By Michelle L. Lane

 

In recent years our nation has seen an increase in violence. The tragedy in Newtown, CT is the latest horror we must face. When I think of the 26 victims, I cry for the unimaginable pain and loss of their loved ones. But my heart also aches for shooter Adam Lanza and his family.

 

I see things posted on social media referring to Adam as a “low life scumbag” and want to scream, “Not a scumbag, mentally ill!”

 

It is nearly impossible for someone to understand unless they have lived it and I certainly do not wish the experience on anyone. No one should ever look into their child’s eyes and know true fear, ever. It is a feeling you can never explain or forget.

 

My son has Tuberous Sclerosis Complex and some effects include a brain tumor, disruptive behavior disorder, delusions and paranoia. When he was younger, we kept knives out of his reach; as he got older we locked our guns up in a safe. My concern was not that he would plan something, but that he would act on impulse during a moment of rage. After a burst of anger and impulse, he is truly sorry, but being sorry after the fact is not protection during it.

 

The fact is, most tragedies like this do not just happen, and the shooter is not an evil “scumbag”, but a person suffering from mental illness. So do you fault the parents, teachers, doctors, therapists? Who missed the signs? Maybe there were no missed signs. Of course, after the fact we always see something that was looming.

 

Michelle Lane's son, Jesse, at his
high school graduation. 

When someone has mental illness, their behavior is frequently difficult to predict and set off by the simplest of things. More often than not, a person with mental illness is the victim, not the aggressor. People with mental illness are often bullied, exploited and taken advantage of.

 

Anyone that knows my son doesn’t believe he would ever harm someone. But at the same time, we have to be realistic that he is mentally ill and dealing with bouts of rage and paranoia.

 

Regardless of your stance on gun control, the need for education and support in regard to mental illness is immediate and key in changing such tragedies. Guns will always be accessible as will knives, bats, and many other forms of weapons. There were times I felt like maybe I was overreacting, after all, 99% of the time my son is not angry at all. I would rather look back now and think my precautions were unnecessary than to wish I had done more.

 

 

Fortunately, medical advancements have helped those affected by mental illness and other medical issues get successfully treated. We as a nation have improved on our old ideas about how to care for people with mental illness. We no longer lock them away behind closed doors to be medicated and “forgotten” when they are someone deemed to be able to function in society.

 

However we also need to educate society and offer the medical assistance needed to help not only the person that has mental illness, but their family as well. The stigma of mental illness does still exist [1]and we need to remember the brain is an organ in the body the same as our heart, liver, or kidneys. People with mental illness should be treated no differently than those battling diabetes, heart disease or other diseases of the body.

 

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [2], 57% of all adults believe people care and are sympathetic to persons with mental illness, yet only 25% of those affected by mental illness believed that people are caring and sympathetic. A behavior risk assessment, Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Kessler 6 conducted in 35 states in 2007, found that 40% of people had serious psychological distress and of those, 53.4% received no treatment for it.

 

These statistics are powerful proof that our nation is not doing enough to empower our citizens who are suffering from mental illness or offering needed medical assistance. Having the appropriate programs and treatments available is a necessary step toward improving not only the lives of the individuals and their families, but also society as a whole and an enormous step in preventing such tragedies in America.