Street Crazy : America's Mental Health Tragedy

Rating:
Summary: A frank and passionate critique of our mental health system
Review: Dr. Seager explains graphically and passionately what those of us who have dealt with the homeless mentally ill have know for years; the current system is neither humane nor effective. His chronicles of his real life patients show how the current system, which places patients' personal freedoms and rights over their own safety and the safety of the community, is creating a dangerous subculture of homeless mentally ill whose only option to a night on the streets is a night in jail. He opens the controversial debate pitting moral and ethical laws against Constitutional law, and tries to strike the delicate balance between the two. Bravo to Dr. Seager from a career peace officer and current Police Chief. We need to have this discussion especially as Calfornia's mental health laws are up for review this year.

Rating:
Summary: I am an old patient of Dr Seager
Review: He is great...I was his patient for anxiety and panic attacks in Kaiser hospital a couple years back. He then moved back to LA...so I had to get another doctor. I wish he was around for more advice. He made things easy for me.

[e-mail]

Rating:
Summary: Excellent! A must read!
Review: I just recently read this book and in one sitting. I couldn't put it down. It definitely gives you a different out look on our mental health care today and makes you think. I believe that our country has gone backwards in its care for the mentally ill. If your interested in mental health, mental illness, this is the book to read.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent! A must read!
Review: I just recently read this book and in one sitting. I couldn't put it down. It definitely gives you a different out look on our mental health care today and makes you think. I believe that our country has gone backwards in its care for the mentally ill. If your interested in mental health, mental illness, this is the book to read.

Rating:
Summary: My heart ached
Review: I loved reading this book. It was difficult to lay it down. My heart aches for the mentally ill. I am a psych nurse--and I know the issues--court problems and goverment problems that each person with a mental illness faces--and this book brings it out prefectly. I would recommend anyone interested in mental health issues to read this book.

Rating:
Summary: My heart ached
Review: I loved reading this book. It was difficult to lay it down. My heart aches for the mentally ill. I am a psych nurse--and I know the issues--court problems and goverment problems that each person with a mental illness faces--and this book brings it out prefectly. I would recommend anyone interested in mental health issues to read this book.

Rating:
Summary: Inspiring and challenging. It's time to rethink LPS
Review: I'm a Psychologist and have devoted my career to working with the chronically mentally ill. Once I started reading this book I couldn't put it down. Dr. Seager's passion for the severly chronically mentally ill is absolutely inspiring. His account of the abuse of the mentally is poinient. That is, allowing the most severe of the mentally ill to walk the streets homeless is barbaric. We can and we need to do better. Dr. Seager explains how this all came about while weaving a story of the struggles of his own life.

I highly recommend reading this book. In fact I've purchased more books for collegues and local legislatures.

I want to be a part of this movement toward making drastic changes to our mental health system. It's time for us all to put our heads together and work collaboratively to create a system that makes sense.

Please read this book and share the information and the book with others. We can all make a difference one person at a time.

Dave Tweedy, Ph.D, MFT Director, Behavioral Health Services Tri-City Medical Center [e-mail]