My Uncle, Schizophrenia, and the Queen Of England

Why the closure of mental hospitals puts us all at risk.

My uncle took a bag containing ten thousand pounds to London. Police stopped him as he was handing the money out to people and begging them not to kill the queen.

He had schizophrenia. No longer able to stay in hospital, he was forced to live by himself.

When my dad found out the police had detained my uncle under the Mental Health Act, he called his doctor to ask what had happened. The doctor replied that she had been on holiday. When asked why she hadn't provided cover, she said it wasn't her responsibility.

This is a microcosm of where the mentally ill find themselves today—forced to live in the community alone and without continuity of care. Governments have pushed them out of hospitals and into prisons or onto the streets.

My "nasty biological illness."

My uncle's battle with schizophrenia was fresh in my mind on the day a psychiatrist diagnosed me with it as well. She told me I had "a nasty biological illness, namely schizophrenia."

To me, that word was like hearing a cancer diagnosis. Every time you hear of someone committing crimes who has a mental illness, it's schizophrenia. If you think of the stereotypical mentally ill person looking unkempt and muttering to themselves, it's because of schizophrenia.

Previously, I'd been diagnosed with PTSD. Although it's been a debilitating illness for me, I felt less shame. Only brave people get PTSD. Society is interested in their stories — maybe even sympathetic.

The stigma of schizophrenia hit me hard. I wanted to keep it secret. I worried people would look at me differently — as if I was a murderer in the making.

When mental illness is denied, patients suffer.

Thomas Szasz was a prominent 1960s psychiatrist. He saw the treatment of mental illness as authoritarian and inhumane. He aimed to prevent others from interfering in the lives of those with mental illness.

It sounds like a noble goal. He wrote a book titled "The Myth of Mental Illness," where he claimed what society called mental illness was simply a group of pathologized behaviors that society found annoying and inconvenient.

Some mental illnesses are more "desirable" than others. Cases of OCD or bipolar are sometimes seen as quirky personality traits. How often have you heard someone say their OCD kicked in when they washed their hands a second time? How about when someone proudly reveals their bipolar disorder when they feel excited?

Schizophrenia doesn't fit that mold. People with schizophrenia often act in unpalatable ways. They might get violent or scare people. They can cause a nuisance. People get annoyed and inconvenienced.

Most people who claim to care about the mentally ill are fooling themselves. If you care about the mentally ill, you have to care about the likes of theater shooter James Holmes or triple killer Valdo Calocane.

No, society cares about the mentally ill as long as they stay in their box and keep out of the way.

"The Myth of Mental Illness" increased people's skepticism about mental illness's very existence. Szasz stated that the mind is separate from the brain — an intangible entity. Thus, mental illness can't be something that is tangibly wrong.

In 1975, the Supreme Court turned Szasz's opinion into law. It became a violation of civil liberties to hospitalize or medicate someone without their consent, providing they weren’t judged as dangerous.

When we consider the "ugly" mental illnesses like schizophrenia, most patients don't know they're sick. I thought a famous magician was stealing my thoughts, so I resisted treatment.

When Valdo Calocane walked into the HQ of intelligence service MI5 and begged them to stop controlling his thoughts, he believed it to be true. He resisted treatment and went on to kill three people.

The closure of mental hospitals is dire for everyone.

In the 1960s, when psychiatric institutions began closing, a drug called Thorazine was touted as a cure for schizophrenia. This gave even more momentum to the people who wanted institutions closed. Now, patients could receive an injection, and everything would be ok.

In reality, schizophrenia has no cure. A drug like Thorazine can stabilize a patient, but the illness remains.

The big winners from the closure of psychiatric institutions have been the pharmaceutical companies. The desperation for a cure and the lack of public knowledge about mental illness has served them well. They make so much money that they can promise to cure mental illness, pay out settlements, and still make a profit. Their earnings exceed their legal fees.

No pharmaceutical boss has ever faced jail time.

In 1963, Kennedy signed the Community Mental Health Act. This set aside $150 million to open mental health treatment centers nationwide.

By 1973, thanks to the Vietnam War, the government slashed funding. Less than half the centers were built, and even those closed. Many patients were discharged into the community. The mentally ill in America were on their own again.

The UK is no better. I was kept in a holding ward at a time when I was suicidal because, in the entire UK, they had run out of mental health beds. Even when a bed becomes available, it can be on the other side of the country, thus isolating the patient.

What happens when patients are sent out into the world?

The people discharged were incapable of looking after themselves. They couldn't work and were unable to support themselves.

This is how people like my uncle declined. All alone, refusing visitors and unable to care for themselves. A painful loneliness that marks a decline towards death.

With nothing to help them, the mentally ill began sleeping rough. People became frightened because the “crazy people” were out of their box again.

There was a third option to the streets or prison: becoming a victim of police brutality.

James Boyd was a man diagnosed with schizophrenia. He annoyed one of the "normal" people by camping near their property. The irritated bystander called the police. On arrival, they shot Boyd despite him being unarmed. Two officers were indicted for murder.

Mental health must be a priority for all our sakes.

The first step to changing the world for the mentally ill is early diagnosis. When I was first diagnosed with schizophrenia, I was referred to the Early Intervention in Psychosis Team. They were appalling.

They were always late for appointments. One of their treatments was for their patients to play baseball together.

Unfortunately, they told me most of their patients were psychotic through drug use. As a former police officer, I would know most of them and wouldn't be safe. So, I missed out on therapeutic rounders, and shortly after, our appointments came to an end.

Seriously.

But the UK government can claim they have measures in place to treat psychosis early. It doesn't matter to them that the treatment isn't fit for purpose. This is the first thing that needs to change.

The National Alliance on Mental Illness has said it costs $37,449 per year to jail an adult with mental illness and $214,620 to jail a juvenile. It costs just $3616 — $8509 to treat their condition. Even people who don't care about the mentally ill care about money.

People with mental illness usually have no voice of their own. It's incumbent on all of us to speak up for them and their families wherever possible. I'm aware of how lucky I am. I've recovered better than anyone ever thought possible. Most people with mental illness don't make it this far. By speaking out, my suffering wasn't wasted.

Click here to change your life in 30 days.