Miriam Carey, Capitol Suspect, Suffered Post-Partum Depression

[dkf]

A woman killed by police today after a high-speed chase through Washington, D.C., that led to a lockdown of Capitol Hill suffered post-partum depression following the recent birth of her daughter, the suspect's mother told ABC News.

"She had post-partum depression after having the baby" last August, said the woman's mother, Idella Carey.

She added, "A few months later, she got sick. She was depressed. ... She was hospitalized."

Carey had a 1-year-old daughter named Erica, her mother said. Police confirmed that a 1-year-old girl was taken from the car and put in "protective custody."

Idella Carey said her daughter had "no history of violence" and she did not know why she was in Washington, D.C. She said she believed Carey was taking the little girl to a doctor's appointment today in Connecticut.


http://abcnews.go.com/m/story?id=20465157&ref=http%3A%2F%2Ft.co%2FEMqrtn3ulW

I was wondering if this could be it when Luke Russert said there was a baby in the car.

Absolutely tragic.

[gopiscrap]

1. wow that is so tragic

[bottomofthehill]

2. This is a sad, sad story with no happy ending

It was a very scary day in DC today. To close to the Navy Yard Shooting and too many memories of the last shooting on the Hill that cost JJ Chestnut and John Gibson their lives. Mental Illness ( Post Pardom and others) are sad and can end in tragedy as today did.

[gopiscrap]

3. I agree

[Liberal_in_LA]

7. very sad

[kestrel91316]

4. ACA requires coverage of mental illness now.

Perhaps some day in the near future, tragedies like this will be rare.

[dkf]

5. She was supposed to be taking daughter to doctor so sounds like they had insurance.

She had been hospitalized earlier too and had obviously been diagnosed.

Our mental health care system doesn't seem to work very well.

[liberal_at_heart]

8. My family has insurance. When my husband suffered a sudden and severe form of depression, he was

told he would have to wait two months for an initial appointment with a psychiatrist. He was having life threatening self mutilation thoughts at the time. Finally after begging a doctor for his life, one doctor finally agreed to see him. Insurance or no insurance our mental health care in this country is broken.

[dkf]

10. Omg what an awful situation. Thank goodness he was able to get a doctor.

[NotThisTime]

16. It is absolutely broken, for all the family's who suffer through this firsthand you will get the

same answer

[cali]

23. while I agree it's broken, you're wrong in your claim

Here, you will be seen immediately even if you don't have insurance in one of the designated MH agencies.

Adult Mental Health Services

Vermont's Department of Mental Health funds three major programs that offer or assure access to mental health services through designated agencies in communities all over the state including:

Community Rehabilitation and Treatment (CRT): for adults with diagnoses of severe and persis­tent mental illness (for example, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depression, and others).

Adult Outpatient services: for adults who do not have diagnoses of major mental illnesses but who nevertheless are experiencing serious emotional or behavioral problems that disrupt their lives.

Emergency Services: for anyone of any age experiencing a mental-health crisis. Emergency services are available to anyone in a mental health crisis, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, statewide from Designated Agencies (DA).

<snip>

http://mentalhealth.vermont.gov/services

[Agschmid]

25. Vermont has amazing social services...

They far exceed what other states provide. When I lived there I often volunteered with COTS and always helped out with a toy drive through UVM.

It is just another world up there sometimes compared to the rest of the country and the social safety network which is provided!

[cali]

27. Bless you for volunteering with COTS which is an amazing organization

and yes, VT has pretty decent (there's room for improvement) social services. I wish the rest of the country had the services provided in Vermont along with the humanity with which they're offered.

[Live and Learn]

22. Anyone who has had to deal with it will acknowledge

that it truly is awful. Most assume there is a lot of help available but family members of those afflicted (and those afflicted themselves) know differently.

Hopefully, Obama's funding of brain research along with his insistence that the ACA include mental health care will be a great step forward.

[Nay]

28. Agreed. Even if you have insurance and can get an appointment, you

will soon realize that the insurance will only pay for a certain number of visits, whether you need more or not. And the push to simply medicate the problem is huge.

[bottomofthehill]

9. Also, unlike strep throat, the flu, or a heart attack,

Mental illness is so difficult to diagnose, the patient, his or her family and friends, co workers ant other associates are often afraid to comment on it out of fear of offending or scaring the person off, or setting them off for that matter

[liberal_at_heart]

12. I was not afraid to be confrontational with my husband. He was beginning to become verbally abusive

and physically intimidating. I told him in no uncertain terms abuse would not be tolerated. He was already being treated at the time but was still having bursts of anger. After I threatened to leave, he made sure he was on the right dose of medication and began consciously trying to recognize when he was angry and began to control his actions. With the right medications and being self aware and consciously trying to control his anger over time, he got better.

[theHandpuppet]

13. And many people are loathe to seek treatment...

...because of the stigma.... really, a sea change in our attitudes towards mental illness is in order.

[adirondacker]

6. Ughh. So sad and tragic. nt

[DebJ]

11. Other articles I read today said she had suffered a blow to the head a few years

ago and then began having problems. Interesting.

[flamingdem]

14. I'm glad this is known

and it may explain a lot.

[dkf]

15. Where did you see that?

[polly7]

17. I don't know much about the dailymail and its reliability, but:

"Her former boss, Connecticut Periodontist Dr Brian Evans, told the New York Daily News that she fell down a flight of stairs two years ago and sustained a significant head injury, but never showed signs of mental illness while she was working at the practice."

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2442703/Miriam-Carey-Woman-killed-outside-Capitol-Hill-trying-ram-gates-White-House.html

[dkf]

18. Thanks! Well she did live in ny so I guess it's as reliable as anything.

[DebJ]

24. nbcnews.com

senior law enforcement official with direct knowledge of the case told NBC News that relatives interviewed by law enforcement officers tell them she suffered from a fall a couple of years ago and began to suffer mental issues.

In an interview with NBC Connecticut, Carey’s former employer, Connecticut dentist Barry Weiss, confirmed that she suffered a fall in January 2012 and was out for two to three weeks. When she returned, she was also pregnant, he said.

http://investigations.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/10/03/20807686-mental-health-issues-suspected-for-connecticut-woman-who-died-in-dc-confrontation?lite

[Loudly]

19. All those guns pointed at her instead of at her tires.

Badly done.

[dkf]

20. I can't bear to think of it.

[pansypoo53219]

21. more like dementia.

[HappyMe]

26. Dr. Besser just said that this does sound

more like post-partum psychosis rather than depression.