Mid Rivers Newsmagazine 3-6-24

4 I
March 6, 2024
MID RIVERS NEWSMAGAZINE
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Mental Health
Law Matters
The Census
Bureau once
found that
approximately
10% of the
population suffers
from a serious
mental illness,
with half
of those suffering from bipolar disorder
or schizophrenia. I recently read
a study that found that 7 to 8% of
marijuana users developed depression,
even clinical depression, and
psychosis. With the legalization of
marijuana, the problem will only get
worse.
I was talking to a psychologist after
church on Sunday, and he remembers
working at the state hospital on Arsenal
back in the 70s. He said there were
maybe 3000 patients there then. With
the development of anti-psychotic
drugs, he guessed that the number has
dropped down to maybe 300. That is
a good thing. Warehousing inconvenient
people was kind of inhumane.
But just giving patients a baggie
full of drugs and sending them on
their way is not the solution either. It
is well documents that once patients
start to feel better, they often stop
taking their drugs, and many times
they end up homeless, on the streets
or even worse. We wonder how many
people are in prison for crimes that
could have been prevented had they
been on the proper medication with
consistent follow-up care.
And it seems as if no families are
exempt. It may be that a family member
suffers from severe depression or
psychosis. They might be unaware of
the gravity of the illness or unable to
make good healthcare decisions on
their own and resist getting help.
The family may want to help, but
because of a patient’s “rights,” the
loved ones can only be taken into
treatment without their consent if
they pose a risk of harm to themselves
or others. If they do pose such
a risk, then they can be taken in for
diagnosis, and if a doctor is willing to
state that the patient is unable to
perform the functions of daily living
without some kind of assistance,
then it is possible to get guardianship
to help monitor the care.
It seems to me that as a society,
we fail many of our most vulnerable
members, which harms society as a
whole. Think of the contributions
these individuals could make to our
society. Some of them are truly
brilliant when healthy. We need to
prioritize mental health, an issue that
really affects all of us. But do we
have the resolve?
In your charity, please pray for all
those who suffer from mental illness.
Everyone’s experience
with estate planning is
unique and you don’t
always know what to
expect. Fred has gathered
some of the most
interesting examples he
knows into an entertaining
and educational book.
You Can’t Take It With You is available
to order online at www.law-matters.net
Fred L. Vilbig is an attorney with over 30
years of experience in the areas of wills
and trusts, small businesses, and real
estate. This column is for informational
purposes only. Nothing herein should be
treated as legal advice or as creating an
attorney-client relationship. The choice
of a lawyer is an important decision
and should not be based solely upon
advertisements.
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(636) 537-7884 | fvilbig@shandselbert.com | www.law-matters.net