Board
Members Speak on 2003 Long Beach Conference
By
Alexis Maislen
At
the September 8 education meeting, DBSA Chicago board members Judy Sturm, and
Bill Cocagne took turns speaking about the workshops
they attended at the national conference “Charting a Course: Improving Our
Lives” in Long Beach, California held this August at the Hyatt
Regency Hotel. Sturm energetically began the evening
praising the organization for being there when her daughter and her needed help
most.
“When
I was manic, my daughter turned to DBSA [Depression and Bipolar Support
Alliance]. Someone in the office stayed with her on the phone, providing her
with information with how to talk to my employer so I didn’t get fired. They
told her how to talk to Human Resources. The result—I went on short-term
disability and didn’t get fired for missing work when I was manic,” said Sturm.
Sturm told an audience of over 30 people that the local chapter of DBSA was
a wonderful resource for consumers looking for information on mood disorders and
finances, legal, housing, employment.
“Whatever we can’t handle we have the resources of our National office—which is in Chicago,” she said. National’s web site is www.dbsalliance.org.
Cocagne spoke about attending Mildred Reynolds, EdD, MSW, workshop “Wellness in Late Life.” Reynolds said
that it is important for senior citizens with mood disorders to develop a
balanced life on all levels—physical, mental, social, emotional, and spiritual.
She suggested getting medical check ups regularly, eating nutritious food,
exercising, charting moods, setting goals for each day, keeping a positive
attitude, joining local DBSA chapter, and practicing some type of spiritual
faith or developing one’s own personal philosophy to take one through rough
times. Eleni Hailemariam,
MD, a geriatric psychiatrist, suggested that loved ones of seniors should know
and understand the symptoms of depression and acknowledge it as an illness and
not as a part of growing old.
Sturm summarized registered dietitian Diana Lipsenberg’s
presentation “Food and Moods”. Lipsenberg, a
dietitian with such clients as the LA Clippers, sees healthy eating in terms of
portion control. Imagine a scale from 10 to 0. Ten meaning you leave the table
feeling stuffed and sick and zero meaning you are ravenous. Four and five are
where everyone should be ideally—comfortably full, maybe even a little hungry.
She said that people who eat at a 10 level two or more times a week will
definitely gain weight. Whereas, people who eat within an 8 to 7 range maintain
their weight, and people who leave the table at a six two or more times a week
lose weight. She encouraged people to journal about their eating habits to find
out why they overate—determine whether it was due to boredom or
procrastination. Then, they could find strategies to address the root behavior
such as finding new activities to participate in or working on a better time
management system.
Cocagne spoke about John Greden’s, MD, and chairman
of the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor,
workshop “Mood Disorders and Men”. Greden’s concern
was that depression is diagnosed far less frequently in men. Many men fear to
seek treatment because of stigma. And, society often chalks male depression up
to be moodiness, stress, adjustment problems, substance abuse, or physical
illnesses. Ninety-four percent of men with depression experience mild or
moderate symptoms which are harder to detect and allow for some normal daily
functioning. Greden’s solution would be to set up
Depression Centers across the country where people could be screened, educated,
and treated for depression.
Finally,
Sturm capped off the night by sharing what she
learned from Karinne Green, JD at the Houston County
Clinic in Dothan, Alabama workshop “How to get the Most Out of Therapy”. Green
provided participants with a list of questions they should not be afraid to ask
a new or prospective therapist, psychiatrist, or treatment provider. Some of
them include: What is the best therapeutic approach to treat mood disorders
(psychoanalytical, cognitive, behavioral, humanistic)?, What are your
credentials and training?, How many clients have you worked with who have had
similar issues to mine?, How did you work with them and how did it help?, Do
you receive your own personal supervision, consultation, therapy from a
professional?, and What are your beliefs on how therapy should work?.
She
suggested that once you find a therapist establishing appropriate goals comes
first. Openness and honesty is crucial for the relationship to work. Take notes
on your self-talk in a journal and share it with your therapist. Ask them
questions on how you can help yourself. You will know that therapy is working
when the following begin to happen in your life: You begin to notice yourself developing
insights; your symptoms diminish; you trust your therapist with your darkest
thoughts; you identify your own behavior patterns and reaction to stress; you
start communicating you feelings rather then acting them out; you honestly talk
about your strengths and limitations; and you are educated about your illness
and the best way for you to cope.
Cocagne highlighted the conference’s closing speaker Linda Fuller, co-founder of Habitat for Humanity, story about her
struggle throughout the 1990s with depression and substance abuse. Her
experience deepened her commitment to helping low-income people and those with
mood disorders.
Lisa
Goodalle, a representative from DBSA’s
national office in Chicago, attended the education meeting and reminded people
about the upcoming Nov. 14 benefit fundraiser for
DBSA. The event, being the organization’s first ever, will be an exciting
evening of celebration at the Chicago Cultural Center and will cost $65 a
person.
Goodalle also said that 256 chapters from across the country, totaling 1000 people
attended this year’s conference. In most years, the conferences drew in up
to 500. This year, she suspects Kay Jamison and
the conference’s sunny, West Coast location brought the draw. She encouraged
people to apply for scholarships to attend the 2004 conference to be held
Aug. 13-15 in Pittsburgh, PA. More information can be found on the web site.
DBSA needs your help! We are looking for talented people to help with the daily running of our office. We specifically need help with answering requests for information, researching mental health programs in the area for our records, data entry, mailings, newsletter writers, web site designers, drivers, and people to facilitate new support groups for teens, dual-diagnosis, and in farther out suburban locations. Please contact our office at (773) 465-3280 if interested.
We need your financial support too! While most of the funds to keep our office at 6666 N. Western Avenue running comes from large donors such as pharmaceutical companies, a significant portion of our budget is funded by dues from our grateful and loyal members. We are happy to report membership in DBSA Chicago has increased this year. Consider upgrading your membership with a contribution (every $2 helps). Paying members will receive our newsletter Spectrum throughout the year; while people who only sign up to be on our mailing list will receive the Spectrum for six months. Spectrum offers six-pages in comprehensive coverage on new treatments and their side-effects for depression and bipolar disorder, articles about our speakers at our monthly education meetings, columns by our resident medical advisor Dr. Fred Miller, PhD, MD, late-breaking news in the field of mood disorders, and much, much more.