Abusive Relationships: Leave and Re-live!

Everyone, at least once in their lives, have experienced getting into a relationship. When you are in a healthy relationship, both individuals support each other, sharing the good times and helping or supporting each other through the tough times. When someone matters deeply to you, and those feelings of trust and respect are returned, it enables us to face the world with confidence. Building and maintaining a healthy relationship needs commitment from both sides to make their partnership work. But it is truly worth all the effort because when you are in a good relationship, you feel good about your boyfriend or girlfriend, and you also feel good about yourself.

Not all relationships work that way no matter how much we might want them to. When there is violence, the relationship can become really destructive which can make it both physically and emotionally dangerous. Abuse can be physical, emotional, or sexual. Slapping, hitting, and kicking are forms of physical abuse that can occur in both romances and friendships. Emotional abuse, like teasing, bullying, and humiliating others can be difficult to recognize because it doesn't leave any visible scars. Threats, intimidation, putdowns, and betrayal are all harmful forms of emotional abuse that can really hurt not just during the time it's happening, but long after too. Sometimes, abusive relationships are easy to identify because some of the abuse may be very subtle. In general, abusive relationships have a serious power imbalance, with the abuser controlling or attempting to control most aspects of life.

While appearing to be powerful, abusive individuals are often very dependent upon their partners for their sense of self-esteem. Sometimes they expect their partners to take care of day to day tasks which most adults handle for themselves. Abusive partners often feel powerless in the larger world. The relationship may be the only place where they feel a sense of power. Attacking their partner's abilities or sense of self-worth is one way that abusive individuals maintain a sense of power, esteem, and control. At a deep emotional level, abusers often feels that they are not good enough and fear abandonment. By keeping their partners in a fearful or dependent state, they attempt to ensure that their partners will not leave them.

However, there are positive steps for coping with an abusive relationship such as:

· Maintaining outside relationships and avoiding isolation.

· Seeking “reality checks” by talking to others if you suspect that your partner has been abusive.

· Learning about resources available to people in abusive relationships.

· Identifying a “safe place” you can go to in an emergency if your partner becomes threatening or violent.

· Reading self-help books about healthy and unhealthy relationships.

· Seeking professional counseling or talking to someone you trust to help you sort through the issues that may be keeping you in an abusive relationship.

· Begin to develop a support system, so that if you choose to leave the relationship, you will not be alone.

Remember, abuse has no place in love. If a person made you feel inadequate, useless and fearful then it already may be the time to escape the abusive relationship. Studies show that people with healthy relationships really do have more happiness and less stress than those in an abusive relationship. One should know that abuse and violence is not acceptable in any kind of relationship, if you know from your heart of hearts that you have to get out of the abusive relationship, seek help and leave the relationship and re-live your life!

Abraham Lincoln's War Of Emancipation Against Depression

It is said that the true measure of a man is not seen in times of victory, but in moments of great challenge. A hero, in the true sense of the word, is not about accomplishing incredible feats due to strength, power, and authority. Heroism is best exemplified by men and women who strive for accomplishment inspite of overwhelming odds and latent weaknesses. Abraham Lincoln was one such hero.

In his book entitled, The Inner World of Abraham Lincoln, the author Michael Burlingame attempted to explain the roots of the former U.S. president's depression. Burlingame claims that the death of Lincoln's mother was the cause and the beginning of Lincoln's lifelong battle with melancholia. The book also reveals that as a young child, the future president had to endure the pain and grief of losing a newborn brother, a sister, an uncle, and an aunt. These deaths became embedded in the young Lincoln's psyche, resulting in a series of deep sadness.

Overcoming depression, it can be argued, was Lincoln's greatest feat as a human being. His long list of failures and defeats would surely overwhelm a lesser man.

In 1832, he lost his job abd was defeated in his first attempt to win a legislative seat. The following year, his business collapsed and he spent the next 17 years paying-off his debt.

In 1835, his fiance died, which then made him suffer from a nervous breakdown.

In 1838, he ran for Speaker of the Illinois State Legislature and lost.

In 1843, he again ran for Congress but failed to get nominated. Four years later, he again tried in vain to run for Congress.

In 1854, Lincoln tried his hand at running for the Senate and, again, he lost. Two years later, he ran for Vice President but failed to convince his partymates to nominate him.

And even when he was elected 1860 as the 16th U.S. President, he faced a country that was being torn by a civil war that claimed more than 600,000 lives.

With all the stress and anxiety that he has gone through, it is no wonder that Abraham Lincoln often looked forlorn, tired, and weak in many of his official photographs. One can only imagine the sheer burden of making decisions that would impact the lives of hundreds of thousands of men, women, and children during a time when America was divided unto itself.

How many sleepless nights did he have almost endlessly pacing his room in deep thought? What kind of torment did he experience just pondering about the thousands of lives that were lost because of the war? As commander-in-chief of the Federal Army, his decisions spelled the difference between life and death for each and every infantryman. Yet somehow, inspite of all the failures and heartaches in his life, Abraham Lincoln was able to pull through and lead a nation. Even in the middle of crippling psychological and emotional upheavals, he was able to win the war and keep the Union together.

During Lincoln's time, the medical and scientific community still had no name for manic depressive disorder. The psychological disorder was simply called “melancholia.” In those days, there were no psychiatrists, antidepressant prescriptions, counseling, and group therapy available as we know them today.

Indeed, during the nation's darkest hour, Abraham Lincoln was able to ride above the storms of his life and lead as President. While he was never able to achieve complete emancipation from his psychological problems like the freedom that was won for the Negro slaves, Lincoln heroically faced the obstacles and hardships to become America's most revered president.

Abortion: A Public Health Crisis

Not a few women who have been confronted with the reality of unwanted pregnancy have chosen to resolve their problem through abortion. Abortion is a procedure that makes use of medicine or surgery to remove the embryo or fetus and placenta from the uterus to end a pregnancy. The procedure is usually done by a licensed physician or someone acting under the supervision of a licensed physician.
Research shows that women are just as likely to get an abortion whether it is outlawed or legal. Statistics show that one out of five pregnancies ends in abortion. In a study examining abortion trends from 1995 to 2003, experts also found that abortion rates are virtually equal in rich and poor countries, and that half of all abortions worldwide are done in an unsafe manner.
In spite of the legal status of abortion, it has never dissuaded women who seek to end unwanted pregnancy. Abortion accounts for 13 percent of maternal mortality worldwide. While 70,000 women die every year from unsafe abortions, an additional five million women suffer permanent or temporary injury as a result of this procedure.
Although worldwide, abortion rates have dipped from about 46 million in 1995 to just under 42 million in 2003, the rate of unsafe abortion didn't change at all. In developing countries, the incidence of unsafe abortion continue to rise with nearly half the procedures still performed illegally in potentially dangerous conditions, making it a public health crisis and an assault to human rights.
The increase in contraceptive medication is seen by some sectors as a way to minimize, if not totally eliminate, unsafe abortion. However, while more countries are allowing women to have abortions in a legal way, many women are still receiving medical attention only after a procedure has gone wrong. Women shouldn't have to hurt themselves before they get the necessary medical attention. Unsafe abortion may be defined as a procedure performed by people lacking the required skills or done in an environment that does not conform to the proper medical standards.
The developing world comprised the biggest share of the abortion pie with a figure of about 35 million abortion cases. And nearly 97 percent of all unsafe abortions were in poor countries. In eastern Europe, there are more abortions than live births, or 105 abortions for every 100 live births. In Western Europe, there are 23 abortions for every 100 live births. In North America, there are 33 abortions for every 100 live births, while in Africa, where abortion is illegal in most African states, there are 17 abortions for every 100 live births.
Providing safe abortions depends on a working health-care system. Experts believe that improving access to safe abortion requires improvement on women's health. In the last two decades, there has been little improvement to help women survive pregnancy and childbirth, especially in third world countries due to poverty. While improvement in child health can be done with government support, such as immunization against various diseases, the same cannot be said with improving women's health as funds are restricted from any health services associated with abortion.
Abortion is about making a decision about ending the life of a baby. The debate is still on whether the fetus can be medically considered a human being --- a factor that defines the morality or lack of morality of the choice to undergo an abortion. Indeed, given the very sensitive nature of this procedure , abortion should be considered a very personal decision that requires counseling.

A Controversial Solution to Babies Having Babies

The birth control pill, also known as an oral contraceptive or simply referred to as “The Pill,” is hailed as one of the most important innovations in women's health. Before the advent of the Pill, many women were forced to endure multiple pregnancies, having no reliable way of preventing conception. Some women died from giving birth because their bodies were too weak or too exhausted to carry another child to term, or gave birth to malformed children.

After her mother's death from birthing her eleventh sibling, nineteen year old Margaret Sanger became a nurse and advocate for the development of contraceptives for women. She later found an ally in Katherine McCormick, the wealthy widow of an inventor who funded the research for the creation of the birth control pill. Gregory Pincus, an American doctor and researcher had been studying hormonal biology and steroidal hormones, saw the role that hormones played in the conception of rabbits. With the financial backing from McCormick and Sanger, Pincus approached pharmaceutical company Searle to help them develop the birth control pill. Although Searle declined in the beginning, largely because of the austere birth control laws of the day, an accidental discovery by one of his scientists coupled with Pincus's research led the pharmaceutical company into production of the first oral contraceptive for women. In 1960, the United States Food and Drug Administration approved the use of Enovid, the first birth control pill. It was later found that Enovid caused terrible side effects, mostly because the dosage at the time was about ten times higher than was needed.

Today, after continuous research and development, women now have the birth control pill and other contraceptive drugs and devices to choose from to prevent unwanted pregnancies. This is a long way from the stifling laws in place from 1873 to 1965, when the Comstock laws deemed contraception as illegal. As society becomes increasingly permissive and open about sexual matters, the barrier between what is liberal and what is possibly immoral is constantly being challenged and often bewcomes the subject of heated debate.

One such moral debate is currently underway. A decision made by officials from King Middle School in Portland, Maine has sparked a national debate in the United States. The controversy stems from their resolve to offer a full range of contraception, including birth control pills, to students aged from eleven to fifteen belonging to grades six to eight. This extends the range of contraception available to students in this age group who previously had access only to condoms from the local sexual health clinics. Although they will need parental consent to use the city-run health care clinic, the students will now be able to obtain prescriptions for birth control pills and other forms of contraception without their parents finding out. This comes after a request from the school's health center to make the pills available to children of high school age who were still attending middle school.

But many protest that these children are simply too young to have free access to such forms of birth control, and fear that this will lead children to think that having sex at such a young age is correct. But advocates of the decision say that they would rather give children these options than see a twelve year old become pregnant, citing the rising number of teenage mothers in the United States. Nationwide, one study showed more than 17,000 pregnancies for girls 14 or younger.

Besides, advocates contend, the children will receive extensive counseling before being given the prescription. The idea of making birth control pills available to that particular age group is not to promote promiscuity but to keep students safe, and in school. Many children who don't have a strong parental advocate at home need someone they can turn to and trust to answer questions regarding their sexuality at a time when they are constantly bombarded with sexually suggestive images.

In the end, whether one is for or against the scheme, it is important to strike an appropriate balance between addressing the growing problem of teenage pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases and upholding a moral standard for all students. People must recognize the significant role that parents and other family should play in educating children about sex and its consequences.

An Introduction to Mobile Psychiatric Rehabilitation

People who are mentally ill also seem to be chronically afraid of hospitals, or at least seem to want to avoid medical attention in a hospital setting. Looking at it from the perspective of someone who is confused or otherwise mentally unstable, the sterile and instrument-laden halls of a hospital are indeed terrifying, and can even be considered "creepy" by a person who is not suffering from a mental condition. Mentally ill people do not want to come to a hospital, and they do not want to seek treatment, making it difficult to get that treatment to them. This is why mobile psychiatric rehabilitation units have been established. Mobile psychiatric rehabilitation is designed to help people who are suffering from a mental illness regain or maintain the skills that will help them function in society, allowing them the comfort and security of being treated in an individualized fashion by a caring person in their own homes. The mobile psychiatric rehabilitation program is individualized to each person, with a specialist conducting an assessment of each person to whom the mobile psychiatric rehabilitation unit is assigned. They work with the mentally ill individual to determine their strengths, and their personal and community resources. From there they work to determine a plan of service to help outline the tasks and goals of the individual. Both the patient and the representative have tasks between each visit to make progress toward these goals. The mobile psychiatric rehabilitation units are tailored to meet the wants as well as the needs of each individual. They can meet an individual in their own home, at their school, their work, or even in their neighborhood. These services are short term and are goal oriented, allowing people, through their own personal choice and at their own speed, to develop the skills and the support that they need to become self-sufficient and to have a more satisfying life. Mobile psychiatric rehabilitation can help to allow a person to manage their own home through the acquisition of new skills such as budgeting, nutrition, and other self-care skills, as well as skills in areas such as the use of public transportation. Mobile psychiatric rehabilitation can help to teach mentally ill individuals or mentally deficient individuals to use their time more productively, both in the community and at home, and can help them to manage mental health issues like their medications. Mentally ill people can also benefit from mobile psychiatric rehabilitation to help them use community resources such as employment specialists, advocacy groups, program participant groups, and other community support to their advantage. They will learn how to enjoy and make use of the love and support of their family, friends, and community, even co-workers, and will work on their ability to coordinate their care between their service providers and their support systems at or near home. Mobile psychiatric rehabilitation focuses not on medicating or treating mentally ill patients, but on helping individuals medicate themselves and assisting them in managing their own diseases so that they can live out their lives as best as they can. A mentally ill individual could make use of mobile psychiatric rehabilitation to learn how to live on their own and how to use the features available to them, from busses and trains to employment specialists. People working with mobile psychiatric rehabilitation can learn how to utilize their co-workers as a support system, and about how to reach out for the help that they need in managing their everyday life. The mobile psychiatric rehabilitation programs can also help people to learn about their own homes and lives, allowing them to learn about things such as budgets so that they can become even more independent. It feels good to work with a friendly person to reach a goal that you personally have set. Whether your goal is to learn how to get to work all by yourself or how to buy groceries or clean your own house. Mobile psychiatric rehabilitation is a wonderful service for the mentally ill, and can help people who might otherwise fall apart to get on their feet and learn to move forward, perhaps for the first time in their lives. Mobile psychiatric rehabilitation is for anyone who is a functional mentally ill person. This program, if it is available in your area, can help you or a loved one learn to make use of their functional capacity to live independently.

Basic Facts of Sociophobia

Social Anxiety Disorder Social anxiety disorder is a kind of mental disorder wherein a person experiences an intense or unreasonable fear of social gatherings where there is a possibility that one may get embarrassed or ridiculed. This mental condition is also known as social phobia. Most of the time, these anxieties arise from an intense fear of being observed and scrutinized. This may range from simple things like the way a person walks, talks or acts; to important job functions like performing in front of a crowd, giving presentations, or finishing an interview for a job application. Symptoms Social phobia disrupts a person’s normal life because it makes sufferers avoid doing things that require social contact in fear of embarrassment, and situations where they might become the center of attention. People with social phobia manifest two general symptoms: 1. Emotional symptoms which may include the following: · An overwhelming fear of being put into situations where one is surrounded by strangers · Being extremely scared of being in situations where the sufferer may be judged · Worrying excessively about embarrassing or humiliating one’s self · An baseless fear that others will notice that you look anxious · Severe anxiety that can disrupt one’s daily routine, work, school or other activities 2. Physical symptoms include: · blushing · profuse sweating · trembling or shaking · nausea · stomach upset · difficulty talking · shaky voice · muscle tension · confusion · palpitations · diarrhea · cold and clammy hands · difficulty making eye contact Mental health professionals say social anxiety disorder is closely related to shyness. However social phobia differs in the sense that this disrupts normal socializing functions. It is true that everyone goes through a stage of shyness in their life, overcoming it is a different thing. When it becomes too much that it interrupts your daily life and relationships to the point where you are sick with worry, it is time to seek counsel. It is good to know the signs and symptoms of social anxiety disorder to be able to determine and treat this said condition before it worsens. Social anxiety disorder sufferers always think that other people are more confident that they are, that other people are better than them. They feel uncomfortable being around people that it makes it difficult for them to eat, drink, work, asking questions, asking for dates, even going to the toilet, when other people are around. Treatment Fortunately for people with social phobia, a combination of treatments and therapies are available to help them get over this kind of anxiety disorder. Mental health professionals have been using a combination of talk therapy and medications to minimize, if not fully get rid of, the effects of having social anxiety disorder. Different prescription drugs are being used to help people with social phobia. Certain anti-depressants, anti-anxiety medications, and beta-blockers help sociophobes to balance certain brain chemicals and reduce instances of having panic attacks during periods of heightened anxiety. Counseling, or talk therapy, helps people with social anxiety disorder by teaching them how to react to situations that trigger their anxiety. Therapists help patients confront their negative feelings about social situations and their fear of being judged. This helps patients understand how their thought patterns contribute to the symptoms of social phobia and gives than an idea on how to change the way they think to make the symptoms begin to lessen. Being diagnosed as a sociophobe doesn’t have to mean you have to stay as one. It is nothing to be ashamed of and should be tackled head on. After all, with the presence of advanced medicine and a good counselling session, you’ll slowly be able to outgrow this mental condition and socialize and function normally within a group without being too anxious.