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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 28, 2018)
Page 12 February 28, 2018 MCS Still in Business O PINION Martin Cleaning Service Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning Residential & Commercial Services Minimum Service CHG. $50.00 A small distance/travel charge may be applied CARPET CLEANING 2 Cleaning Areas or more $30.00 each Area Pre-Spray Traffic Areas (Includes: 1 small Hallway) 1 Cleaning Area (only) $50.00 Includes Pre-Spray Traffic Area and Hallway Stairs (12-16 stairs - With Other Services) : $30.00 Heavily Soiled Area: $10.00 each area (Requiring Pre-Spray) Area/Oriental Rug Cleaning Regular Area Rugs $25.00 Minimum Wool Oriental Rugs $40.00 Minimum UPHOLSTERY CLEANING Sofa: $70.00 Loveseat: $50.00 Sectional: $110 - $140 Chair or Recliner: $25.00 - $50.00 Throw Pillows (With Other Services) : $5.00 ADDITIONAL SERVICES • Auto/Boat/RV Cleaning • Deodorizing & Pet Odor Treatment • Spot & Stain Removal Service • Scotchguard Protection • Minor Water Damage Services Call for Appointment (503) 281-3949 Shouldn’t Be the Only Time We Talk About Mental Illness The aftermath after another mass shooting J ill r iCharDson After every mass shooting, we repeat all of the same things. Some call for gun control. Those against gun control say this isn’t the time to talk about it. The Onion reprints its story titled, “‘No Way To Prevent This,’ Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Hap- pens,” and updates the dateline to reflect the location of the new mass shooting. When the shooter is white, we talk about mental illness. If they’re not, we talk about terrorism. Then, Congress does nothing. But, so long as we’re discuss- ing mental illness, I’d like to weigh in. That’s something I know a bit about. I suffer from anxiety, PTSD, and depression. I’m not a potential murderer. Mostly I just hide in my bed and cry and get down on myself. My mental by illness paralyzes me and keeps me from getting work done, and then I heap shame on myself for not get- ting work done. There are an awful lot of mental- ly ill people like me who are not po- tential security threats. We’re already stigmatized enough without being suspected of mass murder too. From where I stand, there are two problems with “solv- ing” mass shootings in this country by simply keeping the men- tally ill from owning guns. First, banning the mentally ill from owning weapons only takes guns away from people who are diagnosed with mental illness. That includes a lot of people like me who’ve sought out help. We’re un- der a doctor’s supervision. Many others aren’t. Second, taking away guns while not actually fixing how we treat mental illness isn’t much of a solu- tion. That basically says it’s OK to let millions of Americans suffer so long as they don’t shoot anybody. We have a system in place that deals with only the most extreme cases. Fix Your Sidewalks My late wife, Enola Gay Badrick, was be- ing treated for cancer. She was enduring both radiation and then chemotherapy treatments at OHSU. Finally, I noticed some signs of her We can lock up people who com- mit violent crimes, or take kids away from parents who abuse them. We provide (some) help to the most se- verely disabled mentally ill people, through Social Security disability. And we can temporarily put people who are dangerous to themselves or others in a mental institution. What about everyone else? If you’re insured, it’s relatively affordable to get on medications for problems like depression and anxi- ety. Medication, when it works, lit- erally saves lives. If you’re not insured, it’s tricki- er. And when there’s an underlying problem that needs to be addressed through therapy, medication is a Band-Aid. I still wonder why no adults no- ticed my problems when they were developing when I was a kid. A sim- ple screening in my school could have gotten me started on treatment much earlier. Even teaching mindfulness med- itation or yoga in school would have helped. It took until age 34 to discover the treatment that works for me: a form of psychotherapy called So- feeling better. She made a short walk to our neighborhood store one evening. But she didn’t recall that I had reported to the city on at least two occa- sions about a block of uplifted sidewalks. Well, an uplifted sidewalk caught her foot and she fell very hard. There was never anoth- matic Experiencing and a form of bodywork called myofascial re- lease. Together, these two therapies are changing my life in a way I nev- er even dreamed was possible. But they cost $10,000 per year if I go every week. I’m not so sick that I need to be on Social Security disability, but I am too sick to work full time at most jobs. I struggle to earn enough just to live in general, so coming up with an extra ten grand a year is almost impossible. I’ve relied on crowdfunding to help. I’m lucky I have friends who can afford to help. Not everyone does. Survivors of the shooting in Flor- ida are leading a courageous new call for gun control. Maybe this time will be different. But if we’re going to talk about mental illness in the mean time, can we really talk about it? It’s not OK to let millions of Americans keep suffering and call it a success so long as none of them kills anybody. OtherWords columnist Jill Rich- ardson is the author of Recipe for America: Why Our Food System Is Broken and What We Can Do to Fix It. Distributed by OtherWords.org. er sign of recovery. The city does not have the time or the fi- nances to fix these sidewalk problems. I say to homeowners, fix your sidewalks. It may save a life. It’s also the decent thing to do. Bruce C. Badrick Northeast Portland
