Arizona Shootings

Dr. Mark Agresti discusses the shootings in Arizona. He explains the history of mental illness patients and their ability to be in our communities. Let’s look at some history in order to understand what happened here. In the early 20th century, we treated mentally ill people by putting them in hospitals where they would stay. Sometimes they’d get better and sometimes they wouldn’t, but they were kept safe, out of society and locked away where they were prevented from hurting others. If you or a loved one suffers from any mental illness, there is help.

Dr. Mark Agresti, West Palm Beach Drug & Alcohol Detox Specialist, Psychiatrist

Call (561) 842-9550 or email: info@206.189.200.158 Dr. Agresti today to get psychiatric help.

Arizona Shootings

I have been thinking about the recent Arizona shootings where Gabrielle Giffords, a federal judge, a 3-year-old, and a half-dozen other people were shot by Jared Lee Loughner. What’s going on here? How can we explain this? How can we prevent this?

I’m a psychiatrist. I’ve been one for 24 years. I worked on a mobile crisis team for four years in New York City. I went to events just like this where a mentally ill individual acted out and became dangerous.

Let’s look at some history in order to understand what happened here. In the early 20th century, we treated mentally ill people by putting them in hospitals where they would stay. Sometimes they’d get better and sometimes they wouldn’t, but they were kept safe, out of society and locked away where they were prevented from hurting others.

By the mid 1900s, new powerful anti-psychotic medications and antidepressants had been discovered. And by the early 1960s, we decided to close those hospitals where we had previously kept the mentally ill and, instead, treat them in community mental health centers with drugs like Thorazine, Trilafon, Haldol, Amitriptyline, Imipramine and Desiprimine.

That was great. For the first time in the history of mankind, we were able to take a lot of these people out of these mental health hospitals. (more…)