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Effects Of Mental Illness In Hello Again

Decent Essays

He Said, She Said Mental Illness “What illness? My child? My friend? Not possible!”. Despite parents wanting the best for their children, and friends looking forward to their peer’s success, some experience difficulty accepting why their loved one has a mental illness. Brenda Novak’s novel “Hello Again” focuses on the mind of Evelyn, a clinical psychologist, discovering new information on her patients, specifically Dr. Lyman Bishop. Jaimie Byrne’s article “Normal teenage behaviour vs. early warning signs of mental illness” compares and contrasts normal teenage behavior with mentally ill behavior. Finally, Mental Health America’s article “Depression in Teens” mentions possible causes of depression, lists treatment options, and recommends methods …show more content…

Lyman Bishop’s sister, would give Evelyn if she had the mental capacity to understand the situation. From Brenda Novak’s novel “Hello Again”, Evelyn instinctively knew Dr. Lyman Bishop was sociopath. According to the novel, he grew up with a hostile family environment, and was forced to move out with his sister, Beth, who is mentally disabled, after his mother’s death. Beth did not have the mental capacity to help her brother, let alone understand his situation, and therefore could not seek help for him. Jaimie Byrne wrote on the issue of mental illness as well, through the article “Normal teenage behaviour vs. early warning signs of mental illness”. She compares normal and abnormal behavior in teens, and leaves ignorance as no excuse for missing the illness. She mentions an especially crucial point-- the blindness of pride and denial. As written in the article, “Pride and denial can often get in our way of accepting that there is a problem with our child” (Byrne). Simply, the idea of turning a blind eye to protect interests is shown, with parents and family members projecting a better image of their loved one as intelligent or talented rather then sacrificing their own reputation to help them. Likewise, Mental Health America reported on the issue of mental illness in teens, titled “Depression In Teens” . Without doubt, it explains the idea of family members associating one type of behavior with a certain illness, however it …show more content…

Contrary to the first perspective, the sufferer may feel differently about their friends or family turning a blind eye to their diagnosis. Dr. Lyman Bishop from Brenda Novak’s “Hello Again” novel is a key point in the discussion. He blames his mother, father, and even his own sister for not getting him help, but yet he is reluctant to call himself a sociopath. To add to the previous point, Jaimie Byrne discusses ignoring the illness, and making symptoms worse. As stated in the article “Normal teenage behaviour vs. early warning signs of mental illness”, “Ignoring the problem does not make it go away and can contrarily make the problem worse. As with any illness, not getting the appropriate treatment prolongs the symptoms, which will likely get worse with time” (Byrne). With the sufferer’s perception, the friends and family defending the sufferer are purposely protecting their own interests instead of seeking help for their friend or family member. Mental Health America remarks, “To make matters worse, teens are bombarded by conflicting messages from parents, friends and society” (Mental Health America). The mixed messages are causing issues between sufferer and possible help, which causes a lack of trust in turn. The result-- teens will not trust their friends and family enough to go to them for help, which creates

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