Monday, August 20, 2007
We Don't Say "Crazy"
Just did a two-week clinical rotation at the Oregon State Mental Hospital. Saw a large variety of folks with mental illness ranging from bipola to schizophrenia. Some were there from a civil committment, others had killed folks. Pretty interesting.
What I found most curious was that when staff members didn't wear their name tags, it was difficult for me to tell who was a patient and who was staff. I met a number of staffers - sans badge for whatever reason - and thought they were distinctly weird. Perhaps mental health specialists have to be a little weird, but mostly I think it was just their idiosyncracies standing out as signs of mental illness.
Then I met a few patients who seemed more normal that half my friends and I couldn't tell they had schizoaffective disorder, schizophrenia, or had been in prison for 20 years for murder.
I guess my point is that what we label "mental illness" can hide in a person who appears normal, and those who have not been diagnosed with a mental illness may not be as sane as they appear.
Interesting rotation, for sure.
