Mental Illness Meets Social Media; People With Mental Illness Shares Their Pain On Social Media; Kelley, Who Is Currently Under Medical Treatment For Bipolar Disorder, Threaten By Her Family To Leave Her If She Does Not Commit To Additional Help; Kelley Has Been Prescribed Medication For Her Disorders, But She Struggles To Take Them Consistently; Andrew Uses Social Media To Vent Out What He Is Feeling Inside; Andrew Is Suffering From Depression After The Suicide Of His Brother
DR. DREW PINSKY, HLN HOST OF "DR. DREW ON CALL" SHOW: Good evening. I am Dr. Drew. More than 43 million adults suffer from some form of mental illness. It is bizarre that we treat brain diseases different than diseases of other organs. It is bizarre that we stigmatize people with these disorders, and it is wrong that we allow this to continue. Mental illness is not a choice any more than it is to have any other illness such as cancer. And, of course, like any other illness, mental health and mental illness is treatable. May is mental health month. As part of HLN`s initiative, we present "#RedFlag." It is a special one-hour documentary about real people with real problems. And, what happens when mental illness meets social media. And, we will be live tweeting, using the #RedFlag. And, as you watch this program, know you are and your loved ones are not alone. There are people and services to help. And that those with mental illness can and of course do get better. They get better with treatment. After the show, I will be back with our regulars, and we will answer your questions and tweets and discuss what all of us can do to address mental illness. "#RedFlag" starts now.</s>KELLEY, 31-YEAR-OLD FEMALE WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER: There are lots of Klonopin.</s>KELLEY: I post all day on my social media. I just want to find other people that are bipolar like me.</s>KELLEY: You all are just making my brain hurt.</s>TERRY, KELLEY`S MOTHER-IN-LAW: You need to get the help and you have to stick with it.</s>GREG, KELLEY`S HUSBAND: If she does not do therapy, I will have to move on. And, I will choose him over you.</s>ANDREW, 21-YEAR-OLD MALE SUFFERING FROM DEPRESSION: Five years ago, my brother Michael committed suicide. And, the first thing I wanted to do is I wanted to end my life.</s>MATT, ANDREW`S BROTHER: He uses social media to vent out what he is feeling inside. He is sick. He needs help.</s>ROD, ANDREW`S FATHER: It is not your father`s fault that things are in this situation.</s>ANDREW: I got to get out of here.</s>MATT: He is a ticking time bomb.</s>KELLEY: Oh my God!</s>KELLEY: My name is Kelley. I am 31 years old.</s>END VIDEO CAPTION KELLEY: I had a pretty traumatic childhood. My mom was bipolar. It made me feel really scared.</s>KELLEY: And, then when I was a teenager, I was raped. It made me feel detached from my own body. I post all day, every day on my social media because I just want to, you know, be heard.</s>KELLEY: Tell me why you do not look so happy?</s>KELLEY: Because I just took my medicine and it is not working right.</s>GREG, KELLEY`S HUSBAND: Kelley and I, when we first met, we just hit it off. Kelley was just -- she was so outgoing, a magnetic personality. I fell in love with Kelley almost instantly.</s>KELLEY: Greg made me feel like I was worth something, you know? I never had that feeling before. Greg is like the ultimate love of my life. We have two kids, Isabella and</s>J.J. GREG: Isabella is 10 years old. J.J is 8 years old.</s>KELLEY: After I had J.J., it is like my brain started slowly slipping away from who I was into this other person.</s>GREG: There was a change in Kelley emotionally. She was easier to anger. She retreated in. She just was not herself.</s>KELLEY: I have been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder.</s>GREG: Kelley came from a broken home. I know it is one of the reasons that has made the bipolar worse.</s>KELLEY: Whenever I do not feel anything, you know, I will cut my arm like with a steak knife. I feel a release while I am doing it. But afterwards, all I will feel is pain. Greg started taking away the knives. He is worried about coming home and finding me dead.</s>KELLEY: I really just want to go back to the therapist`s office. I do not want to be out here with everybody.</s>KELLEY: I like to post my feelings. I hash tag, you know, bipolar and depression and stuff like that, because I just want to find other people that are bipolar like me.</s>KELLEY: If you are happy and you know, take your meds</s>KELLEY: Yehey! It is KTV. It is time for one of you all`s favorite number one hit. The first, let`s take some Klonopins.</s>KELLEY: Everything I post affects Greg, because he checks my pages. And, you know, sometimes I will say bad things about him. Sometimes I feel like my family would be better off without me.</s>GREG: I feel like I am at my wit`s end where physically, mentally, I am exhausted.</s>TERRY, KELLEY`S MOTHER-IN-LAW: Greg is mother and father to Izzy and JJ and kind of like mother-father also to Kelley.</s>GREG: Move, so I can help them out.</s>KELLEY: My marriage is about to crumble. You know, my kids are hurting. Without Greg and the kids, I do not know how long I would last.</s>ANDREW, 21-YEAR-OLD MALE SUFFERING FROM DEPRESSION: My name is Andrew. I am 21 years old.</s>ANDREW: Growing up, I had the all American family. I had three brothers. Brian, he was the oldest brother, followed by Mike then Matt, then me. As I was growing up, me and Mike had more of a closer relationship than my other brothers. Our moods would really effect each other a lot.</s>CAROL, ANDREW`S MOTHER: They -- they got along great. They just -- they always did.</s>ANDREW: Five years ago, my brother Michael committed suicide at the age of 24; by the way of a gun at a shooting range. Ever since then, my family has just -- it has not been the same.</s>ROD, ANDREW`S FATHER: This is when the time he needed me.</s>ROD: Mike was suffering from some physical issues. He had had back surgery, and he had ongoing pain from that. And, so he was on a lot of pain medication.</s>ANDREW: There should have been something done way earlier to intervene and give Michael some help. And, I think that my parents did not pay enough attention. So, you know, maybe the medications he was on or how much he was taking. And, I am on some of the same medications today. Some of the mental illnesses or disorders that I suffer from have been anxiety, depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, back issues. Definitely chronic insomnia. And, Twitter has been my source of kind of venting and therapy almost in a way these last few years.</s>MATT, ANDREW`S BROTHER: He uses social media as a platform to vent out what he is, you know, truly feeling inside. Because he does not know how to communicate it to his parents.</s>ANDREW: Hi, mom. Are you ready to take medication?</s>ANDREW: Since Mike`s passing, my mom`s health definitely took a turn for the worst. My dad has pulled away more and more over the past few years. I actually dropped out of college so that I can move back home to take care of my mom. She has anxiety and depression and different physical disabilities.</s>ANDREW: Hey, mom, I know you were not hungry but you want at least a couple of bites of sandwich?</s>CAROL: Maybe, just put foil over one for now.</s>ANDREW: Are you sure?</s>CAROL: I do not feel like eating it right now.</s>ANDREW: OK.</s>ANDREW: Because my mother and I both suffer from anxiety and depression, it is hard when I am trying to be positive with her and take care of her, and she is just giving me nothing but negativity back. This house is a toxic environment.</s>MATT: Lately, he is exhibiting even more bizarre behavior. My friends who follow Andrew on social media and would comment like, you know, "What is wrong with Andrew?" "Have you seen some of the things he has been posting lately?"</s>ANDREW: After Mike`s death, all I can think about was that my brother was not here anymore, and that my mom is just like a wreck. And, all these things have mounted up and I was alone in my thoughts. And, the first thing I wanted to do is I wanted to end my life.</s>MATT: Andrew`s health is at stake. I am afraid that if Andrew does not seek help, get out of the house that he will fall into the same fate as Mike. He is a ticking time bomb.