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U.S. soldier attacks fellow troops, killing five, at Camp Liberty in Baghdad, Helen Kennedy DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER Updated Monday, May 11th 2009, 9:09 PM A shell-shocked American soldier shot and killed five comrades at a military stress clinic in Baghdad Monday, shining new light on the growing psychological toll of war.The troubled soldier was taken into custody, officials said. His name was not immediately revealed. Defense Secretary Robert Gates expressed the incident would get high-level attention. "Such a tragic loss of life, at the hands of our own forces, is a cause for great and urgent concern," he said. Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs, said the shooting suggests the military needs to "redouble our efforts in terms of dealing with the stress" of multiple deployments. One in five soldiers return from Iraq or Afghanistan with psychological problems ranging from insomnia to suicidal or homicidal tendencies. As multiple deployments grow, the military suicide rate has soared. more..
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| Clinic Shootings Highlight Mental Health Challenges for Military As Repeated Deployments Take Toll, Army Expands Prevention, Treatment Efforts by Ann Scott Tyson Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, May 17, 2009 " Sgt. John M. Russell was near the end of his third tour in Iraq when he allegedly gunned down five fellow service members at a Baghdad combat stress clinic last week. The incident cast a stark light on some of the military's biggest mental health challenges: the deepening psychological and personal toll of repeated combat deployments, the stigma that surrounds seeking help, and the growing indications that some hardened soldiers such as Russell are having trouble ever mentally departing the war zone." The article goes on to state that, "An estimated 20 percent of service members return from the wars psychologically damaged, with depression or symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder such as nightmares, hyper-vigilance and emotional numbing, according to a Rand Corp. study last year." more... |
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Do You Qualify for Pfizer's New Program?
Lost your job and health insurance this year? If you have, or if you do, this program may help you pay for your medications. Pfizer, Inc., has launched a program called MAINTAIN just for people who are newly unemployed, have been taking a Pfizer drug for at least 3 months, and meet hardship requirements. Here's a list of the available meds that might apply to BP and links to learn more. |
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Tools for tough times Psychologists' research on past economic crises offers clues to how American families will be affected by the recession—and what works to help them. By Tori DeAngelis Monitor on Psychology
Volume 40, No. 1 January 2009
Since September, hundreds of thousands of Americans have lost their retirement savings, jobs and even their homes. Given these hard realities, how is the economic downturn affecting the nation's mental health? Research by psychologists and others are offering some clues. Overall, studies show that people of all economic and demographic stripes react similarly to unexpected economic deprivation, but that those prone to depression may suffer the most. Research also suggests that coping mechanisms, such as putting the family first, as well as tested interventions that help people find jobs and avoid depression, can help people weather financial setbacks and come out the stronger for it. more..
Economic crisis takes toll on mental health By Charlie Fidelman, Montreal Gazette January 10, 2009 Everyone will be hurting in the economic meltdown - that is, except mental health professionals.They at least probably don't have to worry about not having enough work.Mental health experts worldwide are warning of a potential crisis, with financial insecurity fuelling an increase in problems ranging from anxiety to lost self-esteem.Months before the United States government started mulling corporate bailouts, the World Health Organization had issued a call for improved services to deal with a rise in mental health problems, linking a rise in suicides and the financial meltdowns. more...
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DID YOU KNOW? More Than 10 Percent of Adults Experienced Serious Psychological Distress in 2008: A federal government report finds that more than 1 in every 10 U.S. adults experienced serious psychological distress in the past year. more... |
Mentally ill drug abusers have more ER visits Reuters Health
Thursday, December 11, 2008 NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Drug abusers with mental illness visit emergency rooms more often than their counterparts without mental illness, according to a study published in BMC Emergency Medicine. "Psychiatric and substance use problems are commonly found to be contributing factors to frequent ER use," Dr. Geoffrey M. Curran, of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, and colleagues write. Little research, however, has examined the impact on ER usage when both drug abuse and mental illness are present. The researchers studied 6865 patients diagnosed with substance use disorders in the ER of a large community hospital over a 54-month period. Substance abuse was classified as alcohol dependence, alcohol abuse, cocaine dependence/abuse, and polysubstance/ mixed use.
If a psychiatric diagnosis appeared during any of the ED visits, the patient was classified has having a mental illness. Psychiatric diagnoses included schizophrenia/psychoses, bipolar disorder, depression, anxiety, and dementia. more... |
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Parity At Last! Landmark Legislation Signed into Law From NAMI California by Gabby Hyman, Editor, October 3, 2008 In a victory for consumers and families, The House of Representatives today approved landmark mental health parity legislation that will outlaw discrimination by health insurance providers when paying for treatment for Americans suffering from mental illnesses or substance abuse. The 263-171 vote, approving the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008, was part of the financial bailout package signed by President George Bush. more... |
January 12, 2009, 8:12 am
Congress Takes Up Children’s Health Program — Again
By Carl Hulse
The House will observe the last week of President Bush’s presidency by passing an expansion of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, or SCHIP – a measure Mr. Bush twice vetoed.
Plans to increase spending on the program, which provides health coverage for children whose families are not poor enough for Medicaid but need help with insurance costs, were a major point of friction between Democrats and the White House the past two years. Now Democrats intend to pass a version similar to the measures rejected by Mr. Bush, although the details were still being worked out. more...
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Seat and Member Name |
District |
Contact Information |
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State of California Governor (R)
Schwarzenegger, Arnold
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State Capitol Bldg.
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 445-2841
Fax: (916) 445-4633
E-mail: governor@governor.ca.gov
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Senate (D)
Steinberg, Darrell
http://www.sen.ca.gov/steinberg |
District 06
Senate President Pro Tem |
1020 N Street
State Capitol Suite 578 Room 4035
Sacramento, CA 95814
Sacramento, CA (916) 324-4937
94248-0001
(916) 651-4006
5722 Watt Avenue North Highlands, CA 95660 (916)338-6577 |
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Assembly (D)
Jones, Dave
http://www.assembly.ca.gov/acs/legmem.asp?district=9 |
District 09 |
915 L Street
State Capitol Suite 110 Room 3146
Sacramento, CA 95814
Sacramento, Ca (916) 324-4676
94249-0009 (916) 319-2009 |
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Assembly (R)
Niello, Roger
http://www.assembly.ca.gov/acs/legmem.asp?district=5 |
District (05) |
4811 Chippendale Drive
State Capitol Suite 501 Room 6027
Sacramento, CA 95841
Sacramento, Ca (916) 349-1995
94249-0005 (916) 319-2005 |
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Senate (R)
Cox, Dave
http://www.sen.ca.gov/cox |
District 01 |
2140 Professional Drive
State Capitol Suite 140 Room 2068
Roseville 95661
Sacramento, CA (916) 783-8232
94248-0001 (916) 651-4001
33C Broadway Jackson CA 95642
(209)223-9140
1020 N St. Rm 568 Sacramento, CA 95814
(916)327-9034 2094
East Main Street Quincy CA, 95971 (530) 283-3437 |
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Find out who your Yolo representatives are here
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http://www.namiyolo.org/statelegislators.html |
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Do You Qualify for Pfizer's New Program?
Lost your job and health insurance this year? If you have, or if you do, this program may help you pay for your medications. Pfizer, Inc., has launched a program called MAINTAIN just for people who are newly unemployed, have been taking a Pfizer drug for at least 3 months, and meet hardship requirements. Here's a list of the available meds that might apply to BP and links to learn more. |
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Depression and anxiety: Exercise eases symptoms If you have depression or anxiety, you might find your doctor or mental health provider prescribing a regular dose of exercise in addition to medication or psychotherapy. Exercise isn't a cure for depression or anxiety. But its psychological and physical benefits can improve your symptoms. "It's not a magic bullet, but increasing physical activity is a positive and active strategy to help manage depression and anxiety," says Kristin Vickers-Douglas, Ph.D., a psychologist at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn.
When you have depression or anxiety, exercising may be the last thing you think you can do. But you can overcome the inertia. See how exercise can ease depression symptoms and anxiety symptoms. Plus, get realistic tips to get started and stick with exercising. more... |
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2nd Generation Antidepressants Prove Effective New guideline from American College of Physicians calls them equally good TUESDAY, Nov. 18 (HealthDay News) -- Second generation antidepressants are all equally effective, according to a new clinical practice guideline released by the American College of Physicians. The guideline authors reviewed more than 200 published studies about the benefits and risks of the following second generation drugs: bupropion, citalopram, duloxetine, escitalopram, fluoxetine, fluvoxamine, mirtazapine, nefazodone, paroxetine, sertraline, trazadone and venlafaxine."The studies we analyzed show that second generation drugs have different adverse effects but are equally effective for treating depression," lead author Dr. Amir Qaseem, senior medical associate in ACP's Clinical Programs and Quality of Care Department, said in a group news release. more... |
FDA: No Suicide Risk From Singulair FDA's Review Shows No Link Between Suicide and Asthma Drugs Singulair, Accolate, Zyflo, or Zyflo CR By Miranda Hitti WebMD Health NewsReviewed by Louise Chang, MD Jan. 13, 2009 -- The FDA today announced that it sees no sign of an association between the asthma drugs Singulair, Accolate, Zyflo, or Zyflo CR and suicide risk.The FDA began reviewing safety data on those four drugs and suicide, suicidality (suicidal thinking and behavior) and other behavior and mood changes in March 2008.The agency now concludes that the data "do not suggest" that Singulair, Accolate, Zyflo, or Zyflo CR are associated with suicide or suicidal behavior, although the data came from clinical trials that weren't designed to examine such events. more... |
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Science Update
December 9, 2008 Not All Antipsychotics Created Equal: Analysis Reveals Important Differences An analysis of studies on antipsychotics reveals multiple differences among the newer, second-generation antipsychotics as well as the older medications, and suggests the current classification system blurs important differences, rendering it unhelpful. The analysis, partially funded by NIMH, was published online December 5, 2008, in The Lancet. Stefan Leucht, M.D., of Technische Universität München in Munich, Germany, and colleagues looked at 150 studies from all parts of the world with a total of 21,533 participants. By examining these double-blind studies, they were able to compare nine second-generation—also called atypical—antipsychotics with first-generation antipsychotics.
They examined symptom reduction; quality of life; side effects such as movement disorders, weight gain and sedation (sleepiness); and other factors. Four atypical antipsychotics—amisulpride (Solian), clozapine (Clozaril), olanzapine (Zyprexa) and risperidone (Risperdal)—were found to be more effective in treating overall symptoms of schizophrenia than first-generation medications. The other five studied—aripiprazole (Abilify), quetiapine (Seroquel), sertindole (Serdolect), ziprasidone (Geodon), and zotepine (Nipolept)—were found to be as effective as first-generation medications in treating symptoms of the disease. more...
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE from the Depression Bipolar Support Alliance: CONTACT: Gloria Pope
(312) 988-1164
gpope@DBSAlliance.org;
Karen Kraft
(312) 988-1178
kraft@DBSAlliance.org; Celebrities and Bipolar Disorder
Helpful Information for Everyone (CHICAGO, January 7, 2008) – Speculation about bipolar disorder in celebrities has been
in the news lately. While DBSA does not support speculation about anyone’s diagnosis,
believing that this is a matter best discussed in the privacy of a doctor–patient
relationship, the following information and resources may be helpful in understanding
more about this common medical condition.
Bipolar disorder (also known as manic depression) is a treatable illness marked by
extreme changes in mood, thought, energy and behavior. It is not a character flaw or a
sign of personal weakness. Bipolar disorder is also known as manic depression because a
person’s mood can alternate between the "poles" of mania (highs) and depression (lows).
These changes in mood, or "mood swings," can last for hours, days, weeks or months.
About 5.7 million American adults, or about 2.6 percent of the population age 18 and
older in any given year,* have bipolar disorder. The illness typically develops in late
adolescence or early adulthood. However, some people have their first symptoms during
childhood, while others develop them late in life. It is often not recognized as an illness,
and people may suffer for years before receiving a proper diagnosis and treatment. Like
diabetes or heart disease, bipolar disorder is a long-term illness that must be carefully
managed throughout a person’s life.
Celebrities who have spoken openly about their diagnoses include Maurice Benard, Patty
Duke, Carrie Fisher, Linda Hamilton and Margot Kidder.
For a list of symptoms of bipolar disorder’s depressive and manic phases, visit www.DBSAlliance.org/about_bipolar_overview. |
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