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Breaking the SilenceTeaching the Next Generation

about Mental IllnessGrade Levels- 6-12

Authors: Janet Susin, Lorraine Kaplan, Louise SlaterEdited by Linda Manzo

Table of ContentsLesson 1 Introduction to Mental Illness- Grades 6-12

Lesson 2 Developing Empathy Among Today’s Youth- Grades 6-12

Lesson 3 Stigma and the Media- Grades 6-12

Lesson 4 The Impact of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder- Grades 6-12

Lesson 5 Schizophrenia: The Most Misunderstood Mental Illness-

Grades 7-12

Lesson 6: Schizophrenia: A Simulation- Grades 7-12

Lesson 7 A Look at other Mental Illnesses- Grades 6-12

Lesson 8 Fears and Misconceptions About Mental Illnesses- Grades 6-

12

Lesson 9- Living with Bipolar Disorder- Grades 9-12Breaking the Silence Updated 090518: Grades 6-12 2

Lesson 10 Substance Abuse and Mental Illness- Grades 9-12

Activities and Brain GAME

Teacher Resources

Using the Right Words

Slang words like “psycho,” “schizo” and “wacko” demean people who struggle to cope with serious,

treatable illnesses. Derogatory references to people with psychiatric symptoms are as inappropriate as for

any other illness or disability. Labels like “loony bin,” “insane asylum” and “funny farm” are humiliating to

those who require medical help from hospitals. “Hospital” or “psychiatric hospital” is preferable. Labels

that equate people who have a mental illness with their illnesses (e.g. with…”a specific condition.

“Psychotic” and “psychopathic” are NOT the same. “Psychotic” describes a period of disorientation in the

course of an illness like schizophrenia, manic depression or depression. Psychotic symptoms are

generally treatable with appropriate medication. “Psychopathic” describes pattern of antisocial behavior

with little remorse. These behaviors do not generally respond to medication.

It is extremely important to remember that people are not their disease. Using terms like

“schizophrenic” only continues the stigma surrounding the disease, while saying that someone has

Breaking the Silence Updated 090518: Grades 6-12 3

“schizophrenia” shows dignity and respect. As educators it is imperative that we use the “right words.”

(Example: I’m not bipolar. I have bipolar disorder.

I’m not schizophrenic. I have schizophrenia)

Courtesy National Stigma Clearinghouse


Lesson Plan 1- Introduction to Mental Illness: A Mother’s

Day Gift

OBJECTIVESStudents will:

1. Be able to name the major mental illnesses and the symptoms associated with them.

2. Be informed about the nature of mental illness:a. A biologically based brain disorderb. A no-fault illnessc. Treatable with medication and therapy

3. Learn where to turn for help and support.

Materials: Handout 1, Chart paperTime: 1-2 periods

Anticipatory Set: a. Ask students : How many of you know someone who has a mental illness?

Explain: Many hands are up because mental illness is very common. In fact, it affects one out of four people at some point in their lives. But some of you may have been thinking about illnesses that are not really mental illnesses. Let’s find out.

Procedure:1. Ask students the question: What illnesses were you thinking of when you raised your hands?2. Write their responses on chart paper or the board. (The list may include the following: depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, obsessive

compulsive disorder, panic disorder, phobias, and attention deficit disorder. ) Note: Students may name other disorders such as Alzheimer’s, Down’s syndrome, Parkinson’s, or mental retardation. Put them on the board too, but in a separate column. Explain that these are neurological brain disorders, but are not classified as mental illnesses. Downs syndrome, for example, is a form of mental retardation that occurs at birth and Alzheimer’s is a form of dementia that occurs later in life.

3. Explain to the students that they will now read a story about a young boy whose life was affected with mental illness.

4. Distribute copies of Handout 1- A Mother’s Day Gift5. Ask students to read it aloud or in their cooperative groups.6. Students will then complete the questions on Handout 1.7. Share the responses with the class.

Closure: Now that we know what mental illnesses are, we can further investigate how they might affect our life, if untreated.


Lesson 1: Introduction to Mental Illness: Handout

A Mother’s Day GiftBrian was born on Mother’s Day, and his mother thought he was the perfect gift. The first

grandchild in the family, everyone “oohed” and “aahd” over every new accomplishment. It wasn’t long

before he was talking. In fact, he talked nonstop. Gifted with a sharp, incisive mind, he wore everyone

down with his endless determination to win an argument. Maybe he’d become a lawyer someday,

thought his proud parents. He breezed through school, one of the smartest in his class. And he was

popular, too.

But by his junior year in high school, there began to be signs that things were not as picture

perfect as they should have been. He studied very little now, telling his parents he couldn’t

concentrate. And he stopped shaving. He said he looked better that way.

Then came summer. Brian had taken a job as a counselor-in-training at a sleep-away camp.

Annoyed by the cabin bully, he challenged him to a wrestling match. Brian pinned him easily and

walked away. Suddenly, he was attacked by his opponent who had now recovered sufficiently to

give him a bruising punch in the eye. Brian demanded immediate punishment for his attacker. The

camp director responded by putting the bully on camp restriction for the weekend, but Brian

wasn’t satisfied.

Back home he continued to think endlessly about the incident. He wanted his parents to sue the

camp. They were sympathetic, but insisted it was time for him to put the incident behind him. So one

day Brian skipped school to go into the city to see a district attorney. If his parents wouldn’t help him,

he would sue the camp himself. Everyone tried to persuade him that he was overreacting, but

months went by and his anger only grew worse. He felt abandoned and began spending most of his

time alone in his room. He even refused to go to school and wouldn’t see any of his friends.

Sometimes late at night his parents could hear him sobbing; his sleepless nights became their

sleepless nights as well.

What had they done wrong, and what could possibly be done to get things back to the way they

were?

One night in desperation they decided to have one more talk with Brian. Apprehensively, they

entered his room. He wasn’t in his bed, but they found him cowering in a corner, wild-eyed with

fright. Brian said he was terrified because the walls were bugged and the CIA was out to get him.

At last his parents understood where all the strange events of the past few months had been

heading. With great reluctance, they accepted the advice of a psychiatrist and agreed to hospitalize Breaking the Silence Updated 090518: Grades 6-12 7

their son. The battle against schizophrenia had begun.

Lesson 1: Introduction to Mental Illness: Handout 2Discuss the following questions in cooperative groups:

1. If Brian were your close friend, what would you have thought was wrong with him in the months after he returned from camp?________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

2. What was it about his behavior that would have given you cause for concern?________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

____________3. How do you think Brian’s family felt when this happened to him?________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

4. Do you think his parents blame themselves for what happened to Brian? Should they?

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

5. What do you think can be done to help Brian get better?Breaking the Silence Updated 090518: Grades 6-12 8

_______________________________________________________________________


Lesson 1: Teacher Notes

1. If Brian were your close friend, what would you have thought was wrong with him in the months after he returned from camp?

Points to make:• Mental illness is often mistaken for drug oralcohol abuse. People with mental illness oftenuse these substances to relieve their symptoms.• Mental illness is a physical illness. Somethinghas gone wrong in the chemistry or structure ofthe brain.

2. What was it about his behavior that would have given you cause for concern?

Points to make:• Mental illness causes a dramatic change inbehavior that persists and is serious.• Brian had schizophrenia, but there are otherforms of mental illness such as depression,bipolar disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorder, which are also characterized by changes in some or all of the following:

sleeping emotional response energy concentration socialization eating habits way of thinking physical appearance

3. How do you think Brian’s family felt when this happened to him?

Points to make:They were devastated. They agonized over the impact Brian’s illness might have on his future. When someone develops mental illness it affects everyone in the family as well as the person who is ill.

4. Do you think his parents blame themselves for what happened to Brian? Should they?

Points to make:• Parents used to be blamed for causingschizophrenia and other of mental Illness,but in the last decade scientists have proved that there are distinct changes in the brain that occur in people with various forms of mental illness.• Mental illnesses are brain disorders. They arephysical illnesses like heart disease or diabetes.Just like any other organ in the body, the brain can get sick.• It is a no-fault illness. Neither the family nor theperson with mental illness is to blame.

5. What do you think can be done to help Brianget better?

Points to make:• Mental illness is treatable with medication.• Talking to a therapist can also help.• Speak to a guidance counselor, schoolpsychologist, or health teacher if you believethat you or a friend might be developing a mental illness.• Support someone who is struggling with mental illness. Continue to be a friend.

Warning Signs of Mental Illness Personality changes Extreme anxiety or irrational fears Feelings of worthlessness Suicidal thoughts Lack of emotion Lack of appetite Social isolation Too much sleep Too little sleep Emotional extremes or outbursts Inability to concentrate Inability to cope Unexplained changes in mood Bizarre behavior or speech

CAUTION: Only a trained professional can make a diagnosis of mental illness. In making a diagnosis consideration is given to the number of symptoms, their severity, and duration.


Lesson Plan 2- Developing Empathy Among Today’s Youth: The Family Secret

Objectives:

Students will read poetry and interpret the feelings the author experiences. Students will be able to empathize with family members whose loved on has a mental illness.

Materials: Handouts 2a, 2b, 2cTime:

Anticipatory Set: Ask students; “Why do people write poems?” How are they different from stories?

Procedure:

1. Distribute the poems on 5 by 8 cards.

2. Explain: When Sonya Sones was thirteen she kept a diary describing how she felt when her

older sister suddenly became sick with a mental illness and had to be hospitalized. The

following three poems are from the book she wrote as an adult, Stop Pretending: What

Happened When My Big Sister Went Crazy (Harper Collins, 1999). Her poems were inspired

by what she wrote in her journal as a child. They show how her relationship with her friends

was affected by the onset of her sister’s illness.

3. Cooperative Groups: Ask students to read the poems and complete the questions that follow.

4. Discussion: Ask the students to share their feedback on each of the three poems.

(What surprises them? Why is Sonya so ashamed of her sister’s illness?)

5. Divide the class into 2 groups. Tables on one side will role play a student too ashamed to

reveal a family illness. The groups on the opposite side will act out a scenario of someone

being honest about their sibling’s illness.

6. Discuss the following with the class:

a. How did it feel not telling? How did it feel to tell?b. How do you think you will feel after you tell? If you don’t tell?c. What do you think your friends might say when they’re alone?

7. Closure: Explain that mental illnesses today still carry “stigma.” (a mark of disgrace/shame)

Define the word and explain that even family members often feel stigma about their loved ones.

8. Follow-up: Instruct students to create a table poster using supportive phrases they would say

to a friend with a mental illness. Combine them to make a class collage.


Lesson 2: Developing Empathy Among Today’s Youth: Handout 2a

Poem 1

L1. Why doesn’t the girl in the poem want to tell her friends what’s wrong with her sister?

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

2. How would you act and feel if you were in the same situation?

______________________________________________________________

3. Do you think she would feel the same way if her sister had a different disease?

______________________________________________________________

Breaking the Silence Updated 090518: Grades 6-12

Questions

When my friends ask where she isI tell them she’s in the hospital.

When they ask why, I shrugAnd say she’s sick.

When they ask what kind of sick,my cheeks flame upand I change the subject.

12

Lesson 2: Developing Empathy Among Today’s Youth: Handout 2b

POEM 2

1. Why isn’t the joke told “At Lunch” funny to the author?____________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________

Lesson 2: Developing Empathy Among Today’s Youth: Handout 2c


At Lunch

Everybody’s sitting around telling jokes.I haven’t giggles this much in ages

Then Kate says, Okay. Okay. I’ve got one:Which path does the mental patient take to get to the forest?”

And they all ask, “Which path?”And Kate says, “The pscho path!”And everyone bursts out laughing,

except me.

During History Class

I notice Molly scribbling somethingOn a scrap of paperShe passes it to Lindseywhen Mrs. Ray isn’t looking.

Lindsey reads it and giggles,

13

1. What do you think of the girls’ behavior? ______________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. How might we change their feelings about the author’s sister?___________________________________________________________

Lesson Plan 3: STIGMA AND THE MEDIA

Objectives Students will be able to define stigma Students will be able to identify stigma in movies and newspapers

Materials: example of stigma, group scenarios (you may need to reproduce them for class size)

Anticipatory Set: Show film cliphttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21U4sa187GY

Procedure: 1. Define the word stigma- a mark of disgrace

2. Divide the class up into groups of three.

3. Distribute a different scenario to each group.4. Ask them to choose from one of the three role play situations below illustrating how the media often perpetuates mental illness stereotypes to entertain or sell a product. 5. Ask them to practice and be prepared to play out their situation for the class. 6. After role-playing, discuss the difficulties of challenging a stereotype that sells.

d. Create your own stigmatizing media situation modeled on the choices above. Structure it so it poses a challenge for people with personal experience with mental illness.

Follow UP/ HomeworkA catalog used the following ad to advertise a mug. “Don’t annoy the CRAZY person.”This ‘crazy person’ mug is all the ammo you’ll need to insure peace and solitude. One look at this mug and co-workers and family members will think twice about annoying you.Analyze this ad, keeping in mind what you have learned about the stigma which surrounds mental

illness. What is offensive about this ad? What assumption about mental illness is made in the ad and

the words on the mug? In what way is this stereotype misleading?

Closure: Show video clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUaXFlANojQ

Extra Credit/ (English Extension) Find an example of stigma in advertising, the press, movies, TV or radio and write a letter of


During History Class

I notice Molly scribbling somethingOn a scrap of paperShe passes it to Lindseywhen Mrs. Ray isn’t looking.

Lindsey reads it and giggles,

14

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUaXFlANojQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21U4sa187GY

complaint. Include the following in your letter:o Introduce yourselfo Describe the example of stigma you are complaining about.o Explain why it gives a misleading picture of mental illness. Use information you have

learned about mental illness to bolster your argument.o Suggest action that might be taken to deal with your criticism.

Remember we are people first, not our illnesses. I am not a schizophrenic. I have schizophrenia”

Change the language – change the world. People are not “mentally ill.” They may have a mental illness.


Lesson 3: Stigma and the Media: Handout 3 Scenarios

Situation 1 Movie executives for Smash Hit production company are being pitched an idea

for a movie called Psycho Stranger by a screen writer. In the story a psychotic killer is on the loose. Everyone is worried that they will be the next victim. Executive 1 thinks it's a great idea; Executive 2 has just been educated about the stigma of mental illness by an advocacy group; Executive 3 has a brother who has a mental illness.

R Role play the situation showing how each of these people might respond to this idea.

Situation 2A snack food manufacturer, Yummy Tummy, has hired n ad agency to come up with a name and campaign slogan for their new spicy potato chip. The ad executive is pitching the name Crazy Chips. The slogan will be “The taste will drive you insane!” Executive 1 thinks it is a great idea. Executive 2 thinks it is stigmatizing . Executive 3 has a sister with a mental illness.

Role play how each might respond to the pitch.

Situation 3A TV writer is pitching an idea for an after school children's special. It's about

a girl who is afraid to bring her friend home to her house because she thinks she will be embarrassed by her mentally ill sister. In the end when she finally does bring her home she finds out that her friend has a mentally ill mother and has kept quiet about it too. Executive 1: Thinks the story is boring and would like to spice it up by having the mentally sister threaten the friend with a butcher knife. Executive 2: Has been educated about the stigma of mental illness, but is worried that no one will want to watch; Executive 3: has a mental illness, but hasn’t revealed it.

RR Role play to show how each might respond to the story idea.


Lesson 3: Stigma and the Media - Activity 1

Find the people who openly acknowledged having a brain disorder and tried to “stop the stigma.”

John Nash Abraham Lincoln Jimmy PiersallBarbara Bush Winston Churchill Lionel AldridgeBoris Yeltsin Vincent Van Gogh Margot KidderBuzz Aldrin Carrie Fisher Monica SelesCharles Dickens Mike Wallace Marlon BrandoCourtney Love Elton JohnEdgar Allan Poe Vaslav NijinskyHarrison Ford Sylvia PlathJanet Jackson Robert SchumannJim Carrey Mark Twain


Lesson 3: Stigma and the Media: Activity 2

Famous People with Mental Illnesses

Match the people in the numbered column with the description on the right. Put the correct number on the line next to the left.

1. Abraham Lincoln

2. Barbara Bush

3. Boris Yeltsin

4. Buzz Aldrin

5. Carrie Fisher

6. Charles Dickens

7. Courtney Love

8. Edgar Allan Poe

9. Elton John

10. Harrison Ford

11. Janet Jackson

12. Jim Carrey

13. Jimmy Piersall

14. John Nash

15. Lionel Aldridge

16. Margot Kidder

17. Mark Twain

18. Marlon Brando

19. Mike Wallace

20. Monica Seles

21. Robert Schumann

22. Sylvia Plath

23. Vaslav Nijinsky

24. Vincent Van Gogh

25. Winston Churchill

---A. Began his career as Han Solo in Star Wars. DEPRESSION

---B. Singer married to Kurt Cobain who committed suicide. DEPRESSION

---C. Actress. Played Lois Lane in Superman movie. BIPOLAR DISORDER

---D. Winner of Nobel Prize in Economics. SCHIZOPHRENIA

---E. Wife of former president of the United States. DEPRESSION

-- F. Dutch artist who cut off his ear. BIPOLAR DISORDER

--G. Tennis star stabbed after a match. DEPRESSION

--H. Played Princess Leia in Star Wars. BIPOLAR DISORDER

---I. 19th century humorist and author. Wrote Tom Sawyer. DEPRESSION

---J. Singer, sister of Michael. DEPRESSION

---K. Famous astronaut. BIPOLAR DISORDER

---L. Comedian movie star famous for animated face. DEPRESSION

---M. 19th century British author of Oliver Twist and other novels. DEPRESSION

---N. 20th century female poet who committed suicide. DEPRESSION

---O. 19th century German composer. BIPOLAR DISORDER

---P. 16th president of the United States. DEPRESSION

---Q. Long-time reporter on “60 Minutes”. DEPRESSION

---R. Legendary movie star. Played title role in The Godfather. DEPRESSION

---S. Prime Minister of Great Britain during World War II. DEPRESSION

---T. 19th century poet and writer. Author of “The Raven”. BIPOLAR DISORDER

---U. Russian pioneer in modern dance. SCHIZOPHRENIA

---V. Former President of Russia. DEPRESSION

---W. Football player with legendary Green Bay Packers. SCHIZOPHRENIA

---X. Baseball player for the Boston Red Sox. DEPRESSION

---Y. Singer and composer. Sang at Princess Diana’s funeral. DEPRESSION


Lesson 3: Stigma and the Media: Teacher Answer Keys

Answer Key: Famous People with Mental Illnesses1-P, 2-E, 3-V, 4-K, 5-H, 6-M, 7-B, 8-T, 9-Y, 10-A, 11-J, 12-L, 13-X, 14-D, 15-W, 16-C, 17-I, 18-R, 19-Q, 20-G, 21-022-N, 23-U, 24-F, 25-S

Lesson 4: Examining the Challenges (Obsessive Compulsive


Disorder) “Nothing to Sneeze At”

Objective:

Students will recognize the symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder Students will understand the challenges it presents in everyday activities

Materials- Handout- “Nothing to Sneeze At”,” question sheet, video clips

Time: 1 period- 40 minutes

Procedure:

1. Distribute the story “Nothing to Sneeze At.”

2. In cooperative groups read the story and have students underline any behavior they feel may be unusual.

3. After the reading, share responses and explain the symptoms of OCD.

4. Show the video excerpts:

http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/taboo/videos/obsessive-compulsive-disorder/ 2 minutes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dSZNnz9SM4g- 7 minutes- Howie Mandell on OCD

4. Distribute the question sheet and have students complete them in groups and share their responses.

Follow-up: Students may choose another mental illness and research the specific challenges someone faces when diagnosed.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dSZNnz9SM4g-

http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/taboo/videos/obsessive-compulsive-disorder/

http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/taboo/videos/obsessive-compulsive-disorder/

Lesson 4- Examining the Challenges: Handout

NOTHING TO SNEEZE AT“Four, five, six” Emily stood at the door to her room concentrating hard as she clicked the light

switch off and on counting with each click. They’d already had to replace one switch that had worn out from

all the clicking, and Emily hoped her mother was in the kitchen and wouldn’t hear the sound.

“Seven, eight…” Just as she was about to say “nine” her mother shouted up the stairs in

exasperation. “Emily! Stop that! You’ll be late for school!” It had happened again. Her mother had

interrupted her count and now she’d have to start all over again. Didn’t she understand that interrupting her

ritual would delay her even more?

It was really embarrassing getting to school late every day. Mr. Copley would shake his head

and send her to the office for a late slip. Then she would have to deal with not having homework. That was

true most of the time. After dinner she usually got a stomach ache and who could concentrate on

homework when you’re feeling so awful?

Instead she talked on the phone to her best friend, Sarah, or went on line and messaged her. “How

R U?” “I’m fine. Me2.” Yeah, right! She hadn’t been fine for at least the past year. She remembered

how it all started. She’d been taking a midterm in Mr. Gilchrest’s 7th grade Social Studies class.

Just then she sneezed and couldn’t get her hand up fast enough to cover her nose. A-chooo! Moist

droplets sprayed all over her paper and at the same time her heart started to race. What if she had

contaminated her test with germs and Mr. Gilchrest got sick when he read it? It would be all her fault. Of

course, she knew that was ridiculous, but just the same she tried to wipe the paper clean.

That made things even worse. Now all those germs were on her hands. Her hand shot up in the air.

“Mr. Gilchrest. Can I please go to the bathroom?” It’s a good thing he let her go because she could never

have finished the test without washing her hands. It must have taken at least five minutes of washing.

When she finally came back in the room, Mr. Gilchrest gave her a stern look and pointed to his watch.

Lucky for her she was able to finish the test, but that was the beginning of all those long hand washings.

And the showers…..

But Emily knew her mother was no fool and probably used the Internet to make a diagnosis. Her

parents believed she had “obsessive compulsive disorder” and wanted her to see a psychiatrist. But

Emily did not want to see a “shrink.” She had enough problems.

And then her mother dropped a bomb shell. “You know I ran into Anisha’s mother yesterday. We got to

talking and she told me Anisha’s been seeing a psychiatrist for her depression.”

“She’s what? She never told me.”

“Did you tell her about your OCD?

Emily was silent for a moment and then looked up at her mother with a smile.

“Alright, mom. Get me that appointment. Guess I’m not alone.


Lesson 4- Examining the Challenges: Question Sheet***********************************************************************************************************************

1. Based upon the story what are some of the symptoms of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD)?

____________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

2. How does OCD affect Emily’s life?

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________

3. What do Emily parents’ think will help her with her problem?

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

4. Why is Emily having trouble getting her homework done?

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

5. Why do you think Emily is reluctant to see a psychiatrist?

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________


Lesson 4- Examining the Challenges: Teacher Notes: Answer Key

1. Based upon the story what are some of the symptoms of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD)?

(Emily has the compulsion to turn the light switch off and on a set number of times. Repeating and redo- ing is a common compulsion. If someone interrupts her she feels the need to begin again. Counting rituals are done to ward off an obsessive thought such as the fear of a parent’s death or fire. The obsession is irrational but doing a counting ritual and getting it “just right” temporarily relieves the individual of anxiety.

• Fear of contamination is the most common obsession seen in OCD. When Emily sneezed on her test paper she was afraid that the germs would cause illness or death. Typical obsessive contamination fears are touching objects that may be dirty such as doorknobs, shoes, and spots on clothing or furniture. The most common compulsion to deal with obsessive thoughts is repeated hand washing and showering. Emily is clearly a hand washer and is damaging the bathroom with her repeated hand washings.

2. How does OCD affect Emily’s life?

P oints to ma k e: • She is always late for school. This upsets her teacher and makes her the butt of his

jokes. Some of her classmates laugh at her too.• Emily’s parents are very upset by her behavior, particularly her mother who has to get her

off to school in the morning and is upset about the condition of the bathroom.

3. What do Emily parents’ think will help her with her problem?

P oints to ma k e: • They want her to see a therapist. A therapist might be a psychologist or a social worker.

Therapists are not licensed to prescribe medication. If she needs medication she will have to see a psychiatrist.

• OCD is a brain trick. It makes you think things will happen that really won’t. Treatment for OCD is based upon the concept of “bossing back” your brain. With practice patients learn to avoid engaging in the compulsive behavior which only temporarily relieves their anxiety and has them caught in a self-defeating loop. The more they do it, the more they need to do it

4. Why is Emily having trouble getting her homework done?

• She is anxious and has a stomach ache.• Emily’s stomach ache is a symptom of anxiety and could also be a symptom of

depression. Stomach and bodily aches are a common symptom of depression in children. Like her friend Anisha, she may also suffer from depression.


Lesson 5- Schizophrenia- The Most Misunderstood Mental Illness

Objective:

To show that schizophrenia is a thought disorder and one of the most debilitating forms ofmental illness.

To help students develop empathy for young people who experience this brain disease

Materials: Handout

Time Frame: 1-2 periods

Procedure:

1. Anticipatory Set: What does this paragraph tell you about the symptoms of schizophrenia?

Imagine that your brain is a cell phone-camera that is broken so that some of the images it captures are

distorted. You record a video of a truck making an ordinary delivery to your house, but when the video

clip is played back; the truck seems to be driven by a CIA or government agent who is coming to get you.

Next, imagine that you are driving down an ordinary highway and, suddenly, the camera of your mind sees

that the car coming toward you has your name written in big, bold letters on the windshield. The cell phone

sound is defective too. As you pan a room with your cell phone camera, you hear everyone saying they hate

you, although they are really talking about school and the latest basketball game.

2. Based on the story, elicit from students what are some of the symptoms of the disease?

3. Make the following points.

a. Many people hear voices but only rarely are they commanded to do things. These voices are called

auditory hallucinations.

b. Some people with schizophrenia also have visual hallucinations.

c. Paranoia is a common symptom and people may believe outside forces are trying to control them.

d. Most are quite rational much of the time and not out of contact with reality.

e. Schizophrenia is a physical disease and can be treated by medication. It is not a character flaw.


Lesson Plan 5: Schizophrenia: The Most Misunderstood Illness (continued)

4. Now read to the class the following words from a mother whose son was recently diagnosed.

“How annoying it used to be to hear his cell phone ring all the time. It was almost always for our son who tied up the phone endlessly with talk about school, sports, and girls. Now even his phone rings, it is never for him. He still speaks to some of his friends of the past, but only when he calls them. “Sorry,” they say, ‘we can’t get together this weekend. I’m going to a party. Or I’m working’ or ‘I have a college interview. Some other time.’

But the other time never comes. Or son, at 18 years of age, is watching the world go by, with only his memories of a world with laughter in it, heroics on the football field, and flirtations of the opposite sex.”

5. Ask students how they could help a family member or friend might be suffering from schizophrenia? What advice would you give him or her to make life a little easier?

Points to make:

1. Stick by your friend and encourage him or her to get help from a doctor or therapist.2. Remember their families need help too. Tell them to call NAMI.

Follow-Up:

Several videos are available-Suggestion: “A Beautiful Mind”- the story of John Nash.


Lesson Plan 6: Schizophrenia: A Simulation

Objective:

Students will experience the difficulties a symptom of schizophrenia has on concentration

Students will be able to empathize and understand that hearing voices is a symptom of schizophrenia.

Materials: Copies of “Hearing Voices” scripts and teacher script

Time: 1-2 periods

Anticipatory Set: Hearing voices is a common symptom of schizophrenia. Sometimes the voices are friendly or just muffled sounds, but often they say bad things and are very disturbing. These are called paranoid delusions.

Procedure:1. Explain: Today we are going to do a “hearing voices” simulation. I am going to read you a paragraph about schizophrenia. Half of you will be listening intently, trying to remember what I say. Listen hard because there will be a quiz afterwards. The other half will be whispering in your partner’s ear, saying bad things that make it difficult for them to concentrate.

2. Pair students in the class so that one student is listening to the lecture on schizophrenia and the other one is playing the role of the voices in their head.

3. Instruct one student in the pair to continue reading their script as close to the person as possible. Once the students begin reading their scripts, the teacher should begin their “voices script.

4. After the script is read distribute the mini-quiz.

5. Discuss: How did the voices in your head make you feel when you were trying to take the test?

Elicit responses: (Words students might use to describe their feelings are: dumb, nervous, confused, distracted, anxious, stressed)

Closure: Hearing voices can make it very hard to concentrate.

a. Would you tell someone about the voices in your head? Why or why not?(You might worry that they would think you are “crazy”. But if you keep it to yourself you won’t be able to get help.)

b. Did you know voices could be stopped? What should you do?

Elicit responses: Talk to someone you think will understand such as a parent, close family

member guidance counselor, teacher, or coach. There is no shame in seeking help. A psychiatrist can often stop the voices with medication.


Lesson 6: Schizophrenia: A Simulation: Teacher Script

Schizophrenia is a brain disorder that affects one out of a hundred. The age of

onset is most commonly during the late teens and early twenties. Schizophrenia

is not a split personality although people often think that is. Common symptoms

are hearing voices that are not there, known as auditory hallucinations, and

paranoid delusions such as believing that the CIA is after you. These are called

psychotic symptoms. Something has clearly gone wrong in the chemistry and

circuitry of the brain. But it may be a long time before we fully understand this

complex disease process.

*******************************************************************************************

Voices Quiz

1. Schizophrenia is a brain disorder affecting how many people?

2. It is not a although people often think that it is.

3. Hearing voices is known as an 4. Believing the CIA is after you is a common 5. Hallucinations and delusions are often referred to as _________________________________symptoms.

6. In schizophrenia something clearly has gone wrong in of the brain. Why or why not?

*********************************************************************************************************************


Lesson 6 : Schizophrenia: REPRODUCIBLE

1. What’s the matter with you? Why can’t you pay attention? It’s so easy. C’mon. Concentrate… CONCENTRATE. You’re not even trying. You’re dumb, dumb, dumb, dumber, dumbest. You’re the dumbest kid in the room. Everyone else thinks this is easy. Why don’t you?

2. The whole class is looking at you. No, don’t turn around. They’ll see you. Just keep your head down and pretend that you’re working. (Laugh) Now they’re laughing at you. Laughing behind your back. They think you’re ugly. I do too. You’re ugly! No one would ever go out with you. No one in the whole school.

3. You’ll never make it out of middle school. Everyone knows that. They’re whispering… Whispering… Whispering about you. I heard it in the lunchroom, at the bus stop. Now it’s on the loudspeaker. Can’t you hear it? Listen. They just announced that you’re failing. one will go on to high school – except you.


Hearing Voices Scripts

26

Lesson 7: A Look at Other Mental Illnesses Objective: Students will be able to identify several mental illnesses that make concentration difficult.

Anticipatory set: What are some other mental illnesses that might make it hard for you to pay attention in class?

Time: 40 minutes

Materials: Video In Our Own Words

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_y97VF5UJcc

Procedure:

1. Explain- “We’re going to get an “inside Look” at the challenges many young

people face. As you watch the videos, try to identify which illness the person is

discussing.”

2. On loose leaf jot down any words, ideas, or phrases that might make the

person’s ability to concentrate difficult.

3. After the videos, distribute the strips on the next page and have students identify the

illness. They can then share their notes about the challenges these young people face.

4. Distribute the test handout for homework or as a class activity.

Follow-Up: Write a paragraph explaining what you think should be done to help students with

mental illnesses be successful?

Answer Key

1. Depression

2. Bipolar disorder

3. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

4. Attention Deficit Disorder

5.Schizophrenia


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_y97VF5UJcc

Lesson 7: HANDOUT: A Look at Other Mental Illnesses

************************************************************************************************************************************************************1. You are very tired because you haven’t been getting enough sleep. You have a stomach ache that makes it hard for you to concentrate. You’re sure you’re going to fail the test.

************************************************************************************************************************************************************2. Your mind is racing in a million different directions. The teacher is speaking much too slowly to keep your attention. Your mind wanders. You picture yourself as a famous rock star playing for a stadium full of adoring fans.

************************************************************************************************************************************************************3. Your teacher only allows you to keep one pen on your desk when you’re taking a test., but you have to do everything in threes. You keep thinking about the missing two pens. Maybe you can sneak them back on your desk without her noticing. These thoughts have put you way behind in finishing the test.

*****************************************************************************************************************

4. You didn’t listen carefully to the instructions for the test, so you’re confused. You start to do the test, but are easily distracted and your mind keeps wandering. It is hard for you to sit still and finish the test. You give up half way through.

****************************************************************************************************************

5. You fear that someone is watching you and wants to hurt you. Sometimes you hear someone

calling your name but your parents say it’s not them.

*******************************************************************************************************************************************

Hearing Voices Scripts

Lesson Plan 8: Fears and Misconceptions about Mental Illnesses Breaking the Silence Updated 81018: Grades 6-12 28

Objectives: Student will:

Identify common fears and misconceptions we have about people who have mental illness. Discuss how stereotypes about mental illness are formed and affect our behavior.

Be informed about the nature of schizophrenia: a. Symptoms b. Possible causes c. Psychotic vs. Psychopathic d. Numbers and age group affected

Materials: Sample Quiz, BC2MindPSA

Time Frame: 40 minutes

Anticipatory Set:1. Discuss: Someone who has a mental illness has moved next door to you.

What do expect the person to be like?

Write student responses to questions on board; (examples)

crazy weird drug addict insane psycho dangerous recluseviolent suicidal retarded manic

Procedure:2. Ask the students how true they believe these stereotypes are.3. Then distribute the “Test Your Knowledge” handout.4. Discuss the role family, friends, community, and government can play in recovery.

What are the common characteristics you associate with people mental illness?5. Discuss answers to the “TEST YOUR KNOWEDGE” handout. 6. Show the PSA clip. 7. Discuss the imagery and fear the beginning of the commercial evokes.

Be sure to include the following points.TV and movies often portray people with mental illness as psychopaths or call them psychotic killers, but psychopath and psychotic are not interchangeable terms. People who are psychotic have some false perceptions and mistaken ideas about reality (delusions

or hallucinations) that interfere with their every day functioning. People who are psychopaths are anti – social and often engage in unlawful behavior.

Mental illness and metal retardation are not interchangeable terms. People who are mentally retarded are intellectually impaired from birth.

LESSON PLAN 8: Fears and Misconceptions About Mental Illnesses


People with mental illness are as academically able as anyone else but have a brain disorder that causes a faulty perception of reality that disrupts their lives.

8. Discuss: How is our image of mental illness formed?

Sample Answers: TV, books, songs, radio, ads, newspapers, movies, personal experience

9. Explain the importance of society understanding the misconceptions surrounding mental illnesses and correcting them.

Follow-Up

Assign one of the following people to each group to understand their story and dispel the myths surrounding mental illnesses.

Brandon MarshallDemi LovatoAriana GrandeKendall JennerAdeleImani Boyette

Video Clip- PSA- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zn6yw2KUIwc

Lesson 8 : Handout: Test Your Knowledge about Mental Illness

Below is a list of the major mental illnesses. Match the statements below with the correct disorder.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zn6yw2KUIwc

(a) depression (b) bipolar disorder (c) schizophrenia

(d) obsessive compulsive disorder (e) panic disorder (f) phobias (g) none of the above

1. You no longer enjoy spending time with your friends and are alone a lot of the time.

2. Your heart is beating fast and you’re afraid you’re having a heart attack.

3. You have an irrational fear of spiders.

4. You are often late to school because you have to wash your hands over and over again.

5. People tell you that you have a split personality so you worry that you might have .

6. Your mind is constantly racing and your brain flits from one idea to the other.

7. You sometimes hear voices that other people don’t hear.

8. You alternate periods of high energy and productivity with periods of sleeping too much and not wanting

to do anything.

9. The number one cause of disability for people 15 and older is .

10. You believe that the CIA is out to get you.

11. You often go to the nurse’s office complaining of a headache or a stomach ache.

12. You are afraid of heights and refuse to go over bridges.

13. You have to count to ten before entering a classroom.

14. You sometimes see things that aren’t there.

15. You feel that you are worthless and no longer enjoy doing anything.

Lesson 8- Answer Key - Test Your Knowledge about Mental Illness

1. (A) Depression. When making a diagnosis of depression severity of symptoms and their duration is a major consideration.


2. (E) Panic attack. Other symptoms may include shortness of breath, feeling faint, and fear of dying

3. (F) Phobia. Everyone has an irrational fear about something – spiders, snakes, heights, for example, but it isn’t a phobia unless the individual goes to great lengths to avoid what they fear.

4. (D) Obsessive compulsive disorder. Hand washing is a compulsive ritual to overcome an obsessive fear of contamination, commonly germs or dirt.

5.(G) None of the above.This is a serious misconception about schizophrenia. Someone with schizophrenia has hallucinations and delusions, not a split personality.

6. (B) Bipolar disorder. This is a symptom of mania. With bipolar people alternate between manic highs and depressive lows.

7. (C) Schizophrenia. Hearing voices is a common hallucination associated with schizophrenia.

8. (B) Bipolar disorder. Teenagers and adults alternate between these two over a period of months or even longer. Children can be so called rapid cyclers who swing between these two extremes within a few hours.

9. (A) Depression. According to the World Health Organization this is the number one cause of disability in the U.S. and worldwide.

10. (C) Schizophrenia. This is a classic paranoid delusion.

11. (A) Depression. In elementary and middle school going to the nurse’s office regularly with physical complaints can be a symptom of depression.

12. (E) Phobia. People with phobias often experience panic attacks that cause them to avoid the thing they fear.

13. (D) Obsessive compulsive disorder. People with OCD often use counting rituals to ward off obsessive fears.

14. (F) Schizophrenia. This would be called having a visual hallucination.

15. (C) Depression. Other symptoms of depression can be sleeping too much or too little, refusing to go to school, and thoughts of suicide.


Lesson 9: Living with Bipolar Disorder: “Captive”

Grades- 9-12

Objective: To help students understand the symptoms of bipolar disorder and empathize with those

who have the illness.

Materials: Handout- “Captive,” Discussion Questions

Time: 1-2 periods

Procedure:

Teacher will ask students if anyone knows the symptoms of bipolar disorder.

If students can identify any symptoms-write them on the board

Teacher will then instruct students to read the passage “Captive ” in groups or as a class.

As they read students should underline any symptoms the young woman experienced.

In groups students will answer the follow-up questions and discuss as a class.

Follow-up: Research someone who currently lives with bipolar disorder. How have they learned to

deal with their illness and live a fulfilling life as Denise did?


Lesson 9: Living with Bipolar Disorder: HANDOUT

Captive

Denise is an accomplished writer with two advanced degrees from Columbia University – a Master in Business Administration and a Master in public Health. In this excerpt from her autobiography she shares her experience with the onset of bipolar disorder. Captive Excerpted from a chapter in Brown Baby the Rise, Fall and Rebirth of an African American Women by Denise E. Reed.

As we waited for my Aunt Liz, I asked my mother for her version of the events that led

to my coming to the hospital ‘s psychiatric division. I needed some help in filling in the missing

bits of memory and to separate fact from fantasy.

‘’It wasn’t so much what you said but how said it,’’ she told me. ‘’ Your voice sounded

lifeless and flat, at times vague and confused. You asked me, Where are you Mommy?’’’ Of

course, she was on the other end of the telephone line in Spring Hill, Florida, but I had said, ‘’

I don’t know where you are Mommy, ‘’ She tried to find out if anything was wrong. I responded

no to all her questions. Was it Peter? Did something happen at work?

Abruptly, I stopped talking and told her I wanted to talk to my sister, Fela. There were

some discussions you have with mothers, others were for sisters. I said I would call Fela

when we hung up but didn’t. Hours later, after she confirmed with Fela that I hadn’t called;

and when she couldn’t reach me again because apparently, I had disconnected the

telephones, she moved into high gear. She convinced my father to check on me.

Daddy, who had been the total opposite of an alarmist, told her he was sure there was

nothing wrong and that perhaps I had just stepped out. But my mother persisted pressing

through his concern about traveling that late at night, until he relented and took the subway to

Brooklyn – but the next morning. For Mom, the urgency was real. She didn’t want to be too

late to save another daughter.

It was a cold April day when Arisa called my mother saying she wanted her to come

over, that there was something she wanted to tell her. My mother took a normal amount of

time getting from her house in Queens to the apartment in Harlem that Arisa shared with my

father. Later, she would tell me she should have hurried. When she arrived at the apartment,

she was met by the police.



Arisa had jumped from her 14th story bedroom window. My mother was too late that time. This

time, although the distance from Spring Hills to Brooklyn was infinitely greater, she could not

be late. An unspoken message had passed between my parents, fashioned by shared guilt

and suffering, that made Daddy take his head out on his bible and take the train to Brooklyn.

I tried to describe my breakdown to my mother and aunt, what it had been like to be

Dorothy in the land of Oz and they described to me the aftermath of the cyclone I had created

at home. “The apartment was a shambles, ‘’ they said. I was still in disbelief and needed them

to be specific. Liz said, “It looked like the place was tossed, like someone had burglarized or

vandalized it. The sectional sofa was a puzzle of pieces we couldn’t figure out how to put back

together. Papers and books everywhere, clothes tossed from drawers and the writing, lots of

writing on pieces of paper. Every surface was covered.”

What they described, except for the sofa being in pieces didn’t seem that unusual to

me. They could have been easily describing how the apartment looked before I did the “pre-

cleaning ‘’ the rush to straighten things up before Carmen, my cleaning Lady did her wonder

work. “What I remember was nothing like that,” I told them.

I had been working on a book project. I was making notes for it in my journal as ideas

came to me. In between the writing was more ideas for business ventures and humanitarian

projects. It was soon an avalanche of ideas and thought and it was so fascinating to me. “I

wanted to record everything that was happening in my head, but I couldn’t write fast enough

and didn’t know shorthand,” I told them. ‘’I thought about recording it on my cell phone, but I

knew that staying mute was better because it wouldn’t interrupt the flow of brain activity that

speaking would. The vocalizing would interrupt the flow because I could not listen to my brain

and talk at the same time-like patting your head and rubbing your belly.

So, I kept writing and keep up with my thoughts and record them for future reference, I

crated a kind of shorthand – brief phases and notations so that I could later remember the

complete thoughts and I remember wishing I had a brain – wave recorder that could record

thoughts before they were lost forever. It could be something about the size of a remote

control for the television. Maybe it would operate by electromagnetics or something –


maybe ultrasound. I even knew I was cracking up and thought that was fascinating too. Like Breaking the Silence Updated 81018: Grades 6-12 35

a scientist, I had to observe and document everything that happened. I glanced at my mother

and aunt for signs of understanding. There were none.

“And then there were the fantasies,” I told them. “Kind of like daydreaming only I wasn’t

dreaming I was living in them, these other realities I was creating. Oh, I knew I was making

them up as I was having these thoughts but as weird as they were, they were very, very real

to me even though at some level I knew they were not my reality. It’s like the way you dream,

you know? When you have a dream, you’re living in that dream, reacting to the events in it

when all the while you know you’re dreaming.

“I also thought of it entertaining myself the way child uses her imagination in play. It

was all my imagination. I was play- acting. But you know, as strange as some sounds, there is

some basis in reality. I thought I was being spied on and that someone was in my basement

and feeding subliminal messages, to me through a wire up through the floor and under my

pillow and know the tape you buy called a head cleaner to clean the heads of a cassette tape

deck? I imagined that like, suppose it was just that- a Head Cleaner. I now chuckled at the

absurdity of it. I thought that was hilarious! Then I put the cassette tape on the player that was

labeled “Head Cleaner” and heard nothing but I knew that was white noise I was hearing that

covered the subliminal messages!

I took pictures, too, as part of the documentation, but then camera stopped working

because it had been sabotaged – but you know, it isn’t all that far- fetched, all this spy stuff

because you know, with the end of the Cold War, all that spy technology had go somewhere –

who’s to say the government didn’t sell that stuff or somebody stole it.” I took a breath.

Mommy and Liz were watching my lips as I spoke as if English was not their primary

language and I was speaking too fast for them to comprehend or mentally translate into their

own native tongue. They exchanged a look, a glance that if I’d blinked I’d have missed. “You

don’t think I’m crazy do you, Mommy?” She paused and I could see her struggle to find the

right words. “I think you need help,” she said finally.


Lesson 9: Living with Bipolar Disorder: Discussion Follow Up

1. How did Denise’s family respond to her odd behavior? What impact did past experience have

on their response?

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

2. How would you expect your parents to respond if you were showing signs of mental illness or

having a break down? How do you think your siblings would respond?

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

3. What symptoms of mania does Denise exhibit? Give specific examples.

4. Denise’s parents called the police and had her hospitalized. Do you think they did the right

thing? Was it an easy thing for them to do? Explain your answer. How do think your parents

would handle this kind of situation?

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________


Lesson Plan 10- Substance Abuse and Mental illness: The Wrong Kind of RX

Objective: To develop an awareness of the dangers of treating mental illness with street drugs

Materials: Handout Lesson 9 and Follow-Up Questions

Time Frame: 1-2 periods

Background Information

Dual diagnosis (also referred to as co-occurring disorders) is a term for when someone experiences a

mental illness and a substance use disorder simultaneously. Either disorder—substance use or mental

illness—can develop first. People experiencing a mental health condition may turn to alcohol or other

drugs as a form of self-medication to improve the mental health symptoms they experience. However,

research shows that alcohol and other drugs worsen the symptoms of mental illnesses. (NAMI.ORG)

Procedure:

1. Explain to the students what a co-occurring disorder is. Write the definition on the board.

2. Ask students why anyone would drink alcohol if they were depressed or experiencing other symptoms of a mental illness?

3. After sharing responses, instruct students to read Handout 9- The Wrong Kind of RX

4. Students may then complete the follow-up questions and discuss their responses

Follow-Up: Teacher Choice


Lesson 10: Substance Abuse and Mental Illness: HANDOUT

Adapted from a first-person account by Andrew Maier

Andrew was a pretty normal kid until he hit middle school. He describes himself this way. There

was nothing out of the ordinary about my childhood. I had many friends. Enjoyed being a kid and had

tons of love and support within my family.

But in middle school for no apparent reason, despair took over his life, and he was overwhelmed

by insecurities. He describes it as feeling like the ground moved beneath him every day. He can even

recall one day being so overwhelmed by emotion that he held a kitchen knife up to his throat. Not that

he seriously considered suicide, but he obsessed about what it would be like if he wasn’t there.

Finally, he convinced his parents to put him in a different school. Maybe with a clean slate, with

kids who didn’t know him, the anxiety and depression would go away. And it did for a while. After the

newness wore off he was back again feeling lonely and insecure. Behind his easy smile and ready wit

there was a sadness he described as burning away in my insides. And in 10 th grade he finally found

something to put out the flame. Alcohol.

He describes the feeling he got from it this way. “I felt this warm tingly sensation begin to spread

all through my body. The tension, the anxiety, the insecurities I carried around all began to just melt

away. I raced off to fill up my cup. I don’t want to lose this feeling, I thought that I had finally found what

I was looking for. I took a deep sigh of relief and let the alcohol do its trick.”

“Within an hour I was almost in a fight when I made sarcastic remark to the football star’s

girlfriend. Someone had to hold him back to keep him from kicking my butt. I just sat there and laughed.

I made quite a show at the party. That Monday at school I had a bunch of new friends coming up to me

who took notice of me at the party. I got a lot of attention from what happened. I think this really

reinforced the drinking…”

For Andrew drinking a way of life. Beer gave way to hard liquor, and vodka and orange juice

soon took one more step into the world of addiction when in 11th grade he began to use marijuana with

alcohol. Just like his first-time drinking, marijuana seemed to be the key to soothing his anxieties and

depression. He describes it “like meeting an old friend that he hadn’t seen in long time.”

His parents recognized that he had mood swings and depression, and they went to family

therapy together. But even though Andrew describes his therapist as a wonderful man, Andrew never

spoke honestly about his addictions to him. He wasn’t honest in facing his addictive behavior with his


Lesson 10: Substance Abuse and Mental Illness: Handout

girlfriend either, and the day she said she was breaking up with him was the day he ended up in the

psychiatric ward of a local hospital That’s where he learned he’d been self-medicating with drugs and

alcohol.

After he was discharged he did okay at first. Benefiting from the insights he got from his

hospitalization he recognized the need to place more stock in how he thought about himself, rather

than how others felt about him. But it wasn’t long before he gravitated to the drug scene again, and

even though he didn’t immediately revert to doing drugs he says he became intensely involved in hard

core music that was filled with anger and hurt such as Korn and Deftones. Getting tattoos soon

followed, and within 9 months after discharge he was back on drugs and alcohol. This time he began

experiment with crystal meth, cocaine, and other various pain killers. He wanted to escape.

Once in college he barely made it through his first year and never showed up in classes during

his second year. He used money his parents had given him for textbooks on drugs. His paycheck from

work at the deli went to drugs too, and when that wasn’t enough he pawned items and stole from a

checking account he shared with his father. Of that time he says, “I knew that I would be caught, but I

didn’t care. I was going on autopilot and felt like a zombie. I could see what I was doing and knew it

was wrong, but I couldn’t stop myself I stole the last of the money in my father’s account and planned

my good- bye party with a pile of cocaine, pills, marijuana and alcohol.” Although he says he didn’t

intend to kill himself, he overdosed and was taken to a hospital.

When he came home from the hospital he started falling into the same patterns again. The

turning point was when his father broke down crying. Andrew says he’ll never forget his words,” I just

can’t do this anymore.” The “this” he was talking about was the constant battle to keep me safe, the

constant struggle to have me see what I’m doing to myself and our family. I finally saw it that day in his

eyes and in his voice. He was giving up. A man that I always viewed as so strong and in control was

finally admitting that he had no power over me or what I was going to choose to do. I will never forget

that moment as it was the most sobering thing in my life.

Although it didn’t happen overnight, eventually Andrew got into a 90 day in patient substance

abuse treatment program that turned his life around. Today he is a happily married young parent with a

master’s degree in school counseling that he says gives him the opportunity to help students learn

healthy ways to deal with the curveballs that life throws all of us.


Lesson 10: Substance Abuse and Mental Illness: Follow Up Questions

1. What does Andrew mean when he says he was self- medicating?

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

2. What mental illness (s) did Andrew suffer from?

__________________________________________________________________________________

3. What caused them?

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

4. What are the symptoms of anxiety?

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

5. How common is anxiety?

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

6. Why do some people develop anxiety and others don’t?

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

7. How should someone with a mental illness and a substance abuse problem be treated?

__________________________________________________________________________________

8. Can substance abuse cause mental illness?

__________________________________________________________________________________


Activities: Test Your Knowledge About Mental illness

Answer the following questions True or False.

_____1. Serious mental illness can happen to any family.

_____2. The suicide rate for people who suffer from mental illness is 10%.

_____3. Psychopath and psychotic mean the same thing.

_____4. The great majority of people with mental illness are not violent.

_____5. Abuse of drugs and alcohol may be a way people with mental illness medicate themselves to

relieve their symptoms.

_____6. Mental illness and mental retardation are the same thing.

_____7. People with mental illness can really pull themselves together and be normal if they try hard

enough .

_____8. Mental illness strikes one in five people at some point in their lives.

_____9. Mental illness is a physical illness affecting the brain.

_____10. All people with mental illness live in their own world and are out of contact with reality all of

the time.

ACTIVITIES: RECOGNIZING MENTAL ILLNESS- High SchoolBreaking the Silence Updated 81018: Grades 6-12 43

Follow Up Activities


Answer Key is on the last page.

44

These follow-up activities can be done by students in health classes or as a cross-curricular project with other subject areas.

1. Classroom discussion/research assignment/ (Social Studies)

Homelessness is a serious national problem. At least one-third of the people who are homeless have

a mental illness. Why do so many homeless people with mental illness end up on the streets?

Consider such things as deinstitutionalization, community mental health, Fair Housing Laws and the

Not in My Backyard syndrome (NIMBism). Share your research though a report, speech, panel

discussion debate, or “60 minutes” type television segment.

Find out the prevalence of other major illnesses like cancer, heart disease, diabetes and AIDS in the

United States. Use the information found on the “Use the Right Words” page of this booklet. Make a

graph comparing the prevalence of mental illnesses to other illnesses.

2. Make a PosterStudy the art of Vincent Van Gogh, a famous artist who suffered from bipolar disorder. Design a poster

that communicates a positive message about mental illness using his art work or your own done in the

style of Van Gogh.

3. Math Activity: Data expressed as a percent (Math)

George Gerbner, Professor Emeritus of the Annenberg School of Communications, has con- ducted

research on the way people with mental illness are portrayed in the media. He has found that 72%

of the time when we see mental illness on TV it is linked to violence, although in reality the great

majority of people with mental illness are not violent. Do your own research. Look at a TV guide for

a period of two weeks. Tally the number of times mental illness is a subject on

TV and compare it to the number of times


4. Research assignment (Health/Science)

There has been an explosion of knowledge about how the brain functions and what areas of the

brain are affected by mental illnesses. New scientific tools such as the PET scan and MRI have

allowed scientists to peer into the dep recesses of the brain and learn far more about brain

disorders in the past decade. Choose one illness from the list below. What is our current

understanding of the disorder. Be sure to include:

a. cause of the disorder

b. mechanism which causes the disorder

c. part of the brain affected

d. available treatments.

******************************************************************************************************

anxiety disorders bipolar disorder panic disorder

eating disorders phobias borderline personality disorder

post traumatic stress disorder obsessive compulsive disorder

teen suicide

major depression

Tourette’s syndrome


Activities: THE BRAIN GAME (MS)

ACTIVITIES: THE BRAIN GAMEBreaking the Silence Updated 81018: Grades 6-12 47

TEACHER REFERENCE MATERIALS

Schizophrenia A thought disorder characterized by a false perception of reality. Typically people with schizophrenia experience auditory and/or visual hallucinations and delusions which are often paranoid in nature. Thinking can be illogical, and emotions can sometimes be flat or inappropriate. Few, however, are \totally out of contact with reality and symptoms are generally sporadic. It is not a split personality. Affects l in 100 Americans, typically between the ages of 16 and 25.

Bipolar Disorder (Also known as manic depression)An illness in which periods of mania, depression, and normal moods alternate. Maniais typically characterized by overconfidence, delusions of grandeur, racing thoughts, recklessness, and the need for little sleep. During the depressive phase of the illness the person may feel worthless, helpless, lose interest in normally pleasurable activities sleep a great deal of the time, and think about death or attempt suicide. Affects 1 in 100 Americans.

Major DepressionCharacterized by some or all of the following symptoms over an extended period of time: Difficulty sleeping or sleeping too much, constant fatigue, loss of interest in usually pleasurable activities, inappropriate guilt or feelings of worthlessness, difficulty concentrating or accomplishing tasks, recurrent thoughts of death or suicide, suicide attempts. Affects 5 in 100 Americans.

Panic DisorderCharacterized by panic attacks. Results in sudden feelings of terror that strike repeatedly and without warning. Physical symptoms include chest pain, heart palpitations, shortness of breath, dizziness, abdominal discomfort, feelings of unreality, and fear of dying. Children and adolescents with this disorder may experience unrealistic worry, self-consciousness, and tension. Affects 2 to 5 in 100 Americans.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Characterized by repeated, intrusive, and unwantedthoughts (obsessions) and/or rituals that seem impossible to control (compulsions). Adolescents may be aware that their symptoms don’t make sense and are excessive, but younger children may be distressed only when they are prevented from carrying out their compulsive habits. Compulsive behaviors often include counting, arranging, and rearranging objects, and excessive hand washing. Affects 2 to 3 in 100 Americans.

Borderline Personality Disorder A disorder in which a person is unable to regulate emotions or control impulses. Leads to unstable relationships and self-image, self-destructive behavior, intense or inappropriate anger, and feelings of abandonment. Often accompanied by anxiety, depression, substance abuse, and eating disorders. Affects 1 to 3 in 100 Americans.

PhobiasA disabling irrational fear of something that poses little or no real danger. Fear leads to avoidance of objects or situations and can cause extreme feelings of terror, dread, and panic, which can substantially restrict one’s life. Specificphobias center around particular objects (e.g., certain animals) or situations (e.g., heights or enclosed spaces). Examples are fear of heights, acrophobia, and fear of enclosed spaces, claustrophobia.


Recommended

Not as Crazy as I SeemHarrar, George, New York, Houghton Miffline Co.,2003 — An engrossing, often humourous story of ayoung teen’s travails as he tried to hide hisOCD from the outside world and cope with hisparents’ efforts to change him.

Kissing DoorknobsHesser, Terry, New York, Delacorte Press, 1998 —Eleven-year-old Tara Sullivan loses control of herthoughts and actions. Her condition ismisdiagnosed for many years until her parentsfinally learn that she has obsessive compulsivedisorder.

Know About Mental IllnessHyde, Margaret M.O. and Elizabeth H. Forsyth,

New York, Walker & Co., 1996 — Describesthe range of mental illnesses children are likelyto encounter and tries to dispel myths andstereotypes. Cause and treatment are also discussedfor each illness.

CutMcCormick, Patricia, New York, Scholastic, Inc.2000 — Gripping and sensitive novel of ateenager’s struggle to overcome the impulse forself-mutilation. Described by the Boston Globe as“riveting and hopeful, sweet, heartbreaking.” Foradvanced readers.

Matthew UnstrungSeago, Kate, Dial Books for Young Readers,New York — Based on a true story set in the 1900’sin Colorado, this novel describes the plight of17-year-old Matthew who suffers a mentalbreak, is institutionalized, and recovers withthe help of his caring older brother.

Stop Pretending: What Happened When My Big Sister Went CrazySones, Sonia, New York, Harpertempest, 1999 —A novel written as a series of short poem, this is theengaging and moving story of how twelve year oldCookie struggles to deal with the sudden onset ofbipolar disorder in her sixteen year old sister.

He Was Still My DaddyOlson, Laurie, Ogden House, Portland, Oregon,

1994 — A daughter’s narrative about growing upand living with a parent with a mental illness.

Videos

Claire’s Story(VHS & DVD 1994) 48 minutes — Claire, a 13-year-old, who suffers from depression, stars in thisstory of her own life and how she deals withdepression. Lively and upbeat, but nonetheless arealistic portrayal. To order contact: Mental HealthAssociation of Summit County, PO Box 639,Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio 44222, (330) 923-0688.

Real Hurdles: Helping Young People Understand

DepressionThe true story of Derrick Adkins, an AfricanAmerican Olympic Gold Medalist. Adkinscompellingly shares his story of recovering from aserious episode of depression that nearly took hislife. Includes accompanying curriculum. Producedby the Mental Health Association ofNassau County. To order, contact: MHA of NassauCounty, 16 Main St., Hempstead, NY 11550. (516)489.2322, www.mhanc.org

CD R OM:

Student Voices Loud and Proud

(DVD 2012) This video for middle and high schoolstudents features young people doing extraordinarythings to increase understanding and acceptance ofthose with mental illness. It is a call to action thatcan serve as a model for changing attitudes andcombating the stigma surrounding mental disorders.Accompanying booklet includes suggesteddiscussion questions and information about mentalillness.


TEACHER REFERENCE MATERIALS: HIGH SCHOOL

Breaking The Silence.… · Web viewLiving with Bipolar Disorder- Grades 9-12 Lesson 10 Substance...

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