Schizophrenia and Dogs

What to do when faced with an agressive dog

It does happen, I wont say it doesn’t, because that would be like saying that police brutality and Black on white crime don’t occur. They do, its fact, and no amount of denial will change these facts.

So lets say you find yourself faced with a dog that is obviously intent on causing you harm. First thing is DO NOT TRY TO RUN!

Even a slower dog can easily outrun a human.

DO NOT MAKE EYE CONTACT!!!

This is how dogs challenge each other’s dominance, so looking an already aggressive dog in the eye is like calling a drunk with a gun a hamster dicked moron. (been there, though it was a knife not a gun…will never do it again)

BACK AWAY SLOWLY WHILE TRYING TO DRAW ATTENTION TO THE SITUATION, IF YOU HAVE A PHONE DIAL 911 (OR WHATEVER YOUR COUNTRY’S EMERGENCY NUMBER IS).

Do not turn away from the dog. This will trigger the attack instinct. Wolves in the wild take their prey from behind, hamstringing it so it cannot flee. So back way while watching the dog.

KEEP ONE ARM BETWEEN YOU AND THE DOG AT ALL TIMES!!!

Your arm is much less important than your neck or stomach. If the dog does attack, try to get it to latch onto your forearm. Yes it will hurt, but it could be the difference between life and death.

Finally, if the dog has latched onto your arm, use your free arm to hold the dogs body back, keep it from getting leverage. If the dog is able to get its feet closer to you, it can do more damage.

Of course, as always the best way to deal with a dog attack is to avoid it altogether.

To do so, make sure to avoid areas with little light and few people, dogs that are running loose are a lot less likely to go into crowded areas.

Bring pepper spray or ‘mace’ if it is legal to do so. DO NOT use bear type spray on a dog, yes it works, but you don’t know why the dog is attacking, and Bear Mace will BLIND the dog permanently. And wouldn’t you feel like shit if the dog attacked you because it was defending its puppies and you made it go blind?

There are also whistles you can buy that will drive away dogs. If you live in an area with a lot of loose or stray dogs, it would be wise to invest in one.

Of course the biggest way to get a dog to attack you is to approach it when it doesn’t know you or is injured.

Contrary to popular belief, roughly 71-87% of dog bites occur when the dog is afraid or injured. This is referred to by dog trainers, rescuers and breeders as ‘Fear Aggression’. If you see an injured animal of ANY kind follow these three rules.

STOP! DO NOT APPROACH!
ASSESS THE SITUATION!
CALL FOR HELP FROM TRAINED PROFESSIONALS

Any animal injured can be dangerous, but especially dogs, because people do not expect them to attack when they need help. Yes dogs are man’s best friend, but they are still animals that are ruled by mostly instinct, and the instinct that kicks in when a dog is injured is the same instinct that kicks in when you wake up daze, confused and in pain with someone looming over you. DONT DO IT!

If you a see dog that seems afraid, and there is imminent risk to its life and there is no time to call a professional, try to lure the dog away from the danger with food, however do not get closer than say 10 feet. If the dog moves away from you, towards the danger, back away and call for help anyway. NEVER CHASE A DOG, THEY WILL ONLY RUN FURTHER AND FASTER.

If you want to learn more about how to help injured or loose animals, contact your local Animal Advocates, they can usually direct you to classes and programs.

What Dog should you get?

Ah the biggest question that any responsible would be dog owner asks, MONTHS before they get their dog.

And the answer is just as important as the question itself. However, to answer that question there are others questions that must be asked first. (confusing? Sorry)

Living arrangements: Do you own your home or rent?
1. If you own, do you own a condo? a Suburban home? a Farm? Or maybe you own an urban dwelling like a NY Brownstone? These are things you must take into consideration when getting a dog
2. If you rent, do you have landlord permission for a dog IN WRITING? If yes, what kind of living space do you rent? An apartment? A Condo? A house? or maybe you rent a lot and park your trailer there? (and there is NOTHING wrong with that!)
Do you have kids? If so how old are they? How many of them? Are they high or low energy? These are VERY important when choosing your dog! The wrong dog around kids can result in tragedy for both human and animal.
How much money do you make per year? Per month? Dogs are not cheap if you take proper care of them. Vet bills can run a hefty level depending on where you live. In some states a vet may only charge $50 for a spay or neuter. Other states, like where I live, a regular vet might charge over $200 for the same surgery. And its not just Vet bills you need to worry about. There are Registration fees (usually around $5-$10) and grooming if you don’t have the time or expertise to do it yourself.
How much time do you have per day to care for this dog? Think carefully on this. Dogs are almost completely dependent on their humans for basic needs. How would you feel if you were locked home all day, for 9-12 hours, then yelled at for messing in the house? On the subject of housebreaking, it takes a lot of effort and time to properly train a puppy to use the outdoors. Patience is key here.
Are you an active person? or do you prefer to sit at home watching YouTube and Anime? Do you go on long car trips or vacations? These are also important.

Now then, lets say you answered these questions as such.

You own your home, you live in a small suburb with a decent sized back yard, you have two kids, one 5 years old, the other 11. You make a tidy sum of 65K a year, Vet bills in your area are not high, but not cheap either, you work from home while your spouse works a day job in the city so you have lots of time to be with the dog. You are a reasonably active person, you jog a few miles every morning after the kids go to school, but for most of the day you are in your office handling w/e. Your family goes on a road trip vacation every summer, usually to a nation park.

There are several dog breeds that would fit this life style. The most popular is the Labrador Retriever. Well known for their high activity, but with the ability to chill out most of the day. They are generally good with kids, but still require supervision in case they get to playing a little too rough. Labs typically ride well, are easy to train, and require fairly little grooming. They are prone to some health problems, like skin cancer, hip dysplasia, and some intestinal woes as well, but most of these can be avoided with proper diet and exercise, and in the case of the skin cancer, regular check ups with the vet, as well as watching for any strange lumps or formations on the dog’s skin.

Another popular breed for this life style is the Golden Retriever. Many of the same behaviors, with different healthy problems. Goldens do require a bit more grooming because of their long hair (it is hair not fur) but it can be managed with a daily brushing.

A less obvious choice would be the German Shepherd, the Belgian Mal, or even the Staffordshire Terrier. Each has their own downfalls, but all are excellent family pets if raised properly and from stable lines. A GSD (German Shepherd Dog) is incredibly smart, goal oriented, and fiercely loyal to its pack. Same with the Belgian. However both breeds, if not properly socialized as pups, can be stranger aggressive. Alternatively, every now and then you get a Little Brother, my own German Shepherd/Husky mix who is and always has been so friendly he will let a stranger hook him to a leash and walk away with him. I actually had to put a padlock on my dog yard for this reason.

Now with the Staffy I am sure you are wondering WHAT I am thinking, suggesting a pit bull type dog to a family with small children. Well heres the thing. Dogs are only as dangerous as they learn to be. Yes genetics play some part in their natural levels of aggression, but would you accuse a young boy of being amurder just because his father killed someone? No you wouldn’t.

Staffys are an incredible dog, they are loyal, smart, and actually score better behavior wise than the popular poodles and Labrador retrievers! A true Staffy can indeed be just as dangerous as any other dog, which is why you should never leave a smile alone with ANY Animal. Not a dog, not a cat, not even a hamster. You know how many hamsters get rehomed for biting a child that squeezed them too hard? one estimate says that roughly 75% of hamsters bought for children either die or get rehomed within two months, because the child unintentionally harmed the animal.

A Pit bull can harm your child badly, but so can a Lab. Hell, believe it or not, if you get a Chihuahua, you increase your chances of being bitten by a dog by 300%. Compared to getting a pit bull where your chances go up by 120%.

A pit bull is an active dog, with the ability to settle down for long days of doing nothing. They will play with your kids and protect them. But don’t let them get bored. Bully breed, Shepherds (of any kind) and other ‘working line’ dogs get destructive when bored. But this is easily solved with good exercise and mentally stimulating toys, preferably ones that dispense a treat on occasion to keep their interest.

Now I am not saying all active dog will destroy your house, but they are more likely to if not entertained. However, when it comes to sheer destructive tendency, avoid the Rat or Jack Russell terrier. They are TERRORS! To get such a dog, you need to VERY active, you need to work on training EVERY SECOND OF EVERYDAY! I had a Rat terrier once, named Mouse, I rehomed her after 3 months, during which time she destroyed $3,400 worth of electronics, prescription glasses, and collectable plushies (including one given to me by a WWII veteran when I was four and attending a Veterans Day parade with my Korean War Veteran Grandfather).

My point is, DO YOUR RESEARCH!!! ASK QUESTIONS! A breeder is not going to think of you as stupid if you ask about the breed, they should actually think higher of you for being so thoughtful.

One breed to avoid, and this isn’t really a breed, and most states require a special permit anyway, is the Wolf Hybrid. Yes they are beautiful animals, but Wolves are not Dogs, even if genetically they are the same. A wolf’s prey drive is many times higher than a dog’s. There is a reason you hear these tragic stories of kids being killed by wolf dog pets. While a Wolf dog CAN be a good pet if raised properly, the vast majority of people don’t know how to raise them. If you had never raised a human baby, would you try to do so without looking up any info on how to do it? Would you try to grow a poisonous plant without having some idea of how to avoid having it kill you? No you wouldn’t, but everyday hundreds of people get a wolf dog because its ‘cool’ or ‘wild’. Guess what, smoking was cool, and to some still is, and now we know its kills you! You know what else was once thought of as cool? Death matches, people literally fighting until one or the other dies.

The reason I say to avoid Wolf Dogs is not because bad dogs, its because they aren’t really dogs. Look what happens when people raise baby chimps like children? Some poor women gets her eyes ripped because she got a hair cut. Wild animals are not pets. Can you have one in your home. Sure, lots of people get wild animals as pets, but the ones who do it successfully are the ones who learn what it takes first. Go on youtube, look up Pet Raccoon damage. Go ahead. Do it……Pretty bad huh? Now imagine paying for all that drywall. Oh and don’t piss off your new pet Bandito, because their bite can put their teeth through leather and even Kevlar. I’ve seen a raccoon chew its way out of a metal wire dog crate before. And don’t get me started on those people who think its a good idea to take in a baby fox. Are they cute? Oh yes. But they dig into furniture, they kill smalls pets including cats and dogs, and they smell HORRIBLE. Oh and don’t forget, once mating season comes around? males and females alike make sounds like tortured babies screaming into the night.

So no, wild animals are not pets.

To Kill on Demand

It’s no secret that BSL advocates brag about finding ways to kill innocent healthy dogs, especially those that they consider “pit bull type”dogs and BSL advocate Lori Janus…

Source: To Kill on Demand

Why do some dogs bite?

This is a question, asked by many, answered with just as many different facts, myths, and wives tales.

Most famously you have the ‘Bully Breeds’, including the Bull Dog (French and English as well as some others) the American Staffordshire Terrier (most commonly referred to as the Pit Bull) and even the mighty Mastiff.

These dogs are subject to many myths and ‘fairytales’. My personal favorite lie told about these mostly lovable dogs? That they were bred to fight and kill each other and people. The original ‘Pit Bull’ was actually bred for hunting Bears. Over the years, as is common with many hunting breeds, they were brought into the home, with children and other pets. They were well known for protecting their families, even if it cost them their lives.

This is where the title of Nanny Dog comes from. Now you will see people claimng this is a big story told by the ‘Pit Bull advocates’ which some people like to call nutters. But this is a documented occurrence. Fun fact? Nana in Peter Pan was originally a Pit Bull in the book.

Now a lot of people think its all about genetics. And here on SZ and Dogs, we acknowledge that genetics play a big part in how we as humans develop, however Nurture has just as much if not more to do with who we are, and this holds true with our fourlegged, furry, feathered friends as well. (and smooth skinned, because dolphins and whales are also higher beings)

I have had the great opportunity to both rescue and breed dogs. I have seen dogs that, if a human had been through what they had, would be mad with fear and rage, yet the dog wants nothing but to cuddle and be loved.

A good example is Teddy, a former Bait dog, he is believed to be a Hound/Lab (I apologize, I misspoke to Brian when he asked about Teddy, I was under the impression he was a staffy mix). His jaw was broken so he couldn’t fight back, he was stabbed and shot, then left for dead somewhere. Yet he plays with other dogs, and spends most of his days cuddling with his new dad. He is not only good with big dogs, but puppies and kittens as well.

Now compare that to humans who get insulted by their sexual partner about their penis and decided it is acceptable to bludgeon them to death with a lamp.

See what I mean? I know I only mentioned Nature and Nurture earlier, but there is one other aspect, one that is not scientifically measurable, yet it affects ever day life for most of the human population.

I am talking about Soul. That inner force that makes us, us. That gives us life, and gives us hope. Some people will say dogs don’t have one, I beg to differ. I have seen a lot more Soul in one dog than I have in any 50 people you will find in a political office or a wall street building.

I will break it down for you.

Nature: It provides the foundation, a foundation can be made of many things, bricks, field stones, concrete, or even just baked clay or dirt. Without this foundation, you have nothing to build on.

Nurture: This is the frame work, the skeleton that is built as we grow. Without this framework, we will fall apart, collapse in upon ourselves.

Soul: This the blue print, the design. Go ahead, build your house without a design planned. It is possible, but very difficult. Without these blueprints, your house will have windows in weird places, doors that don’t go anywhere, and, most likely, everything will tilt to one side.

Without these three components, you cant build a house, or a living creature.

The mark of a good foundation in a house is the building stays level, and doesn’t sway all over. In a person or dog, this foundation is marked by a level study temperament at a young age, before our Frame is able to go up.

A good frame in a house is marked by all your windows and doors being level and uniform in size and shape. In a person or animals, it is marked by good behavior, and obedience.

And a good blue print goes a long way. Because with a good blue print, you can build a mansion on a pile of dirt that will last for decades. But with a bad blueprint, you could build a Bunker on a concrete foundation that will collapse without notice.

So why do some dogs bite? Well its a combination of things and there really is no one reason. Some dogs are built on a bad foundation, with poor planning and little frame work. Some dogs are the opposite and it is a response to outside interference (like some idiot poking a dog in the face with a stick)

One thing to keep in mind is that BREED has very little to do with what dog will bite. And going by the ‘stats’ listed online, you will not get the whole story, since those statistic are based on REPORTED dog bites. When you factor in known aggression, a Chihuahua, yes the cute little taco dog, is the number one biter among dogs. In fact small breed dogs are so much more likely to bite, that many responsible breeders will not sell to households with children.

But really, if you were bitten by a 4 pound rat with a furry tail, would you want to report to the local news station about your horrifying experience? Probably not, and neither do the majority of people bitten by small dogs, because its embarrassing or ‘not a big deal’. ANY dog bite is a huge deal, despite popular myth a dogs mouth is NOT cleaner than a humans, it just has different kinds of bacteria in it.

To date the only two dogs never associated with a human fatality by bite, are the Beagle, and the Basset Hound. So if you wanna make sure you don’t get bitten to death, get one of those…you know, if you can handle the baying and barking and howling, the chasing of every scent and creature that it comes across, and the incessant need for constant attention.

For information on what dog would best suit your family, please contact a local Dog Trainer or Shelter Advocate. These people can actually give you a huge amount of information on what breeds fit what lifestyle.

One quick note, if you DO decided on a bully breed, make sure you have the time and energy to train them, while eager to please, some bully breeds can be stubborn.

And never NEVER leave a small child alone with a dog of any breed! All it takes is one momentary lapse in judgement on your child’s part (and at that age, they don’t know any better) and the dog may react, badly. A good case to point out is the little girl in Arkansas back in 2012, her mother left her alone with their 4 year Dachshund and, while no one is sure what triggered it, the dog bit the girl in the face bad enough she needed reconstructive surgery. On the note of Dachshunds, they come in three sizes. Standard (about 25 pound) Mini (8-15 pounds) and the little known toy or tea cup (4-8 pounds).

For more information on the myths surrounding Pit bulls and other Bully Breed Dogs, feel free to visit Zombiesanddogs.org I have the blog to most amusing and helpful. WARNING there can be some foul language on there, as she posts things from ‘popular’ Breed Specific Legislation and Banning advocates who tend to be anything but humane.

Mental Illness and Criminal Accusations

Hey folks, here today to talk about the effects of criminal accusations on people with mental illness.

First of all, yes, people with mental illness commit crimes, I am not going to say they don’t because face it, it happens. However, there is a lot of stigma attached to mental illness with it comes to crimes of any kind.

First of all, people with mental illness are 3-16x more likely to be accused of a crime, depending on region (this is a US stat, I do not have sources for other nations that I can read, sorry I only read English…) Compare this fact to the statistic that states mentally ill people are 160% less likely to commit a crime than a healthy person. It doesn’t really add up does it? How can you be less likely to commit a crime, but more likely to be accused of one?

Sadly, because we are mentally ill, the idea is, we don’t have control so we must be more likely to commit a crime, right? Sadly, and this is going to piss some people off, Mentally ill people are actually more likely to be falsely accused of a crime than even black people. What makes this a reality that with certain crimes, the automatic assumption is that the criminal MUST be mentally ill to have done it.

Here is a story of a person in my support group, we will call him Tom.

When Tom was 14 he attended a public school in NY state. He was quiet (still is) and kept to himself. Having recently been diagnosed with Bi Polar Depression, his school felt it would be a good idea to have a ‘Support day’ for him detailing his diagnosis and why it was important to be sensitive to his moods.

Now this might seem like it was a good idea. But this was the early 90s, not a good time to be mentally ill, it was after the times of ‘keep it in the family tell no one’ and before the ‘accept them, do not judge them’ era of the 2000s.

One of toms school mates was a young woman, who was never named, who was known to the students to be extremely active sexually. She got caught up with one of her excursions and was late to get home. When confronted with her lateness, she cried and said she had been raped. When asked who it was, she said she didn’t know. Somehow (and Toms father saw the official statements made by the victim) ‘I don’t know’ became ‘it was the retard’.

Without a single shred of evidence to confirm it (and quite a bit show it could not have happened, including the fact Tom was in his psycho-therapists office at the time of the ‘crime’, he was still arrested, and sent to a juvenile correctional facility. He was there for TWO years without a trial as the prosecution tried to build evidence. After these two years he was released when a new prosecutor took over and realized the accusations were false.

Were the accusations based solely on his mental illness? It seems quite likely. Sadly, even after being released, Tom was treated like a criminal. He had to change to his name when he turned 18, and move to another state. The worst part, for him, was the even though his life was ruined by the accusations, the girl was never charged with a crime.

Is this Fair? To use someone as a scape goat for any reason is bad enough, but to accuse someone based solely on their mental illness? No, this has to stop.

The feminists like to say we have a Rape culture in the world right now. I don’t think its accurate, but I will admit there is a lot of trauma involved with Rape, but researchers have already debunked their 2% claim of false rape claims. Evidence puts the number between 6 and 18% depending on region.

The real negative culture we have is the ‘Automatic Guilt’ culture. If you are a man accused of rape, you are automatically guilty, even if you were half way around the world at the time of the supposed crime. If you are mentally ill and accused of ANY crime you are automatically guilty, even if you were locked in a mental hospital at the time, like Sven A. of Norway thrown in jail for murder, even though at the time the victim was killed, he was strapped to a bed in a psych ward for a mental break down.

Yes mentally ill people commit crimes, but not nearly as many as we are accused of. And NO just because someone shoots up a mall or theatre does not mean they are mentally ill.

Statistically speaking, serial killers do NOT fall into the categories of recognized mental illness. Sociopathic behavior is not currently recognized as a mental illness.

Faking it (Disability Fraud and Stolen Valor)

Hi folks, Dremulf here. Today I’m going to talk about something that affects just about EVERYONE. Faking something.

We’ve all some faking in our lives, usually something harmless like telling your school friends you are going someplace cool, when really you are going to your Grandmas house for one of those dreaded visits (just kidding, most grandparents are awesome).

But I am not talking about tall tales like that. I’m talking about people who go out and PRETEND to be something they are not for some kind of social or monetary gain. Believe it or not, there are people who think being mentally ill is a cash cow. The smart ones research the mental illness they want to be diagnosed with. The smart ones also take their time getting the diagnosis, they start with small complaints to their general practitioner. eventually their GP refers them to a psychologist or psychiatrist, they then describe their ‘symptoms’ and BAM, they have a mental illness, on paper anyway.

The thing is, people don’t pay attention to this. When a guy fakes back injury, it hits national news for some reason. But when a guy pretends to be Schizophrenic, or suffering from PTSD, people don’t really care. But I do. You wouldn’t pretend to have a broken leg to get a better table at a restaurant, well I hope you wouldn’t anyway, wo why would you pretend to be mentally ill? Some of these people do it to get attention or sympathy. Some do it because if you are bad enough (like me) you can disability for it (its NOT the wonderful income people think it is. I worked my butt off for a number of years, making 2-3K a month, but that only qualified me for 900 a month in disability)

Other people do it, because they want to prove how easy it is to do. These people are typically the ones who honestly believe that ALL mental illness is fake. They document their fraud, then post it to places like YouTube, or Facebook. To these people I say this. You can also fake religion, or fake a neck or back injury, but those really do exist, I know they do, I am currently using a wheel chair, until my broken back is healed enough to walk.

Now while faking illness of any kind is pretty bad stuff, there is a kind of Faker that I hate more than anything else. Valor Thieves.

These scum of the gene pool pretend to be soldiers, marines, airmen, and sailors. Some even pretend to be firefighters, police, and even medical professionals!

Our men and women in uniform deserve better than to have poseurs taking their Glory.

The worst part of what these people do is not just that they pretend to be heroes, but that they do it so poorly.

Case in point. Yesterday I went to my High schools 6 year reunion, we did not have the 5 year because a student was deployed and the school wanted to be able to honor them. Well we had the reunion and the student in question turns up. Now please understand that while I did not pass Basic Training, I was in the Army. I know the rules, the regulations, an the various insignia and patches. I know what a uniform should look like is what I mean.

First of All. He is wearing an Airforce Combat Uniform. Second, his medals are a combination of Marine, Army and Navy awards. His rank insignia is that of a corporal in the army (Marines also have a corporal rank but the colors are different). He has a Delta Force patch on his shoulder (where his American Flag Should be) and below it is a very fake Airborne Rangers patch. It was obviously fake, because guess what? Airborne and Rangers are actually different. Rangers are trained in leadership skills, Airborne are hard core plane jumpers. YES you can be both, but the patch does not say “Airboren Rangar”. Yes that is how it was spelled on the patch.

It was also obviously fake because there is no 72nd Airborne Division.

When asked what branch he was in instead of saying Army, Marines, Navy or Airforce, he says “I’m Delta Force Airborne Ranger, 72nd Airborne Division.”

Anyone reading this know the military? If you don’t well let me educate you a bit. Delta Force are Special Forces Marines. Airborne are Special Forces Army. You cannot be both at the same time. You can train as a Delta Force Marine, and then transfer to the Army and become Airborne, but you can’t be both at the same time.

When asked about his rank , he replied he was a Sergeant Major. One of the highest NCO ranks you have in the military. It also takes a decade or two to get there. Keep in mind the rank insignia on his uniform was that of a Corporal.

When I confronted him about these obvious things, he started with the holier than thou routine “What would you know? You aren’t military I was in Iraq for 8 months, I got there in January of 2011, the following May I was deployed straight to Afghanistan.”

See his mistake there? First he was in Iraq for 8 months, but he left for Afghanistan in May. Last time I checked that was only five months.

Then he started with the excuses “This isn’t my usual uniform its my old one.”

Then I asked him where, and when he went to Basic training. “Fort Benning Charlie Company Delta Battalion. I was there from April 14 2012, to August 10th the same year.”

Now there are a couple reasons why this is obviously false. First of all, how was he deployed to the middle east a year before he even went to BCT? Second of all, from April 23rd 2012 to June 7th 2012, I was in Fort Benning for BCT, In Charlie Company Delta Battalion. For any one who wishes to know I was in 2nd Platoon the Roughnecks. He was never there. I can actually attest to that myself.

So when I heard him say where he was I asked him if he remembered Drill Sergeant Saladin of 2nd Platoon. “Yes of course, what an asshole.” I said Blackest man in GA right? “Damn straight.” Drill Sergeant Saladin is white…and he was by no means an Asshole. He was hard core, he was strict as hell and didn’t hold back. But he supported us. When one of us started having a really hard time, like if the homesickness got really bad, he’d take us to the back room and we would have a chat. I had that happen a couple times.

I want to go on the record now, to say that Staff Sergeant Saladin (provided he did get the Staff Sergeant promotion) is one of the best men I have ever had the privilege to meet. He was a Soldier among Soldiers. He was an honest to god Airborne, He spent real time over seas. And while you could tell he had seen things, he never let that affect his judgement or treatment of us recruits. Even when I was being pushed out because of my break down, he never judged me for it. He helped me stay stable while I was being processed. If not for him, I would have taken my life before even getting on the plane to come home.

Having known the shame and pain involved with being kicked out of the army, it gave me a greater appreciation for those who made it. So seeing someone so blatantly lie about being in the Service. Well if you don’t have mental illness it might be hard for you to understand. Imagine how you would feel if your childhood hero was impersonated by a loser who had no idea what it meant to be that person. Now imagine that person, even after being caught in the lie, continued to insist it was the truth. Hell imagine if someone pretended to be an animal lover, used it to gain your trust, then tortured your cat to death with a syringe full of Sulphuric acid. Its like that.

Please if you see someone who is obviously Stealing Valor, call the police. It is a federal crime to do so, and they need to learn that it will NOT be tolerated!

Mental Illness and Religion

Hey folks here with some learnin for ya!

Now this is not an anti religion rant, I love religion, it gives people hope, faith and a reason to live. But sadly, religions also gives people Hate, anger, and the feeling that they are better than those who do not think as they do.

Now not all religious people are like this, the vast majority are kind, helpful people, but, like a political party, each has its…nutcases.

Catholics hate on gays, spew religious text as a reason to discriminate, and many even outright lie about the churches stance on many things.

A common myth, upheld by the catholic church, is that it has always been anti abortion, but until the 1700s the churches stance on fetal life was that a child has no soul until they take their first breath. This was to calm the fears of women who gave birth to children who died on the way out, so that they could be assured they would not have ‘sinned’ by letting an unbaptized child die. It wasn’t until the world found out about fetal heart beats that the idea that a child is alive before it is born came to be.

This is not about abortion though, it is about religion and mental illness.

The catholic church has been very careful in recent years to avoid this subject, so I don’t have much on their opinion of it other than some 50+ year old statements from church officials.

The most recent of these statements says tat the churches official view on ‘so called mental illness’ is that it is an atheist attempt to harbor demons. It does not say that out right, but if you read it all the way through, the meaning is quite clear.

The religious orders with the most gentle consideration of the mentally ill are the Buddhists, the Shinto, and the various Celtic and Druidic orders.

Now if you want to know how the catholic and other Christian churches view mental illness, just google “Mentally Ill Exorcism” Its pretty bad though so only do it if you have a strong stomach, or you know, absolutely zero sympathy for other humans…

It is regrettable that so many religious groups seem to hate the mentally ill, sometimes more than they do the homosexuals, but it is a fact of life for many of us.

The only group that openly discriminates against the mentally ill, as far as I know, is the Church of Scientology…Who will not only deny you membership for having one, but will kick you out and take all of your money if you are diagnosed or even suspected of having one, while in their group.

The sad thing is, many religions still see mental illness as either ‘fake’ or as a demonic possession or even witchcraft!

If you are a religious person, try to learn your churches stance on mental illness, if your church is accepting and even charitable towards those like me, please reply to this posting with their views, I love to learn about different kinds of people!

A little Off Topic

Ok, so here again, but this topic is one that hits me close to home, while not directly effecting me.

LGBT issues. Yes it is a thing, many people like to deny it, but its there, so you need to face it.

I have several friends in that group, and first of all Homosexuality is NOT a mental illness, neither is Transgenderism, despite what the hate group so cleverly called the American College of Pediatrics would have you believe.

I do not say this because I don’t want LGBT people included in my ‘group’ but because I am tired of people accusing these poor people of being ‘sick’ and not getting help.

Now, to clear some things up for you. I am a straight, white, male in his mid twenties, in fact I just celebrated my 26th birthday, according to the stereo type I should be muscular, manly, stern, and a racist asshole who beats women and rapes children (these are the views of the Black Panthers, Christian Conservatives, and Feminists)

I am none of these things, I am described, by friends, as kind, kinda fat, a little too sensitive and very accepting of others. I love children and hope to have my own someday, and i would never hit a woman unless my life was in danger from her (which has been the case several times sadly).

Now, I don’t care which bathroom a person uses, as long as they use it for its intended purpose. If you aren’t pooping or peeing in there, get the fuck out!

I also don’t care what you do in your bedroom, or who you do it with. As long as it isn’t a child, or an animal…people call me sick, but then you’ve got ‘normal’ people who are out there having sex with dogs and horses. That is sick my friends, ain’t no doubt about it.

So my point is, who fucking cares if you were born a man but prefer to be a girl? It really isn’t anyone’s business but yours. The same goes for Women who wish to be men. I don’t care, if you have a penis but want me to call you Stacy? Sure why not, I’ve heard of weirder things. You live with your same sex partner and want to adopt a baby? Hey guess what? Two moms or two dads is fine, and there is NO evidence that being raised by gay parents will make you gay, just as having straight parents won’t make you straight.

So the next time you walk into a bathroom and that ‘lady’ has some stubble, or a deep voice? Remember, they don’t judge you for your looks, so don’t judge them for theirs.

There has never been a report of a true transgender person sexually assaulting a woman. EVER. Plenty of cases of straight men abusing little boys though, so maybe we should make a ‘little boys only’ bathroom?

The Effects of Animals on Mental Illness

Hey there folks, Dremulf again, here today to talk about Animals finally.

In a recent study, which was reproduced multiple times, it was found that a person with Severe Depression, experienced a 30% reduction in stress hormones in their blood after just 10 minutes of petting a dog or cat, it rose steadily, up to 70% by the end of 30 minutes, and stayed there. (please keep in mind there is some variation to these results, these stats I have given are the Median Averages)

This is just the effect of dogs and cats on people with depression, it dos not include the effects on people with psychotic symptoms or the effects on people with illnesses like Autism or ‘mental retardation’.

However, I can tell you from experience, as someone with psychotic symptoms, that the results are promising. If experiencing an episode of psychosis, I suffer far less from delusions while with my pets than if simply ‘put away’ for my own safety.

As for how it works with people with Autism? just look it up folks, it is EVERYWHERE!!, the little boy in Florida with his Chickens, the girl in California with her guinea pig, who after 12 years of never speaking, actually spoke!

And people with other mental handicaps, like clinical retardation (not the same as calling someone a retard, but I have little knowledge of Clinical Retardation, so I wont pretend to know about it) they also see improvements, you often see these people in special homes, where they get 24/7 monitoring and treatment. These homes are increasingly inviting therapy animals to visit, because the staff see incredible changes in their wards.

A good example is a home near me where I sometimes volunteer, after they started bringing therapy animals (there is a dog, a pair of cats, and a potbelly pig) their patients are happier and calmer, and some of these special needs adults, who only speak when they need something, have begun to hold broken conversations with staff.

However, please do not assume that you can just bring your pet dog to a place like that, these animals have to pass a series of behavior and aptitude tests to become CERTIFIED therapy animals. The difference between a therapy animals and a pet is in the training and the insurance coverage, a pet dog who scratches or bites, will not be covered by insurance, however a certified therapy dog will be.

So the next time you see someone who doesn’t look disabled with a service dog, keep in mind that mental illness can be just as debilitating as a physical one.