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MENTAL HEALTH FLAG TOUR STOPS IN MICHIGAN Lt. Governor Cherry Raises Flag in Support of Mental
Illness Awareness LANSING – Lieutenant Governor John D. Cherry today said that the Granholm-Cherry administration is committed to improving the care and quality of life of persons with mental illness. To underscore that support, he participated in a special event symbolic of the administration’s commitment to increasing awareness of mental health issues. The event centers around Kristy Worthen, an Arkansas woman who has bipolar disorder. Kristy Worthen is traveling the nation with a flag she designed and hand-painted to raise awareness about persons with mental illness and the issues they face. So far, Worthen has had the flag flown over 20 state capitols and the Old District Office in Washington, D.C. "I created my flag as a symbol of hope for all people who have been diagnosed with a mental illness," Worthen said. "It is my desire for the flag to focus attention on each state’s mental health needs. I want to let others know there is hope, and there is help for people who have been diagnosed with a mental illness." "I commend Ms. Worthen on her journey to make us all more aware of the concerns of persons with mental illness," Cherry said. "Her work on this issue has helped erase some of the stigma many persons with mental illness face, because she tells her story with unflinching honesty and is indeed blazing a trail of advocacy for others to follow." Michigan is making strides towards improving its mental health system, Cherry noted. Governor Jennifer M. Granholm established the Michigan Mental Health Commission in December, the state’s first commission charged with the task of making changes within Michigan’s mental health network. The commission will be meeting throughout 2004. Members of the commission, including Senator Beverly S. Hammerstrom, were on hand for the event as well. "Ms. Worthen is an excellent ambassador, and we have received her message loud and clear," said Hammerstrom. "We share her desire to erase stigma associated with mental health while improving the quality of and access to mental health service in Michigan." Senator Hammerstrom, who also chairs the Senate Health Policy Committee, presented Worthen with a Senate Resolution in recognition of her efforts and the Shedding Lights Tour....
Lieutenant Governor Cherry participated in today’s event because raising awareness of mental health issues is a key initiative of the National Lieutenant Governors Association (NLGA). The NLGA is seeking to rally public awareness of the need to improve the lives of people with mental illnesses through the "Mental Health flag project" launched by Arkansas Lieutenant Governor Winthrop Rockefeller. After signing the flag and meeting Worthen, Rockefeller was certain her flag, which depicts the symbol of a beacon from a lighthouse and the inscription, "Shedding Light on Mental Health Issues," could become a national symbol of hope. Sponsors of the tour include the National Lieutenant Governors Association, the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, Mental Health Association, Southwest Airlines, AstraZeneca and Marriott Hotels. Representatives of the Michigan Mental Health Association and local mental health officials also participated in today’s ceremony in support of this recognition of the needs of patients of bipolar disorder and numerous other mental health disorders.
The following article is from Bedford Now.com at: http://www.bedfordnow.com/headlines/headline4/09482174.cfm People with mental illness can lead full lives The state recently held an event focused on mental health issues. BY BEVERLY HAMMERSTROM Recently Michigan held a very special event at the state Capitol to focus
attention on mental health issues, help erase stigma and dispel the myths
that surround mental illness as we welcomed Kristy Worthen and her Mental
Health Flag in the Capitol Rotunda. Kristy is on a tour of all 50 states
flying the Mental Health Flag that she designed and hand painted to bring
awareness to mental health issues. As chairman of the Senate Health Policy Committee and a strong proponent of mental health issues, it was a delight to meet with Kristy and celebrate her success at overcoming this illness. Unfortunately, her story is not unique. For months now I have been attempting to “put a face” on mental illness in an effort to educate fellow legislators and help in the fight to overcome the stigma still associated with these illnesses. Kristy, for me, was one more “face” to help spread that message. The 5-foot-9 flag Kristy designed and hand painted has a white lighthouse trimmed in red, setting on an island, with a beam of yellow light shining out over the ocean. The inscription on the blue background reads: Shedding Light on Mental Health Issues. Kristy related that the island represented her life for the seven years prior_to diagnosis when she felt empty, scared and all alone, washed ashore in a sea of mixed feelings ranging from highly elated to deeply depressed. She felt she had nowhere to turn for help. The lighthouse in the flag represents her diagnosis and the assurance that she could get better with proper medication. She could now see “the light at the end of the tunnel” and was filled with hope. The yellow beam of light is her advocacy work, letting others know there is hope and help for them as well. And finally, the ocean_represents the people who are still floundering with no diagnosis, and the white caps on the waves represent those who have committed suicide due to their mental illness. As a suicide attempt survivor, Kristy_feels that suicide and attempted suicide is too high a price to pay for an illness that no one understands, and she is determined to use her flag and her message to bring awareness to mental health issues which_affect 1 out of 3 American families each year. Kristy’s flag first flew at the Arkansas State Capitol in her home state in May of 2002 as part of a “May is Mental Health Month” program. Lt. Governor Win Rockefeller of Arkansas was so impressed with her story that he took it to the National Lieutenant Governors Association meeting and asked his colleagues to adopt this as a project and allow Kristy to fly the flag in each state capitol around the country. She is currently on that tour which will culminate in New York on April 12. Michigan became the 21st state to participate. In this day and age, there is no reason why someone needs to suffer as Kristy did for seven years. However, one of the obstacles those suffering from mental illness face is restricted access to treatment. In many health plans, treatment for mental illnesses is treated differently than physical health issues. Kristy’s mother, Mary, also spoke in the capitol rotunda, revealing that all four of her children had health problems. She has a daughter with diabetes, a son with cardiac problems, a son who had a lung removed at the age of 13 due to cancer, and Kristy. The other three received appropriate treatment at once; it took Kristy seven years to get the proper diagnosis and even then she had to “fail first” on several less expensive medications before her doctor could prescribe what he considered to be the appropriate medication. In a recent Senate Health Policy committee meeting a mother commented, “If my daughter had leukemia, she would have access to the newest treatments and drugs, but because she suffers from bipolar disorder, she_does not. “Is that fair?” My response to that is “no.” And I intend to do something about it through my mental health parity legislation; hopefully Kristy Worthen’s message to Michigan will help in that effort. |
Copyright 2003 Kristy Worthen
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