brain controls the entire body. As a result, the longer depression goes untreated the greater the chances for a brain chemical imbalance.
The Mayo Foundation For Medical Education And Research (2022) provides images [Positron Emission Tomography (PET) Scans] of a brain under the influence of depression, and what a healthy brain looks like.
Consequently, the person who could have obtained early diagnosis and been placed on a psychotherapy and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) treatment program (World Health Organization, 2021, and National Alliance On Mental Health, 2017), now has to be placed on psychotropics because they waited too long to seek help.
Depression can shrink the brain (i.e., the brain is under assault from depression), which can interfere with the natural flow of neurotransmitters (Amiel, 2022) and (Davey, 2015).
As the years progress, more people are getting early diagnosis for symptoms associated with depression, and doing so in earlier periods of their lives (Dattani, 2022). This acceptance can be considered a brand of preventative treatment by health consumers: People who take an active role in maintaining good health, and taking steps in avoiding a current condition from becoming worse (Health Consumers NSW, 2019).
Vikki
References
Amiel, M., M. D. (2022). What Happens To The Brain During Depression? Retrieved From https://www.transformationstreatment.center/treatment/what-happens-to-the-brain-during-depression/#:~:text=Depression%20causes%20the%20hippocampus%20to,of%20cortisol%2C%20the%20amygdala%20enlarges.
Community Rearch Center. (2019). Why People Don’t Seek Treatment For Depression. Retrieved From https://www.communityreachcenter.org/news/why-people-dont-seek-treatment-for-depression/
Dattani, S. (2022). At What Age Do People Experience Depression For the First Time? Retrieved From https://ourworldindata.org/depression-age-of-onset#:~:text=As%20the%20data%20shows%2C%20on,later%2C%20at%2031%20years%20old.
Davey, M. L. (2015). Mental Health. Chronic Depression Shrinks Brain’s Memories And Emotions. Retrieved From https://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/jun/30/chronic-depression-shrinks-brains-memories-and-emotions
Health Consumers NSW. (2019). Who Is A Health Consumer? and other definitions. Retrieved From https://www.hcnsw.org.au/consumers-toolkit/who-is-a-health-consumer-and-other-definitions/#:~:text=Health%20Consumers%20are%20people%20who,the%20service%20in%20the%20future.
Mayo Foundation For Medical Education And Research. (2022). PET Scan Of The Brain For Depression. Retrieved From https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/pet-scan/multimedia/-pet-scan-of-the-brain-for-depression/img-20007400#:~:text=A%20PET%20scan%20can%20compare,brain%20activity%20due%20to%20depression.
National Alliance On Mental Health. (2017). Depression. About Mental Health. Retrieved From https://www.nami.org/About-Mental-Illness/Mental-Health-Conditions/Depression
World Health Organization. (2021). Depression. Key Facts. Retrieved From https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/depression
Endnotes
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) And Brain Injuries
[National Domestic Violence Hotline 1-800-799-SAFE(7233)]
INTRODUCTION
Our immediate thoughts are on the military and football players when brain injury is the topic of discussion. These injuries can become life changing for the patient, and heart wrenching for loved ones who see an unfavorable difference in personality and disposition.
Those who suffer from Intimate Partner Violence (usually women), are individuals who also deserve recognition for brain injuries because they, too, experience debilitating cognitive issues. Many from this community lack awareness that they even have brain injuries, and could have experienced several over the duration of the abusive relationship from their partner.
THE KEY ASPECT THAT PLAYED A ROLE IN IPV
Domestic violence increased tremendously because of the COVID-19 Pandemic lockdowns (Ballard, 2022) and (George, Wesley, & Geraghty, 2021).
“There are households where the pandemic has become a reason why family members finally interact with each other. In some cases, this helps to enhance the quality of relationships within a family. However, in families where there are abusive patterns, the home confinement and social isolation can be very dangerous to the victims” (George, Wesley, & Geraghty, 2021).
AN IMPORTANT FINDING
Ballard (2022) mentions a conference that was held earlier this year: Seeking Tomorrow’s Answers Together [STAT]. One of the topics was how COVID-19 affected mental health.
Lockdowns were detrimental for people in abusive relationships!
These are people who were literally held hostage by their abusers because the abusers had unlimited access to their victims.
Thus, lockdowns created a more dangerous existence for people who may have been already living with IPV.
CONCLUSION
Intimate partners, the medical community, safety forces, the various legal institutions, and society in general, all need to recognize that brain injuries due to the IPV epidemic is prevalent. Then, they can become aware of behaviors [symptomology] that are associated with those subjected to IPV (Costello & Greenwald, 2022), (Hillstrom, 2022), (Sutherland & Chakrabarti, 2022), and (Valera, 2022).
This knowledge can help remove misconceptions about these individuals, especially when they are confronted with life-and-death situations independent of their abusers.
Vikki
References
Ballard, J. (2022). From Pandemic To Endemic: Relationship Violence Due To COVID. Retrieved From https://www.du.edu/news/pandemic-endemic-relationship-violence-due-covid
Costello, K., & Greenwald, B. D. (2022). Update On Domestic Violence And Traumatic Brain Injury: A Narrative Review. Retrieved From https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35053865/
George, E. S., Wesley, M. S., & Geraghty, L. (Eds.). (2021). Cultural Studies. Marital Stress And Domestic Violence During The COVID-19 Pandemic. Retrieved From https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/23311983.2021.1992085
Hillstrom, C. (2022). The Hidden Epidemic Of Brain Injuries From Domestic Violence. Retrieved From https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/01/magazine/brain-trauma-domestic-violence.html
National Domestic Violence Hotline. (2022). Here For You. Retrieved From https://www.thehotline.org/
Sutherland, P., & Chakrabarti, M. (2022). An ‘Invisible Epidemic’: Survivors Of Domestic Violence On Living With Traumatic Brain Injury. Retrieved From https://www.wbur.org/onpoint/2022/01/20/survivors-of-domestic-violence-on-living-with-traumatic-brain-injury
Valera, E., PhD. (2022). Women’s Health. Intimate Partner Violence And Traumatic Brain Injury: An Invisible Public Health Epidemic. Retrieved From https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/intimate-partner-violence-and-traumatic-brain-injury-an-invisible-public-health-epidemic-201812132708#:~:text=Intimate%20partner%20violence%20and%20traumatic%20brain%20injury%3A%20An%20invisible%20public%20health%20epidemic,-March%2017%2C%202022&text=While%20studying%20brain%20injuries%20in,consistent%20with%20possibly%20experiencing%20concussions.
Spelling it out:
It’s a known fact that many people (not all!) with schizophrenia experience auditory hallucinations. Conversely, individuals on these prescribed medications in treating schizophrenia can suffer from a decline in cognition (i.e., slurred speech, reduction in thought processing, slowed gait).
It has to be emphasized these particular above-mentioned cognitive processes were healthy before medications were administered.
Thus, there is a potential argument which can suggest that a patient using medicine to treat schizophrenia may experience a side effect involving their hearing.
Research is necessary to ascertain just how devastating this health issue can become for current patients, new patients, and patients in the future, all diagnosed with schizophrenia.
Vikki
Ohio State University (2022, March 14) talks about how students and employees can learn how to become creative, a skill originally thought an ascribed talent.
The creative learning discussed in the article can allow people to find more than one problem-solving answer for difficulties they may experience in school, the workplace, and everyday life. Thus, creativity is an important skill in developing a more well-rounded, critically-thoughtful society. A populace with comprehensive knowledge on given subjects, with the ability to discuss a number of ways.
Vikki
Reference
Ohio State University. (2022, March 14). Anyone Can Be Trained To Be Creative: New Program Shows Early Success With U.S. Army, Others. Science Daily. Retrieved March 26, 2022 From https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/03/220314095702.htm
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