Is there a psychiatrist in the house ? ( Need some advice for fellow teacher )

[uncitizen]

I'm not a psychiatrist, but i did run a home for mentally ill people for years and recognize those problems you mentioned as side effects from meds. If he isn't on meds, then I have nothing more to contribute. Good Luck.

[najida]

Well,
I've heard that Bipolar and Schizo-effective disorder can look like Schizophrenia at first.

I don't know, I just know that what seems bad to you is pure hell for the person living inside their head.

[uncitizen]

That's been my experience in working with many mentally ill people over the years. I'm no scientologist, but i really don't think those meds are helpful in many cases. In many cases they do help. But there are so many side effects.

[Candor7]

Hi Bud!

Professional ESL teacher here.

I assume you are in Japan teaching at a private ET company.

Start looking for a new position right away.

Your employers already know what your team teacher is like
and will do nothing and this guy WILL likely drive you baka! Its not worth the salary.

Just find another position, and leave as smoothly as possible.

[jdm]

"I don't know, I just know that what seems bad to you is pure hell for the person living inside their head."

I understand. OCD and panic disorder have been pure hell for me as well. I can relate.

[Normal4me]

I did not know that Howard Dean was an english teacher.

/Johnny Carson voice

[CGASMIA68]

Roses are Red Violets are Blue..
I'm a Schizophrenic..and me Too.....

[sushiman]

" I assume you are in Japan teaching at a private ET company. "

I teach JHS in the bondocks of Kumamoto in Kyushu and was hired by the town ( I am not a JET ) . No other gigs available here unfortunately .

[sushiman]

" the only way to get him help is if he threatens to hurt himself or someone else. "

He did bang a kid over the head during lunchtime last year . But Japanese teachers are always hitting kids ...

[drjulie]

I'm a psychologist but not a clinician so keep in mind that this isn't my area of expertise. These are symptoms of schizophrenia (disorganized thinking, inappropriate affect, etc.), however, it could be a number of things. When someone presents with these kinds of symptoms we typically begin with a thorough physical exam to rule out organic causes (for example a brain tumor). It seems odd to me that the principal would not want to address this. Does he think that is job performance is satisfactory? If he really has these symptoms, I would think that his job performance would be sub par. Document specifics and keep going to the principal. Of course, you should continue talking to him about this problem and encouraging him to get help. Sometimes people feel less threatened if they can go to a general MD, rather than a psychologist or psychiatrist, so you might suggest that. Also, you can share your concerns with family, if you feel comfortable doing that.

[manic4organic]

Mad cow?

[birbear]

First off... take everything you've read here and throw it in the toilet.

Nobody here, as far as I can tell, is a practicing MD with knowledge of psychiatric disorders. Schizophrenia can look like a lot of things... a lot of things can look like Schizophrenia. All in all, labeling somebody who may or may not be schizophrenic does nothing to help them (or your situation.)

Basically, if you're in America, you can't do anything til the person had indicated they are going to harm themselves or somebody else. If this guy is just a bit eccentric and you do something that's labeled him mentally ill, you've just ruined his life...especially in the teaching profession.

If you feel he is a danger to himself or to somebody else, call the authorities. Don't bring it up to his boss, your boss, or anything like that. The authorities (in most cases) know how to handle things like this.

If you don't feel him to be a threat, then leave him the hell alone, he's not bothering anybody. And making a stink because he has some unusual habits will reflect badly on you.


The World Health Organization predicts that by 2010 there will be more time loss from work from mental illness than from colds/flus. We're going to run more and more into these type of problems and it's best that we learn how to handle it now than in the future.

For more information contact the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill. www.nami.org.

[the gillman@blacklagoon.com]

So will thirty years of marriage.

[Windsong]

Sounds like LSD use..like he is using it while at work in small dosages perhaps. Definitely hallucinations involved (seeing walls breathing, people who arent there, "ghosts", etc)

[TaxRelief]

diabetes.

[TaxRelief]

Sounds like diabetes to me, too. That was my first reaction.

[HiTech RedNeck]

The World Health Organization predicts that by 2010 there will be more time loss from work from mental illness than from colds/flus.

Do they expect more people to go mad, or do they expect colds and flus to be on the wane?

[Publius6961]

I bet she doesn't see it that way...

[MindBender26]

Five or six possibilities come to mind. He needs a professional clinical workup, from an MD, not a psychologist.

It has to be someone who can prescribe lab work and interpret the results.

[Getready]

Lots of possibilies:

They might include(in no particular order)

1) anxiety
2) stress
3) metabolic disorder
4) stroke (or brain vascular disorder)
5) side effects of prescription and/or non prescription drugs
6) hallucinogenic drugs (includes ecstasy, sleepers, scopolamine, etc)
7) incipient schizophrenia, or schizophreniform disorder
8) personality disorder
9) opiate abuse
10)brain tumor (benign,primary or metastatic)
11)trauma related brain injury
12)poisoning (self or other inflicted or environmental)
13)brain infection

If he continues onward, and becomes unable to function, and
becomes a danger to himself or others, he may need to have
a medical exam, the psych. exam. You might want to talk
to your supervisors, and you may need to find out if others
have noticed the same thing, after all YOU could be
hallucinating.