Former Rhode Island Congressman Patrick Kennedy writes of his own mental illness and addictions in “A Common Struggle”, but he also looks at his parents’ problems with alcohol and his mother’s depression. Kennedy believes his father, Ted, suffered from post-traumatic stress after two of his brothers were assassinated. Kennedy refers to our “Public Health Epidemic” where “we are all silent and no one talks” as having undeniable consequences, including keeping people from the treatment they need and deserve, which can lead to individual and community tragedies.
A profile of the champion of “Parity,” who is a hero in the world of mental wellness. (bp Magazine, Spring 2007)
The veteran politician quit Congress, found true love and launched a new campaign for mental health. (bp Magazine, Fall 2011)
The mental health advocate dishes about life after Congress, his new family, mood challenges, and how he stays in balance. (bp Magazine, Winter 2015)
It’s tempting to numb anxiety and depression with alcohol. For better sleep, more effective meds, and improved bipolar disorder management, consider limiting drinking or stopping altogether. A handful of years ago, Jim V. finally said “enough” to alcohol. “When I quit drinking, everything started working again, including my medication for bipolar disorder,” says Jim, now...
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Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) for treatment-resistant bipolar symptoms is a subject of much debate and stigma. While some credit it with giving them back their lives, others struggle with the loss of cherished memories. Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), with over eight decades of use in psychiatry, remains a subject of intense debate. Despite advancements and extensive research,...
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Julie A. Fast uses her extensive research and personal experience to offer strategies for managing bipolar disorder. Read more in this Q&A about how her insights can guide confident management and deepen our understanding of this brain-based illness. Julie A. Fast is a recognized authority in the mental health field. She is known for her...
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Whether you live with bipolar or love someone who does, you can find comfort, wisdom, and strategies (maybe even a good laugh!) in these inspirational books. We can lose ourselves in the power of the written word, compelled by the raw emotions, deep insights, and humorous takes offered by others like us — people who...
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I am proud of Patrick Kennedy for speaking out for mental illness. Living with mental illness is very difficult. It’s difficult for anyone that has to face it. My grandmother on my father’s side was diagnosed with schizophrenia. My father is diagnosed with bipolar and so am I. Mental illness effects every life in its path. Whether you are blessed by wealth or live in a family that doesn’t have money and has to survive on food stamps. Mental illness exist for millions and of people. Is it like a bomb that goes off and everyone around it gets blown up. To anyone who is reading this and finds themselves realizing that they don’t feel well… look for support groups online if you can’t go in person. Look for the right therapist. If you have a health plan and they cover mental illness then look at the doctors that have a high rating from their patients. Make an appointment and start talking about whatever is bothering you. You may think it won’t help but it will. Trying to face things alone is very difficult. If you did have a pretty good life growing up and just can’t get rid of the depressive feelings that you are facing it is very possible that you have not been diagnosed properly or at all. You can’t face something if you don’t know what you’re facing without looking very closely and finding out why you feel the way you do. Depression and anxiety can be in any family. Even a family that looks okay from the outside. Or a family that is basically okay. Or someone that hasn’t been blessed enough to even have family and feels alone. You Are Not Alone. There are people that care. I care about anyone facing anxiety and depression even if I don’t know them. I know how it feels and I know how hard it is to live with sadness and anxiety that just paralyzes you completely to the point of not even being able to get out of bed. Then I started watching YouTube videos about other people that were suffering from depression and mental illness. I realized that I was not alone. I’ve been blessed because God gave me the ability to finally get up. I only went to the couch which is kind of comical but it gave me the belief that now that I did that maybe everything wasn’t lost. I am still struggling basically with bipolar disorder and the whole lot of trauma that I experienced. Keep fighting as hard as you can. Don’t give up on yourself. Some days you may not be able to fight as hard as others but just keep fighting. If you’re alone a lot try to discover something that inspires you. Colors inspire me so it first I started coloring in wonderful coloring books that were made for adults. And I discovered I could draw Maybe there is something that inspires you. It’s there you just have to discover it. And never stop fighting your illness. Help others when you can and definitely pay it forward. God bless
I dont know how much longer I can deal with my husbands illness he ended up in the hospital 4 years ago “confessing” to basically cheating on me for our entire relationship and now I screwed up and he is a phycopath,.and wont stop treating me horrible. I didnt even hold this big of a grudge against him and he wont let this go ,.just a bad weekend basically. He scares the shit out of me he wont leave and I dont know what to do please help me
Get out now. You have to take care of yourself first, and he is not aiding in that, it sounds like. You don’t have to stay for anybody… Nobody at all! Take care of you sweetheart!
Such courage! My family has dealt with schizophrenia, schizo-affctive, bipolar, and depression, not to mention addictions to alcohol and other substances. I have worked in my own community to minimize the stigma of mental illness. It is nice that someone of stature would reveal his issues to the world. This, however, is the only way to change how our society manages mental health. Thank you Patrick for your transparency. You are a hero!
You have no choice but to take care of yourself. Give him the chance to get professional help and if he procrastinates in the least, move on. He will pull you down to his level. It isn’t worth it. Life is too short.
How can a Kennedy complain about a “failed health system”? He’s rich. He gets the best treatment in the world. His family was in power for decades! What did they do to help the mental health?
Patrick Kennedy has “never worked a day in his life.” He lied to cover up his car accident on Capitol Hill. 3 days later, he was endorsed to run for Congress. But, he remained a pill addict and bounced in and out of rehab. Why didn’t he sponsor any bills to improve America’s healthcare system while in Congress? He’s not looking so useful now.
In his video, he failed to offer any suggestions on how to help fix the US mental health system. Nothing. He just spent the time covering up his family sins. I do not think that readers of BP Hope should look to Patrick Kennedy as a role model. I am disappointed that BP Hope featured a story on him.
I must say that I have learned from my own bipolar disorder that many times people don’t know they need help. I did admit to having deep depression because I thought I’d be strong enough to face . I believed I was coping well and I carried on day in and day out with this illusion that I was “alright”. I’m not sure how old Patrick Kennedy is but he may have been born like I was around 1965 and it was never talked about that I can recall. Mental illness was and by some people still is viewed as not being strong enough or that the people that suffer from it are just weak and they should get it together. These words are hurtful because when you do try to face the fact that there is something wrong you feel like you haven’t lived up to being strong enough. Even though the Kennedy family had a lot of privilege, money, things Etc. They were not facing their demons and they did not teach their children to face their demons sad but true. Things don’t mean anything without love. And while I’m sure they loved each other very much by not facing their own tragedies. the people that are around them don’t want to say the obvious things because they don’t want to admit how badly someone is hurting. Also I feel people are afraid to say anything because they are afraid they’ll hurt the person even more by even speaking about it. I had a very difficult and abusive childhood and I suffer from PTSD from it. I suffer from PTSD as I said in my last sentence . But I can’t imagine what it must be like to be in the family like the Kennedys where every single event was played over and over on television and there must have been nowhere to go to not see these horrible things . I’m just saying when you don’t feel well it’s very hard to admit . And when you don’t admit things you start to try to numb it out of yourself. you go to the doctor feeling badly unfortunately they don’t Really address the situations that their client has been experiencing but instead just start medicating them. Not that there isn’t room for both because I do believe that’s some medications have helped people. It is very possible living in the bubble of the Kennedy Legacy and seeing his own father treat his sadness with alcohol and pills part of the behavior was learned seeing it in his dad. It took me decades to realize that I had to deal with my past traumas and I am still dealing with them up until today. My sister Franny slowly drank herself to death. She died in her early forties from cirrhosis of the liver. She was about 20 years older than so I never really got to know her before she depended so much on alcohol. she got pregnant at 15 and had child after child because she was so fertile which is a good thing and some families but our family it was not a good thing. Her kids can’t even call her mom because they’re so mad at her for drinking. crazy to explain other than my family was messed up, but it took me to the age of 53 to realize all the behaviors in my family were copied by my mother’s children. My mother was disabled with terrible arthritis that crippled her . She slept all day and night most of the time because she was hooked on painkillers. The Kennedys, a family that when you look at them from the outside seem to have everything but they didn’t have the proper care they just had whatever substance might kill the sadness for a while. It takes a lot of time to get better when you are sick just being sad from bad things that have happened to you. But it also takes a lot of help to get to the point where you can admit that there is a problem and then try to go find the right help to treat it. I’m just saying that just because you are rich and can afford treatment doesn’t mean you are getting the right treatment.
LLDC, I wholeheartedly disagree. Patrick Kennedy has worked tirelessly to advocate for those with mental illness. He speaks honestly and openly about his BP illness, addiction and recovery. He has helped to bring about legislation so that insurance companies would cover mental illness in the same way as physical illness. He has bravely opened up about his personal and family experiences with mental illness, PTSD, and addiction in order to demonstrate the enormous difference that is possible through seeking therapy, medication and sobriety.
I have suffered for years treated to depression and my mind race like a NASCAR around and around. I know of uncle aunts farther who also had my dieade…but alcohol and drugs and violence covers it up. Thanks for this Mr. KENNEDY GOD BLESS YPUR FAMILY.