Pine Rest Mission Statement
Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services is called to express the healing
ministry of Jesus Christ by providing behavioral health services with
professional excellence, Christian integrity and compassion.
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Self-Harm: Breaking the Silence
By Ruth Davis, BSN, RNC
Approximately one percent of the population has, at one time or another, used self-inflicted personal injury as a means of coping with an overwhelming situation or feeling.
Self harm scares people. The behavior can be disturbing to those who discover it and difficult to understand. It is typically treated in a simplistic or sensational manner by the media. As a result, friends, family, and loved ones of people who self injure often feel frightened, isolated, and helpless. The first step to coping with self-harm behaviors is education.
What is self harm?
Self harm is also known as self injury, self-inflictive violence, self-
injurious behaviors, or self mutilation. It is defined as a “deliberate
harm or alteration of one’s body tissue without conscious intent
to commit suicide.” The harm can result in tissue damage, such
as scarring. The most common methods of self harm are cutting, burning,
scratching, skin picking, hair pulling, and interference with wound
healing. Both in clinical studies reviewed and in my professional experience,
the most popular method seems to be cutting, and the most popular sites
for self harm are wrists, upper arms, and inner thighs.
Why would someone engage in self- harm behaviors?
This is the most puzzling to those who do not engage in this behavior.
For many, self harm is dismissed as “senselessness” or “irrational” behavior.
It is important to remember that all behavior has meaning for the person
engaged in it. The reasons may not be apparent or may not fit into
our frame of reference, but they exist. The recognition of this existence
is critical to understanding self harm. Self harm is all about coping.
People who are involved in self-harm behaviors often never developed
healthy ways to feel and express emotion or to tolerate distress. Research
studies have shown self harm can put a person that is at a high level
of physiological arousal back to a baseline state. This would suggest
a possible biological or psycho-neurological reason some people find
relief in self harm while others don’t.
Some reasons given for self-harm behaviors.
Affect Regulation: Calming overwhelming, intense feelings. A distraction from emotional pain, to end feelings of numbness, lessening a desire to suicide.
Communication: Some people use self harm as a way to express what they cannot speak. It becomes a communication of anger and the depth of their emotional pain in order to seek support and help.
Self Punishment: They believe they deserve punishment for either having good feelings or being an “evil” person, or they hope self punishment will avoid worse punishment from outside sources.
Self Nurturing: Self harm has a nurturing component for some individuals through the self care they are able to give themselves afterwards. By making an internal wound external, there is an attempt to heal oneself.
(Excerpted from "Today" magazine's "Understanding and Surviving Self-Harming Behavior" issue. Read the full article at http://www.pinerest.org/education/today/selfharm/silence.asp)
Ruth Davis, BSN, RNC, has been a member of the Pine Rest staff for over 40 years. She currently serves as Director of Operations for Pine Rest Hospital-Based Services. She has extensive experience working on the inpatient units with children, adolescents, and adults who have a variety of psychiatric and behavioral concerns, including self-harm behavior. She received a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing from Ferris State University and is a registered nurse, certified in psychiatric mental health.
What Is Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)?
by Nelson Zwaanstra, Ph.D., Pine
Rest Zeeland Clinic
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is an anxiety disorder where a person uses
ruminative thoughts or rituals to control anxiety. Obsessions are thoughts
that insistently intrude into a person's mind against his or her will
and continue to recur despite all efforts to stop them. Compulsive
rituals - repetitive actions a person feels compelled to carry out
despite his or her better judgment - are often associated with the
obsessive behavior.
What causes OCD?
Most people engage in some types of rituals or unacceptable thoughts
at some point in their lives. Such behavior becomes a problem when
it becomes so extensive and time-consuming that it interferes with
a person's daily life. Research indicates OCD involves abnormal metabolism
of serotonin in the brain. There is evidence that OCD may run in families
and across generations. However OCD has been diagnosed in individuals
with no family history of OCD.
(Taken from the "Conditions Library" of the Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services Web site: http://www.pinerest.org/education/conditions/ocd.asp)
Nelson Zwaanstra, Ph.D., has worked at Pine Rest since 1987. He earned his Ph.D. in clinical psychology from Fuller Graduate School of Psychology. He specializes in treating anxiety disorders and works in Pine Rest’s Zeeland Clinic. Zwaanstra provides individual and group therapy.
Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services Opens New Facility
Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services is pleased to open its new Dementia Living Center. This facility is a 12-bed, short-term residential home for individuals having dementia and significant challenging, or need-driven behaviors. Our goal is to provide extended treatment, from 6 to 18 months, in this residential setting for those who do not require or meet criteria for psychiatric hospitalization or an acute medical setting but need more specialized treatment than community long-term care settings can provide.
The Dementia Living Center is located adjacent to Pine Rest's 68th Street campus in Cutlerville. The service supplements current services provided to individuals in crisis on the Pine Rest Older Adult Inpatient Unit, and the Psychiatric Medical Unit at Saint Mary/s Health Care. Interventions are identified, used, and evaluated among an interdisciplinary team to improve not only behavior but affective, physical, and cognitive functioning.
Classes and Workshops
September 24
PREP Couples Communication Workshop
Based on 25 years research in the field of marital health and success,
PREP is a skills-building curriculum designed to help couples communicate
more effectively, work as a team to solve problems, manage conflicts
without damaging closeness, and preserve and enhance love, commitment,
and friendship.
Cost: $100/couple. Time: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Location: Pine Rest Campus
Clinic. Preregistration is required at least one week prior to class
by calling 616-281-6450.
For
more information click here.
General Events
September 24
Recovery Fest!
Come celebrate the positive impact that recovery has brought our community,
our families, our lives!
It will be held at Kollen Park in Holland located
on Van Raalte Avenue and the shores of Lake Macatawa, from 2 pm to 6 pm.
Food: Pig roast sandwiches and other delicious treats.
Fun: Music and activities for the whole family.
Fellowship: Information booths, speakers for recovery, and community leaders
share their stories of hope.
For information, contact Jude Vereyken, MSW, Pine Rest Holland Clinic,
at 616/820-3780.
October 6
Pine Rest Offers Free Depression Screenings And Educational Materials
For
National Depression Screening Day
More than 19 million Americans suffer from depression each year. This
disorder can occur in anyone, and symptoms may range from a persistent sad
mood, to a more serious condition that may involve suicide. However, fewer
than half of depression sufferers ever seek treatment.
Research has shown that success rates for depressed patients who seek treatment
are greater than 80%. Unfortunately, many people resist treatment because
they think it is a "normal" part of life or that the disorder
is not serious. In order to help depression sufferers cope with this
disorder, Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services will host free depression
clinics
open to the public on October 6 for "National Depression Screening
Day."
For more information, click here.
Pine Rest Services
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Disclaimer
Copyright © 2005, Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services. All rights reserved. The contents of Mental Health News & Information are for informational purposes only. The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical or mental health advice, diagnosis, or treatment. It cannot and should not be used as a basis for diagnosis or choice of treatment. Always seek the advice of a qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical or mental health condition.