managing mental health and other conditions

Opening up about my health conditions, while deeply personal in nature, enables me to leave a legacy for others, especially those who I don’t know.  This is particularly important for me as I don't have a lot of money to leave behind.  As discussed in my last post, there is a great deal of stigma attached to mental illness.  I’m certainly not popular among health professionals in terms of the treatment plan I have decided to follow, but I think this comes down to the fact that we view the field of medicine very differently.  To me, the discipline of medicine is a construct, much like law or history.  This means that it was created and has evolved over time; it isn’t a given.  Indeed, there is always new research into different illnesses and the development of drugs to treat them.  Drugs are artificial substances which react differently among patients and they do contain side effects.  If you suffer from several conditions like me, you may find that you’re better off without them because they can cause even more problems.  I’m fortunate that I’m able to manage my conditions most of the time without medication, but I acknowledge that others may not be so lucky.  Going back to the point I made in a previous blog post, medicine is governed by the field of law.  Patients do have rights, including the right not to take medication.  But in some circumstances, the state may intervene and impose a treatment plan on the individual out of necessity.
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