any premeds/med students with mental illness?

[qualityhealth]

I'm not sure what the stats are, but one of my buddies who goes to Vanderbilt said that a majority of the kids in his grade in med school have some form of mental illness.

so did undergrad or medschool bring about these mental illnesses or were they prone anyway to get it and didn't realize it early on?

Also, for those of you who do have some form of mental illness how does it affect your daily lives/school work/social life and how do you combat/control it???

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[jochi1543]

I'm not sure what the stats are, but one of my buddies who goes to Vanderbilt said that a majority of the kids in his grade in med school have some form of mental illness.

Could he have been joking? That's a huge assumption. And how'd he know, anyway? Every person in the class came to him and confided their diagnosis? I call BS.

 

[qualityhealth]

well, he was a Psych major, if that means anything.

but then again where i'm from in a little town in the South, there's still a huge stigma against mental illness.. i don't know whyi brought this up..but i just think its pretty pathetic.

 

[MedRower]

well, he was a Psych major, if that means anything.

but then again where i'm from in a little town in the South, there's still a huge stigma against mental illness.. i don't know whyi brought this up..but i just think its pretty pathetic.

There are definitely studies out there that show medical students are over-enriched in depression, doctors are more prone to substance abuse, etc, etc.

We're slowly vanquishing stigmas though, aren't we? At least, many are becoming less overt...

 

[Tourterm]

It just sounds like anecdotal evidence with no studies to back it up. I'm not saying this person is incorrect, but I would like to see some results to back this up. I would not be too surprised if it were true, but it also depends on what mental illnesses we are talking about, and the manner of severity. Schizophrenia? Dissociative identity disorder? Less likely. Depression? Anxiety? Insomnia? Drug/alcohol dependence? Those sound about right.

 

[jochi1543]

well, he was a Psych major, if that means anything.

but then again where i'm from in a little town in the South, there's still a huge stigma against mental illness.. i don't know whyi brought this up..but i just think its pretty pathetic.

Psych major =/= psychiatrist. Only a psychiatrist can diagnose a mental illness.

 

[TimeResonance]

Or anyone that can pick up the DSM4 and knows how to read.

 

[Depakote]

SDN should not be used for medical advice. Please consult your health care provider for any medical issues.

 

[mindquick]

who doesn't have a mental illness? everybody i know has some sort of mental illness. it could be attention dificiency, depression, OCD, addiction of some sort, asperger's syndrome, anger management problems, etc.

a know a couple of med students who would say "all of the above" to those.

 

[cadingcading]

This subject is unfortunately taboo in the field that we would like to go into. You should check out the psychiatry resident/physician forum. There is a link to an interesting article about physicians who have severe depression and consequently have issues with getting relicensed...A lot of people in college have some sort of mental illness whether it be depression or anxiety, but either don't know it or are too afraid to admit it and get help because of how our society treats mental illness. It's sad.

I'm not sure what the stats are, but one of my buddies who goes to Vanderbilt said that a majority of the kids in his grade in med school have some form of mental illness.

so did undergrad or medschool bring about these mental illnesses or were they prone anyway to get it and didn't realize it early on?

Also, for those of you who do have some form of mental illness how does it affect your daily lives/school work/social life and how do you combat/control it???

 

[MNIkid87]

Psych major =/= psychiatrist. Only a psychiatrist can diagnose a mental illness.

What about (licensed) clinical psychologists?

 

[bluesTank]

I don't believe you are supposed to/allowed to go to medical school with clinical mental illnesses.

 

[Mayday]

A lot of people may not answer due to perceived stigma against people with mental illness. They may not want adcoms to know. If you want to get a realistic answer to this from the general populace of SDN, an anonymous poll might work better.

 

[Tartheheel]

OCD about doing everything pertaining to grades and academics perfectly... (The gunner personality?)

When is it acquired?
In high school or undergrad.

What causes it?
The fear of 'losing' to someone else; getting a lower grade compared to someone else; the desire to show..."how high can you go..."

Signs and symptoms?
The 'patient' appears to busy in the library most of the time; seems to want to write lab-reports perfectly (creates multiple drafts before the final copy).

Appears distressed when he/she gets a 94 instead of a 99...

Sits throughout the exam period, and re-checks every single calculation if he has time.

Blah..you can add to this (i am sure many folks on here have this type of OCD...)

 

[cadingcading]

I don't believe you are supposed to/allowed to go to medical school with clinical mental illnesses.

I disagree. For one, many physicians are affected by mental illness. In addition, there are many treatment options available these days. Just because one has a mental illness doesn't mean that med school is out of reach.

 

[mountainhare]

I disagree. For one, many physicians are affected by mental illness. In addition, there are many treatment options available these days. Just because one has a mental illness doesn't mean that med school is out of reach.

Exactly. Just like non-psychiatric illnesses, psychiatric illnesses vary: some are very debilitating, some are not so debilitating. Some are chronic, while others come and go. Blanket statements about how medical careers should be closed off to people who have experienced mental illness seem to me to just further stigmatize and marginalize this class of illnesses.

 

[ssquared]

I don't believe you are supposed to/allowed to go to medical school with clinical mental illnesses.

When did you come up with that hypothesis?

Where do you draw the line? Is ADD ok, but depression isn't? Insomnia is passable, but a generalized anxiety disorder is not? OCD's alright, but don't let in those weirdos with schizophrenia?

"Mental illness" is 1) far too broad of a category to strike people out for and 2) there's something called the Americans with Disabilities Act and those people would be on your butt so fast I'd advise running for the hills right about now.

 

[riceman04]

well, he was a Psych major, if that means anything.

but then again where i'm from in a little town in the South, there's still a huge stigma against mental illness.. i don't know whyi brought this up..but i just think its pretty pathetic.

Let's be real...there is a huge stigma about everything out of the so called "NORM" down south...If one is not a normal caucasian he/she is probably prone to experiencing some type of prejudice due to a stigma against whatever other group to which he/she belongs.

Not trying be mean...just trying to keep it real about small towns (i.e. sundown towns) down south

 

[TimeResonance]

Let's be real...there is a huge stigma about everything out of the so called "NORM" down south...If one is not a normal caucasian he/she is probably prone to experiencing some type of prejudice due to a stigma against whatever other group to which he/she belongs.

Not trying be mean...just trying to keep it real about small towns (i.e. sundown towns) down south

"Well I heard mister Young sing about her
Well, I heard ole Neil put her down
Well, I hope Neil Young will remember
A Southern man don't need him around anyhow"

 

[riceman04]

"Well I heard mister Young sing about her
Well, I heard ole Neil put her down
Well, I hope Neil Young will remember
A Southern man don't need him around anyhow"

Are you from the south?

 

[Quix]

I don't believe you are supposed to/allowed to go to medical school with clinical mental illnesses.

http://www.amazon.com/Unquiet-Mind-...4507331?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190260460&sr=8-1

She disagrees.

 

[TimeResonance]

Are you from the south?

Yes. I am from Memphis. I don't like sweeping generalizations of the south. Especially, when your argument accuses southerners of discrimination in a discriminatory manner. Being confined to the view that ALL small towns in the south are against the non-norm is the equivalent of what your accusing southerners of doing. That being said, i also know (in all probability) you didn't mean anything by it. A Lynard Skynard quote seemed the best way to address the issue.

 

[ocddoc]

Doctor's have a higher rate of suicide than the general public. Female physicians > than male physicians.

http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/abstract/161/12/2295

Take home point = learn good self-care during medical school and beyond. Ask for help if you are concerned about your mental health. Encourage your colleagues to ask for help if they need to. We wouldn't hesitate to see a doctor for a broken leg, but stigma around depression and mental illness frequently prevents people from seeking mental health services. Depression is one of the most treatable diseases.

Also, Clinical Social Workers and Psychologists are licensed to make mental health diagnosis for both treatment and reimbursement purposes. In my limited experience with this, the psychiatrist often works from our diagnosis because we generally have more time with the client to make a determination. Many psychiatrists will just see the patient for a 15 minute med check. (I'm sure there are also psychiatrists that are more involved in testing and diagnosis. Where I am from it seems that they do not have the time to do this given high demand.)

 

[riceman04]

Yes. I am from Memphis. I don't like sweeping generalizations of the south. Especially, when your argument accuses southerners of discrimination in a discriminatory manner. Being confined to the view that ALL small towns in the south are against the non-norm is the equivalent of what your accusing southerners of doing. That being said, i also know (in all probability) you didn't mean anything by it. A Lynard Skynard quote seemed the best way to address the issue.

True...sweeping generalizations should not be made...but having spent time in soooooooooooooooooooooo many small towns in the south, it seems as a though they all possess very similar qualities.

So many of these small towns seem to hold on old prejudices/stereotypes b/c they receive very little influence from outside entities...And that is why racism is still sooooooo overt in these towns (I'm not saying that racism is not alive and well in larger cities).....I know you are aware of what is occurring down in Jena, La right now.

There are still many towns in Texas nicknamed sundown towns for a reason.

So, was I really addressing that issue in a discriminatory manner? Or am I simply stating things that are well known?

 

[TimeResonance]

True...sweeping generalizations should not be made...

So, was I really addressing that issue in a discriminatory manner? Or am I simply stating things that are well known?

You are using a pool of towns that you have visited to represent the majority. That is a generalization. You are only referencing towns in the south and not isolated areas elsewhere. That is discriminatory. Many rascists use the argument that what they state is well known. How is that different from you stating what you view is well known? It is perpetuating the belief that the south is somehow behind the rest of the country or in the dark. It demonstrates the same attitude of superiority and close mindedness which you imply defines the southern small town. I do not think you mean anything by it but think about what you are demonstrating when you say these things.

 

[meowkat444]

it is generally suggested that if an applicant/doc's mental illness surfaces, there will be trouble getting in, getting licensed, etc. my question is: is the prevalence of mental illnes *new* in the medical field? because if it's not, then it seems crazy that old docs penalize new docs for struggling with depression/anxiety/etc when many of them must, as well.

i am a firm believer that the best strategy to deal with mental illness is to get it out in the open at least a little bit so that it can be treated. i am not mentally ill, but suicide/depression/substance abuse runs in my family, and i admit that the issue has crossed my mind. if i start struggling in med school, and i basically f*cked? i don't like that thought.