Rights and Aid for Mentally Ill

While I thank you for the very important series (Nov. 21-23) informing the public about the current dilemma of mental illness in California, I want to point out the lack of representation of former mentally ill patients, such as myself, who believe that reform of the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act is necessary to ensure the quality of life they now enjoy as a result of appropriate medication. In the 1980s I spent eight years in and out of hospitals, homeless and in jail, because both my depression and my mania skewed my perception of reality. Eventually, through hospitalization (sometimes involuntary) and proper medication, I was brought back to normal life.

Some of the psychiatric patients quoted in the Nov. 23 article have a view of psychiatric treatment that is not shared by all patients. Because of their past experiences in the mental health system, their view is that civil liberties are more precious than the treatment of those who need it. They choose to reject the possible good results of LPS reform, thereby leaving those who are currently in need of treatment to face the same harsh and dangerous life I led for eight years. That is not proper liberty.

BERNIE ZUBER

Pasadena

*

Re “Leaving State Hospitals Sent Many Into Psychotic Abyss,” Nov. 22: One of the principles our country was founded on was the right to self-determination, to make our own decisions within certain boundaries. In many cases people are allowed to make decisions, good, bad or even potentially reckless, without interference. Flying a small plane in bad weather without instrument training could be considered dangerous. Every day we weigh the risks involved in our actions. Mental health clients are asking for the same right to make what some may call bad decisions. People who are not mental health clients make unwise decisions all of the time. No one is asking that they be involuntarily committed.

Voluntary humanistic services, such as supportive housing, vocational services and self-help, should be emphasized as much as medication. I am living proof that a wide array of voluntary services does work. By becoming an advocate, I transformed my life.

WALTER SHWE

Davis