My book, The Family Guide to Mental Health Care, for families with a member with a mental illness – with a Foreword by Glenn Close – is now available from WW Norton, Amazon or your preferred book merchant. I hope you find it helpful! drlloyd
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drlloyd@askdrlloyd
Did you know…that In the United States, and elsewhere in the English speaking world, less than 20% of people with a serious mental disorder get properly diagnosed and effectively treated?
The question for you and for families with a member who has a mental illness or addiction becomes how not to be part of the greater than 80% of individuals who don’t receive the treatments and services proven to work? Ask Dr. Lloydwill give you answers. My bio (click on ‘About the Doctor’) tells you why I can provide these answers.
I will help you understand mental illnesses and addictions, what treatments and services have been proven scientifically effective, how to manage yourself or help your loved one, and how to beat a mental health system known to be ‘broken’ and apt to defeat you.
I will answer your questions clearly and simply – and in a way that gives you direction. I will provide accounts of individuals and families, stories from my experience, and important information you can access on other websites, in the media, in scientific publications, and in books, magazines, movies and television.
My mission is to enable you to receive 21st century care – not waiting for miracles but gaining mastery of mental illness and addiction and the services that so often are a nightmare to navigate.
To ask Dr. Lloyd a question, just click on the “Ask a Question” tab up above and send me an email. Check to see if your question is answered on the “Your Questions Answered” tab. I will be posting responses several times a week and will select from the range of your questions those that seem to cover a variety of concerns.
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The views, opinions and statements contained in this website are those of Dr. Sederer and do not represent the views, opinions or positions of the New York State Office of Mental Health or Columbia University. ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Ask Dr. Lloyd 
28 comments
Comments feed for this article
June 20, 2011 at 7:11 pm
Nancy P. Hanrahan
I am a nurse and a researcher. Your comments in the Huffington Post are music to my ears. I am aware of many amazing discoveries in the treatment of mental illness, but few get to the public. I sure hope you keep writing such a clear and compelling message. My concern is that people who seek treatment, cannot find one. I wish there were more opportunities to rank or rate providers so that consumers could make better decisions.
June 20, 2011 at 9:52 pm
Margaret
Thank you for the informative article in the The Huffington Post about the “Future of Psychiatry”. I am a highly functioning single mother of two college kids. I personally stopped seeing psychiatrists because of the very reasons you mentioned. I saw too many professionals being bought by drug companies, company bottom-lines, or did not listen to the patient as part of the team. I stick with my psychologist whose loving and professional care kept me from suicide for 8 years. Last year, I chose to take control of my psychological life by becoming more assertive and doing what works FOR ME. This includes NO medication (I am drug resistant) at all for my bi-polar/borderline, PTSD, DID, and ad nauseum diagnoses and NO hospitalizations. I have been wrongly diagnosed as Schizophrenic at the age of sixteen, Munchausen in my twenties, experienced severe post-partum depression/psychoses in my 30’s and severe thyroid issues early 50’s, etc. Since I was a teen, I have been hospitalized 11+ times, each experience as bad as the last. Last year I struggled through a very difficult depression but after taking charge I learned how to beat it and live. I am blessed with strategies that work for me. I fought to be heard and still do. I am at 56 finally in control of my life and not controlled by my illnesses. I have recently been diagnosed with a brain tumor that is robbing me of my sight, but I have been able to deal with the stress without severe depression. After getting my Master’s in Teaching and teaching for many years…I even became a Qualified Mental Health Professional and certified Peer Specialist to learn how to help myself and others. I am now on disability for physical issues and am re-starting my career as a writer, part-time advocate, and activist. I found the worst stigma came from professionals and family members. Stigma, not having a political voice, access to appropriate and up-to-date evidence-based practices, and unwillingness from others to be flexible were the biggest hurdles I faced. Thank you for fighting for advocating for people like me.
August 26, 2011 at 8:21 pm
Kim
Thank you for your insightful post on rapid cycling bipolar disorder at the Huffington Post. It’s is the most spot one description of that type of boplolar disorder I’ve ever read. I have and my life quality has dwindled to almost nothing since I was diagnosed. Having taken all sorts of pills and talked to many therapists, I still only have small periods of time where I feel better and feel hopeful. The influence of external factors cannot be stressed enough!!! Thank you again.
September 12, 2011 at 2:24 pm
K.Sherman
Hello, Dr. Sederer: I read your Huffington Post article about Pharmaceutical advertising, and I have a comment about your encouraging consumers to seek unbiased information. I agree that reputable websites are a good source of unbiased evidence-based information. However, I would have stopped there and NOT gone on to advise googling the topic. There are all kinds of information and opinions on the internet, often NOT evidence-based and often sponsored by big pharma. Of all areas of inquiry, I have found that for medical information, careful evaluation of your sources is the MOST critical to getting trustworthy information. I would never just say “google it.” Respectfully,
September 13, 2011 at 6:17 pm
Kristen Joyce
I just read your opinion of Suboxone versus methadone. And while everyone is entitled to his or her own opinion, I would like to correct some blatant misconceptions you are perpetuating. You say that a client of a methadone clinic must go EVERY day, no exceptions. That is not true. If you stay clean and comply with all the stipulations, you can earn up to 6 take homes. You said that areas around the methadone clinic become high crime areas “as drugs and stolen goods are bartered in the blocks that surround the site”. I dose in Weymouth Mass, and the mobile van comes to the parking lot next to the police station, and it has for years. There are NO problems. I don’t recommend methadone for someone their first time trying to get clean. Or the second. But I’m nine years in and I’ve tried everything. I should be dead, lucky I’m not, and very grateful I tried methadone. I have been clean for almost 5 months, and I’m getting things back in my life that I didn’t think I would. So as a doctor I expect more of you…don’t discourage someone away froma treatment that could possibly save their life. And talking poorly about methadone clinics in general is mean…you should just be encouraging people to get clean anyway that works for them!
December 4, 2011 at 5:24 pm
judith eckman-jadow
Dr., I greatly enjoyed your review of “A Dangerous Method” and concur completely with your interpretation of the shortcomings of the film. Thank you for writing it!
December 6, 2011 at 7:24 pm
shelley
i just came across your “Children as Caregivers: Saving the Saviors”
article. i am so happy that children have help these days. i was 7 years old, an only child, living with my single mother, uncle & grandmother, when my grandmother had a stroke. That day ended my childhood – I became her caretaker. By the time she passed away (I was 15), that’s all I knew how to do & all I thought I was good for, be the ‘caretaker”. It’s taken me 52 years to understand why I’m the way I am. Hopefully, with the help available these days, kids will have healthier childhoods & adulthoods.
December 14, 2011 at 4:11 pm
Z.
Hello Dr. Lloyd, this comment has to do with your article about sleepwalking in the Huffington Post. I too have suffered from insomnia for many years and tried everything that you mentioned in your article. I had to take Ambien for many years to get to sleep, sometimes quite a significant amount. However, I did not want to take this drug anymore for a variety of obvious reasons. A friend of mine persuaded me to try meditation. I was extremely reluctant as I despise religion of all kinds. However, I did go to the sitting group out of a very real necessity. It was a secular group. That night, I fell asleep without any drugs. Since then, I have been going to sitting groups and have found that in particular Jon Kabat-Zinn’s MBSR program really works. With this program, I’ve been able to stop taking the Ambien and am sleeping much better now. Something for you to try, I highly recommend it. Best of luck.
December 20, 2011 at 9:08 pm
Isabel Alder
Regarding the article on Sleepwalking and your experience with medication (was it Ambien?) I just wanted to thank you (very much) for sharing that and helping others prevent more unwanted and unnecessary health issues! Thank you also to the previous commentator as I will try to make time to try meditation and see if something better can work!
May 3, 2012 at 10:32 pm
Eric
I generally enjoyed your review of “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” on the Huffington Post and your perceptive and sensitive approach. However, one correction needs to be made, John Madden is a bit more accomplished as a film director than you give him credit for. He directed “Shakespeare in Love” and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Director. The film won 7 academy awards including “Best Picture” as well as many other awards.
July 16, 2012 at 3:51 pm
liz gennarelli
Addiction is self soothing gone wrong and reinforced. It is a disease because genetics plays a large part of how much is needed
July 16, 2012 at 11:58 pm
askdrlloyd
One good reason for taking it daily is that a person generally cannot predict when he or she will drink. The daily use makes its effect continuous.
Readers may also want to know that there is a long acting form of naltrexone, an intramuscular injection given once a month as a rule, that in research studies has shown good benefit for some people with alcohol dependence. It is called Vivitrol (TM).
July 18, 2012 at 3:40 pm
Celeste Mendelsohn
1. Do you think addiction is a disease?
Addiction is s disease of the body, mind and spirit. Addicts do what they do because they are in pain and they believe they have to (drink, use, gamble, shop, play, eat, etc.) their addiction is the only thing that seems to make the pain go away.
2. Is addiction only about alcohol and drugs?
Addiction is about anything that someone feels compulsively drawn to do over and over again, in the face of good and continually increasing reasons to stop doing.
3. Have you heard about Complementary and Alternative Medicine (e.g., acupuncture, yoga, homeopathy, supplements) approaches to addiction?
I am a yoga teacher who specializes in working with people in Recovery. I teach 12-Step Yoga classes, put on workshops and seminars as well as work with people one on one. I studied with Durga Leela, founder of Yoga of Recovery. Yoga has much to offer those who are faced with addiction in themselves and in their loved ones.
4. Do you think nutrition plays a role in recovery from addictions?
It definitely does. Healthy practices lead to more healthy practices. We can replace bad things with positive things in our lives. Good nutrition will lead to feelings of comfort and ease which will make it easier to maintain a resolve to stop doing things that are harmful to ourselves.
July 22, 2012 at 4:41 pm
Celia Brooks
1. Do you think addiction is a disease?
yes, I agree with Celeste on addiction being a dis-ease of body, mind and spirit.
2. Is addiction only about alcohol and drugs?
no, it is about food, relationships, gambling, etc.
3. Have you heard about Complementary and Alternative Medicine (e.g., acupuncture, yoga, homeopathy, supplements) approaches to addiction?
yes, I too am a student of Durga’s having recently completed the Yoga of Recovery (YoR) counselors course. I also am a Yoga teacher and have students who are in recovery. YoR takes a holistic approach to addiction, combining elements of Yoga, Ayurveda and 12 steps. The yoga and ayurveda fill in and round out the 12 step program-which I feel is key to recovery.
4. Do you think nutrition plays a role in recovery from addictions?
Absolutely-most addicts have very poor diets and learning to eat healthier can contribute to and enhance recovery.
July 23, 2012 at 3:32 pm
Katherine Gordy Levine
Used your Huffington Post on the Colorado movie murders as the centerpiece of my blog post. Thank you.
December 10, 2012 at 3:29 am
Donna Brent
As a graduate of Bronx Science ’67 and Jhs113, your article in the alumni news made my day. I shared a similar experience in both settings. Going to Bronx Science was the highlight of my academic life. Getting a doctorate was not much of a challenge compared to the stimulation and challenge I found being with superior teachers and peers. As a psychologist and professor, I found your website informative. Keep up the great work! Db
January 12, 2013 at 9:06 pm
John Lamb
Dr. Lloyd,
In response to your Wall Street Journal article today. Thank you so much. My wife is the mother of a 30 year Schizophrenic, unmedicated of course. She has tried everything to get him help and the system seems against the family every step of the way. The more exposure of this truth the better.
Thank you
August 15, 2013 at 4:43 pm
Joan Eisenschmid
Hello Dr. My son is 18 and was dignosed with schizophrenia in May 2013, he has no past drug or alcohol abuse. Last October 2012 was dignosed with a closed head concussion due to “headbangging”. He’s been on several antipsychotic medications all of which his body can’t tolarate, he has temors, shaking the last med made his body all stiff and heart rate soar, I’ve taken him several times to the hospital from the side affects of these antipsychotic medications. I’m at my wits end on what I can do to help my son, any suggestions?
August 17, 2013 at 6:33 pm
askdrlloyd
Dear Joan, I am sorry to read about the severe problems your son and family are having. While many medications have side effects they can generally be reduced or eliminated by a doctor who works closely with his/her patient and their family. Sometimes a consultation with a specialist in psychiatric medications is needed. The side effects you describe sound like medications used in the past and not all that prominent today. Your son needs to speak with the doctor and seek consultation if needed to find medication that helps without such problems. I wish you well, drlloyd
September 9, 2013 at 11:02 pm
Ricky
Hi Doc. I am a GET UP and do things sleepwalker. I have moved furnature, taken pictures of the hole 9 yards. I have broken 2 toilit tanks, yes , water all over the floor and cut up real bad. Blood everywhere and don’t remember why or when. I wanted to find out and see what I do. A few girlfriends told me things I didn’t remember. Everyone has meds in cabnets even over the counter stuff. I taped the caps closed just to see what would happin. I opened whatever and who knows how much I took but I was throwing up at least 3 times a week and taped bottles of anti acid tabs were open and some missing etc. of other stuff. I taped asprin and all the other stuff ( the tops) and locked them in a combination safe. Well I know now , I OPENEND the safe, so I can see what I am doing and remembering all the numbers. The safe was locked when I woke but the bottle tops that I taped closed . well, the tape was broken and some tabs were missing. I tried the buzzer that will sound an alarm if crossed. Didn’t work. I am able to disarm it , no problem. To many other things to say. UNREAL !!! I can see while I am walking and remember combination numbers and OPEN a safe, disarm alarms. Wow !!! Thanks , Ricky
September 10, 2013 at 1:17 am
askdrlloyd
See my article in The HuffPost about sleepwalking:
Sleepwalking Is For Real
Huffington Post/AOL, December 14, 2011
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lloyd-i-sederer-md/sleepwalking_b_1145958.html
September 10, 2013 at 1:20 am
Ricky
What should I do?
September 10, 2013 at 1:22 am
askdrlloyd
See a sleep disorder doctor.
September 10, 2013 at 1:27 am
Ricky
I did and they told me to lock them in a combination safe. Well, I can open it and I did. I didnt know I was able to see and know the combination.
September 10, 2013 at 1:29 am
askdrlloyd
Continue the conversation with your doctor and if that proves ineffective then get another doctor. Find a way to control, in partnership with your doctor, the sleepwalking.
September 10, 2013 at 2:25 am
Merry
Hi Dr. Lloyd
I just started reading your book. The Family Guide To Mental Health.
My mother currently suffers from mental illness (delusional). She is a Christian have been all her life. Never smoke, drink or even said a bad word. Single mother raising 3 children. Approximately 22 years ago, God told her to leave the church, family and friend and go live in the streets to help the people. This went on for 10 years. My family and i tried effortlessly to get help from the law but no avail because she was not a threat to herself or Others. Around the fifth year or so, the family backed off after getting no help from the LAW. Around the 10th
year, I was lead to go out and try again. Assisted by law enforcement, she was taken away by ambulance against her will to the hospital. Fighting and resisting after a few days she begin to settle down and adhere to treatment.
Since that time she has recovered while on her meds, back to a lifestyle of caring for herself living on her own, attending a great adult day care program etc. back to a normal life again. Just this past week,she had a set back. called me and said God doesn’t want her back on the meds, no more going to the Adult Day Care program etc. I am now back at what happen twenty years ago.
September 11, 2013 at 11:39 pm
askdrlloyd
Many illnesses, including mental illnesses, are persistent and relapsing. I am sorry to read about what appears to be a relapse. Yet you have seen how your determination can make a difference. Perhaps this time the interval between your trying and seeing a response will be far shorter. drlloyd
October 10, 2013 at 11:52 pm
joanne c. villani
Thank you for writing Involuntary Pyschiatric Hospitalization. I have personally witnessed the consequences of a loved one being forced into hospitalization. I hope our society and the medical community will address more humane and effective means to care for patients in crisis.