Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Charlie Sheen's Fall

It seems like everywhere we turn these days there is another blurb about Charlie Sheen's mess of a life. It's hard to avoid the news bites of his rants- I've tried. It's not a pretty thing to watch, someone falling from grace. The unimaginable angst that his true loved ones must be going through.

My mind has turned an about face on this whole Charlie Sheen madness. My thought at first was that this whole thing was just feeding the illness, this was giving his unwell self what it thought it wanted. (No doubt, there is a "self" in there that is clearly crying out for help.) This is the face of mental illness and we need to look in the eyes of it. As a society we owe it to ourselves to really watch for what it is. We need to watch not for the sensationalism of it all but for the stranglehold this issue has on our culture. 

As this has unfolded and this story is played out for so many to see, perhaps this will begin discussion. I think it's turned a corner now and people can have a better understanding of the illness part of the story. In his manic rants it's so easy to spot classic symptoms. Perhaps some people might have that awakening that they have seen these signs in their own loved ones. 

How many people have Charlie Sheens in their lives? There are many families that are facing the same challenging, gut wrenching decisions. It's not played out for all the world to see but it's their world. It means everything to help a loved one in that condition. Such hardship and hopelessness. 

This thought is what made me change my mind about this scene playing out before us all. We've made huge strides in the issues of mental health. Laws have been changed and are being challenged every day to make getting help easier. As the story plays out there will be issues addressed that can make us all more aware of the changes that still need to be made. 

I wish anyone finding themselves in the middle of that hopeless gap a way through to help. That gap between broken and well is so overwhelming. The climb back up from a fall from grace is never quick and easy. The fall might seem like it happened over night but it wasn't. It hardly ever is. (In fact many might learn it's been a long time falling- generations of falling)

I hope the best for Charlie Sheen. I hope the best for his family and people in the direct line of fire. It would be great to learn of his recovery and path to wellness. It will be a great thing if we all could see as much of his rising to his feet again rather than so much of the fall. 

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