Christchurch earthquake is New Zealand's Hurricane Katrina...

Image via Wikipedia

Christchurch earthquake is New Zealand's Hurricane Katrina...





ANALYSIS: First published at Fortitude



by peter petterson



You might say that the Christchurch, New Zealand, earthquake, of 7.1 on the Richter Scale, that occurred at 4-35am last Sunday morning, Pacific time, is the Kiwi Hurricane Katrina. Why do I say that, you might ask? It is not the devastation, because the Christchurch earthquake is confined to an area within the city and its environs, and obviously does not compare to the widespread and intensive damage caused by the American hurricane.



Christchurch City could be a bombsite because of the comparative damage to homes, buildings and infastructure. Probably 80% of these have been affected to some degree. The earthquake is not yet over because of the continuing after-shocks; they total close to 200 already and could continue for days or even weeks. A number have been recorded in the range of up to 5.4 on the Richter Scale Christchurch residents are stressed out and becoming traumatised, especially the young and elderly.



Residents cannot assess the real damage to their propertiess because of the continuing after-shocks which are still affecting the damage. But neighbours, families and friemds have assisted each other, especially the elderly and those living alone.



It is the comparative damage within the confines of this city of 400,000 and its surrounding districts, that draws my comparison. Over a hundred unstable buildings are believed to be in danger of being condemned; two protected buildings were condemned today and will be demolished — one traces its origins back to about 1877. A majority of homes in the suburb of Bexley, for instance, are in danger of being condemned because of the nature of the ground they are built on. The suburb is a drained swamp and perhaps its origins have come back to haunt the burghers of Christchurch.



Many brick chimneys and concrete facades have already been knocked down in many parts of the city. Buiding inspections have been carried out, as have inspections of schools in area. Schools will not reopen this week. Power has been restored to about 80% of residents. Water and sewerage has progressively been restored as well.



The northern township of Kaiapoi, about twenty minutes by road, was particularly devastated with broken sewer mains and water pipes. Many expensive homes in this area will have to be demolished. Many streets and roads in Christchurch City and the Canterbury region have also been severley damaged. Other infastructure has been severly damaged as well.



There have been no deaths caused by injury, though two middle aged men in their fifties are in hospital because of injuries received in the initial earthquake — one being hit on the head by a falling chimney and still on the critical list in ICU, the other severely cut by glass is in a comfortable condition. One person died of a heart attack during the earthquake. There are many minor injuries that have not yet been collated.



The government moved very quickly on Sunday supporting the Civil Defence, Christchurch City Council and the police on Sunday — the prime minister and some of his ministers arrived very early to assess the situation. Welfare centres were set up for the homeless and those who didn't wish to return to their homes. Police secured the CBD on Sunday and were relieved by eighty soldiers from the nearby Burnham Army camp on Monday morning.



As there are so many damaged business premises, many people are unable to go to work this week and earn a living — the Government will pay a subsidy of NZ$350.00 per worker in immediate assistance for the first four weeks to businesses employing less than twenty employees.



Damage to historic buildings, including the historic and iconic Christchurch Cathedral, are of great concern. Christchurch may never be the same again.



As I wrote above, the after shocks continue and more damage is expected in coming days. Some of that damage may be hard to bear and accept. Que sera sera!



The faultline that was responsible for this earthquake had lain idle for 16,000 years and nobody knew about it. At least the cause is now known.



Earthquake Christchurch is indeed the kiwi equivalent of Hurricane Katrina, but there is a lot more to write about in coming days, months and years as New Zealand's second largest city is repaired and rebuilt. This is but an early chapter in the book of Christchurch's future. Cantabrians are like the rest of New Zealanders, tough, resilient and caring to a fault at times.



That indomitable spirit so evident in Canterbury sporting teams over many decades is so very evident in city and country township communities right now. The future looks bright amid the gloom of the present.







































Published on Fortitude September 08, 2010

Copyright 2010 peter petterson

Related articles by Zemanta

• New Zealand Earthquake September 9: Christchurch Updates (nowpublic.com)
• You: Christchurch shaken by severe aftershock (nation.com.pk)
• Christchurch New Zealand Earthquake Reported (techeblog.com)
• New Zealand Earthquake 2010: Strong Quake Shakes Christchurch (huffingtonpost.com)
• New Zealand's Key to Visit Quake-Ravaged Christchurch (businessweek.com)
• "New Zealand Earthquakes and CAD - How you all can, already have, help Christchurch" and related posts (rcd.typepad.com)
• Christchurch Earthquake Repairs Could Cost $1.4 Billion (shoppingblog.com)

Peter Jackson from New Zealand - the world's highest paid director for King Kong

Image via Wikipedia



Peter Jackson from New Zealand - the world's highest paid director for King Kong...




Originally published at Blog.co.uk







Peter Jackson from New Zealand - the world's highest paid director for King Kong.The Guiness world record for the biggest paid fee paid to a director. That's a lot of money for some great writing.It was also the biggest film budget too - US$207 million for King Kong.







If Peter Jackson doesn't like what studios offer him, which includes 20th Century Fox and Universal Pictures profit share offer for the yet unmade HALO - he backs off and looks elsewhere.He can afford to - THE LORD OF THE RINGS made US$2.7 billion at the box office alone -with 20 Oscars from his films he can do what he likes.There are more movies, a partnership with Microsoft for new kinds of video games, and even ideas for a television mini- series.







Don't get the idea that Peter Jackson is some sort of big- head - he isn't! He's lost a lot of weight and has replaced those horn rim glasses with contact lenses, but at heart he is still that big overweight young man who started his professional life making a low budget gory comic zombie movie BAD TASTE, on weekends around the Wellington region for three years or so.







He was self- taught and was involved in just about everything in that film - the $10,000 cost coming from his weekly wage as an engraver for the local paper.Twenty years ago this very month, the New Zealand Film Commission finally relented and agreed to financially back an unknown young film maker from Pukerua Bay just a few miles outside of Wellington City.







He said he used to save up and buy four or five rolls of film, shoot them all up in a day, store them in the fridge until his next pay cheque and get them processed.When he had to pay the lab bill he couldn't afford film until the following week.







He was living at home with his parents at the time, and when he got his first $5,000 from the film commission he resigned his job as an engraver the very next day.







Today Peter doesn't have to store film in his fridges in his homes, offices or jet. He can afford as many rolls of film he wants, whenever he wants, in a jiffy,and get the film processed in a multi- million dollar facility that he owns in Wellington. He no longer has to go cap in hand to anybody to get money for his films. Now the world's biggest studios come to him. he is Mr Peter Jackson and the world is his his oyster!



This story was originally posted on 28 October 2006. Since then he has become knighted and is now known as Sir Peter Jackson., for his services to New Zealand's motion picture industry. His coming project is the two film The Hobbitt series, which he may well have to direct as well as produce. It is a long time since the Lord of the Rings and King Kong.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Peter Jackson to direct 'The Hobbit'? (ontheredcarpet.com)
• New King Kong Attraction Created by Peter Jackson Launches at Universal Studios (shoppingblog.com)
• 19 reviews of Peter Jackson (rateitall.com)
• Peter Jackson Promises 'Hobbit' News 'Soon' (screenrant.com)
• The Making of King Kong 360 3D Part 1 (slashfilm.com)

Facing the schizophrenic demons as a family...

Facing the schizophrenic demons as a family...





ARTICLE: First published at Fortitude.



by peter petterson



To follow the ongoing story of my grandson's journey with schizophrenia in the latter months of 2009, I would suggest you read my earlier article, "The demons of schizophrenia unleashed"(link below). To help you identify with my grandson it would be easier to know his name. So for the next little while, lets just call him 'Billie'.



You will have read in the previous article that his nurse took some poetic licence in ensuring Billie could be admitted into the psychiatric system. Her comments caused some reaction from the law who descended on our home in force convinced that Billie was determined to do himself some physical harm; actually in fact he had no intention to inflict more than a breath on his person. But the invading posse which included a sergeant armed with a holstered Glock were determined that this young eighteen year old would not be allowed to self mutilate himself. There were at least six policemen that day who entered or were immediately outside his bedroom.



He was taken into custody meekly and quietly, despite his deterioating psychiatric state of affairs. Billie had never resisted police on any occasion he was involved with them. He was met there by his psychiatrist who accompanied him to the mental health unit at Hutt Hospital in central Lower Hutt city. With the necessary paperwork completed Billie was admitted into hospital, something we had been attempting for a number of months. Previously the 'Arm' of the Mental Health Act: Was he a danger to himself or anybody else — had prevented him being admitted. But despite the fact he didn't fit that category, the poor young man badly needed psychiatric treatment regardless.



Now that he had been admitted and would be examined by one of the resident psychiatrists in the unit, we, his grandparents and caregivers, could get some badly needed rest and leave our grandson in the care of the health professionals for a few days. It is the family members and caregivers who are often ignored and disregarded, despite the fact they care for their relations and charges, 24/7, and know by instinct just what is necessary.



Over the next few days he was observed by doctors and nurses, and had his basic medication changed...this time to Clozapine, the gold standard medication which was once the basis of a Time magazine leading article. Clozapine was reserved for patients who resisted all other anti-psychotic medication. But there were strings attached to using this medication — because of the danger of deterioation of his white cells,and also potential dangers of getting infections through colds, flu, cuts and abrasions etc, he would have to have weekly blood tests to monitor his white cells, firstly for eighteen weeks, and then monthly for the rest of the time he would be treated by Clozapine — perhaps for the rest of his life! Clozapine was not actually a new medication, but the earlier dangers of the medication had not been known at the time, and a number of patients had died. As a consequence the drug had been banned by the American FDA for many years. In recent years safety precautions had been developed to monitor the drug, as previously explained, and the drug was now administered widely around the western world. It was now the gold standard of anti-psychotic medications.



After a few days Billie was allowed some home leave for a a few hours at a time. We were then able to take him home on extended leave. But we had not been warned of the potential side affects of this new drug which, along with his existing medication, caused him to become deeply sedated and lose control of his bladder for some considerable time. We would continue to have problems with his medication, for a number of weeks to come, but that is another story for our grandson Billie and we as a family.

























Published on Fortitude August 25, 2010

Copyright 2010 peter petterson

All Rights Reserved

Related articles by Zemanta

• Mental Health Visits, Antipsychotics Increase Schizophrenics' Life Expectancy
• Better care for schizophrenic patients with IMH's new community network
• Coping With Schizophrenic Hallucinations and Delusions
• Schizophrenic Self Analysis
• Antipsychotic drugs improve schizophrenic life expectancy

• Psychiatric drug response predicted by scientists (cbc.ca)
• EEG predicts response to medication for schizophrenia (eurekalert.org)
• Withdrawing from Psychiatric Medications (psychcentral.com)
• The secret history of psychedelic psychiatry [Neurophilosophy] (scienceblogs.com)
• 'Voice of angel' led to fatal stabbing (theage.com.au)

Image via Wikipedia





Those with rheumatoid arthritis have a built-in defence against alzheimers disease...





First published at Qondio:



By Peter Petterson











The latest from the newsroom is that those suffering with rheumatoid arthritis, itself a painful condition, appear to have a built-in protection against the effects of the mind-crippling alzheimers disease.

The memory loss associated with alzheimers could actually be reversed in many cases; scientists discovered that rheumatoid arthritis produced a chemical in the body that works on the condition.



Researchers found a protein triggered by rheumatoid arthritis could undo the 'tangles' in the brain that are believed to cause alzheimers disease.



Memory loss associated with alheimers disease was partially reversed by the protein GM-CSF, which also lowered the risk of getting the condition. Scientists at the University of South florida even found in some cases the memory impairment was completely reversed after treatment.



The fantastic news is the protein known as 'Leukine' is commercially available. The treatment completely reversed cognitive impairment in only 20 days!



It has to be remembered that these tests were with mice; this has to be transfered to the field of human health.



The swollen joints of rheumatoid arhtritis sufferers produce the protein that stimulates scavenger cells in the body. In the tests on laboratory mice, the cells removed deposits left by alzheimers disease.



The study can be read in the 'Journal of Alzheimers Disease'.



Acknowledgements: Telegraph Group


All rights reserved.

Related articles by Zemanta

• RAPatton: BBC News - Arthritis protein 'guards against Alzheimer's disease' (bbc.co.uk)
• New Study By USF Researchers Shows The Protein Reduces Alzheimer's Disease Pathology And Eliminates Memory Loss (bioresearchonline.com)
• Alzheimer's Disease memory loss 'could be reversed by arthritis protein' (telegraph.co.uk)
• Arthritis protein may reverse Alzheimer's (telegraph.co.uk)
• Rheumatoid arthritis signaling protein reverses Alzheimer's disease in mouse model (physorg.com)

All over bar the shouting - heading down the hill to schizophrenia without realising it...

Image via Wikipedia


All over bar the shouting - heading down the hill to schizophrenia without really knowing it..




ARTICLE: First published at Fortitude



by peter petterson



My previous article concerning mental health was really a historical account concerning my grandson's problematical life in childhood, adolescence and his mental breakdown at the age of fifteen years.



Here we will hit the keys and see where we end up tonight. Do you ever get like that: Just freewheeling your way through some writing, letting you brain and fingers do the walking? Just like an advert for Yellow Pages — let your fingers do the walking!



So what do I remember about his mental breakdown? Not a lot really. In such situations I don't think you really know a lot. Who knows what goes on in a person's brain? They can quiely deterioate without anybody realising it. In point of fact the youngster cracked up, after his session of drugging, drinking and not sleeping. It was all over bar the shouting when he told his grandmother he was a 'pussy' and didn't want to fight with one of the boys anymore.I didn't even know that was what he had been doing to try and prove himself with the 'normal' teens he was associating with there in the neighbourhood. Trying to be just one of the boys in the 'Hood.



Well it happened. He went all quiet; quite a change from the hyperactive kid he had been most of his life. He was taken into the local hospital, admitted into a ward for the night from Accident and Emergency, and the next day was taken to the regional youth mental health unit, about 20 miles away. He was on his way, on a journey he will be on for the rest of his life. The controversial little pain in the backside he could often be, to the frightened little rabbit he was before he went into hospital.



He would not return as the youngster we knew, but he would return and continue developing into the schizophrenic young man he is today. All that in less than a month! He was prescribed and regularly given Risperadol, an anti-psychotic medication he would be on for a couple of years or so. And it had side-affects like other medication he was on and others he would be on in the future. Like the mood stabiliser called Lithium. He had to have blood tests every three months because it could have detrimental effects on his renal functions in time. I can't remember when he started talking to himself — was it when he came back from the mental health unit? I'm not really sure about that. But he certainly became different and difficult. He was obviously hearing the voices pretty early in the piece; but we aren't sure when he obviously began to respond to them.



But we became concerned with the side-effects of his medication in future months. We found it difficult to get our points of view through to his health professionals — doctor and social worker. We did not have a good relationship with his social worker because he did not respond adequately to our questions and concerns for our grandson's well-being. The doctor was nice enough and tried to cooperate with us when we thought he was on too much medication — but we were ignorant and inexperienced with mental health problems. The dosage of his Risperadol was a bit like a yo-yo for a few weeks as the doctor tried to find a balance in his medication.



Finding a balance in the dosage of psychotic medication is something we would learn about in future years. Side-effects are something we would also discover too. It wasn't too long before he had a relapse and ended back in hospital again. He was now well on the road to being a confirmed schizophrenic. We knew also that alcohol was good for him in only small quantities, and marijuana was a poison for him in any quantities. The latter would be confimed by other mental health patients we knew on later occasions. We would also learn that you never recover from serious mental disorders — doctors can only manage the illness through the correct dosage of the right medication. Medication had now become as important to our grandson as food and drink. Yes, he was well on the road, alright!















































Published on Fortitude July 10, 2010

Copyright 2010 peter petterson

Related articles by Zemanta

• Marines pour resources into mental health care (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• Mental Health and the Spill: Let's Stop Discriminating (psychologytoday.com)
• The Psychology Of Arthritis Pain (psychologytoday.com)
• schizophrenia, involuntary admission and family members (moritherapy.org)
• The Link Between Marijuana and Schizophrenia (time.com)
• Exploring the History of Electroconvulsive Therapy as a Mental Health Treatment (brighthub.com)
• X Factor bosses knew my girl was a mental health risk says mother of show hopeful Shirlena Johnson (mirror.co.uk)
• 'I'm mad, but not bad' (independent.co.uk)
• Living with psychosis: 'I'm mad, but not bad' (independent.co.uk)
• Recovery: Schizophrenia & Mental Illness - Psychology | Health News (healthnew.org)

What does the average person know about mental illness...

Image via Wikipedia


What does the average person know about mental illness...



ARTICLE: First published at Fortitude .



by peter petterson



What does the average person know about mental illness, I wonder? Not very much I would suggest. Until just a few years ago I didn’t know much either and had very little contact with people afflicted with what can be one of the most complex and often heartbreaking conditions possible.



If a person has a broken leg, it is very easy to treat it. Take the patient to the hospital radiology department and have the leg x-rayed. Put the broken limb in a splint and plaster and let nature do the rest. A few weeks later, without complications, the patient is usually back on the road to full recovery.



If a person has a wound, take them to their doctor or the emergency department and get it treated, and stitched up if necessary. But not mental illness. It is so very complex indeed.



There are a variety of mental health conditions: The most common is of course depression, and also very hard to diagnose correctly. Schizophrenia is becoming more known about and also bi-polar as well. However, schizophrenia is the one I have become more familiar with over the last few years. It has become evident right there in my immediate family – in my grandson. He has now suffered with schizophrenia for about four and a half years, and the doctors have struggled to contain it, to find the right balance of anti-psychotic drugs to treat it. You never cure it, just contain it and help them to live with it. His condition is that much more difficult because he has a dual diagnosos — he suffers from a mild intellectual handicap as well.



As a preamble to discussing how my grandson became mentally ill and perhaps what brought the condition on — because that is the difference between physical illnesses, conditions and injuries. Let us just drop back into his past for a few years.



From a young age he displayed some unusual and at times some strange characteristics and actions. He was hyperactive, his behaviour was unusual and he found it difficult to get on with other children. He got into situations that most children would not – he had no consequences for his actions – he didn’t learn from his mistakes that most normal children did.



At school it was discovered he wasn’t able to read or write and had some serious learning difficulties. At the age of six years he was assessed as having Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Oppositional Defiance Disorder and a measure of Conduct Disorder. A lot of people still don’t, and didn’t back then accept these as genuine disorders, but take my word for it – they are. It helped to explain the difficulties some children I grew up with and met at school had so many years ago. Back then there were no labels for these conditions – just bad kids who needed a good kick up the backside. They needed some good strong discipline. What they really needed was to be understood, but society didn’t have the knowledge those days to be able to do that.



From the age of six years until his late fourteenth year he had difficulties at all his schools and with senior school authorities who refused to accept that parents, or in our case grandparents, may actually know more about their child than they did. The outcome was predictable and usual – he was suspended and eventually expelled because he was a little round peg that didn’t fit in with the school’s square hole!.



But just shortly before his fifteenth birthday he had what is known these days as a psychotic episode. He had mixed with other boys of his age-group and a little older, drinking alcohol, smoking marijuana and not sleeping properly, and having that delicate disposition was pushed over the edge into a mental health disorder. The poor young fellow displayed some evidence of what we used to call madness!



He was admitted into a youth mental health unit for a number of weeks until doctors were able to control his behaviour with anti-psychotic drugs. He has periodically over four and a half years had a number of psychotic episodes, been admitted into the local mental health unit a number of times and had his medication changed as his disorder had worsened. It is also true that he was not treated quickly enough or properly at the time, and his condition had deteriorated to the point he is now on Clozapine, the most strongest and potentially dangerous medication available for mental health patients who have not responded to regular medication.



This then, dear readers, is my grandson that we still look after and have raised from the age of eight years, because there is nowhere else for him to live but in the arms of his family. New Zealand like all other western countries decided to close mental hospitals and homes and keep people in the community. Some of course have no family to look after them and others have been rejected by their families as an embarrassment.



In closing here, let me state I have had a very good education about the effects and requirements to treat schizophrenic patients – the ‘talking to voices’ syndrome. And our now nineteen year old grandson remains with us still . We hope to be able to find some way to get him able to move out into the community more without the family, and in some small way we are working towards this by having support people take him for car rides, shopping and just recently we enrolled him in a local gym to help his physical state – his weight is ballooning out because of his new medication. We hope this will prove beneficial as we try to prepare him for an independent future – we are in our sixties and won’t be able to look after him for much longer. At a later date I will discuss my grandson’s journey in more detail.




















Published on Fortitude June 29, 2010

Copyright 2010 peter petterson

Related articles by Zemanta

• What are the Causes of Borderline Personality Disorder? (brighthub.com)
• Defining the Causes of Pica Disorder (brighthub.com)
• Herschel Walker, University Behavioral Health of Denton Partner to Raise Awareness, Erase Stigma of Mental Health Disorders (eon.businesswire.com)
• schizophrenia, involuntary admission and family members (moritherapy.org)
• Family ties (boston.com)
• 'Legacy of Katrina' report details impact of stalled recovery on mental health status of children (eurekalert.org)
• Lindsay Lohan latest victim of ADHD misdiagnosis and Adderall abuse (psychologytoday.com)
• Time to invest in mental health research (walesonline.co.uk)
• EEG test may help predict who will develop schizophrenia, claims scientist (guardian.co.uk)
• Exploring the History of Electroconvulsive Therapy as a Mental Health Treatment (brighthub.com)
• Are You an ADHD Adult? (lifescript.com)
• More Mental Disorders Treated with Drugs Only (nlm.nih.gov)

A green departure from Planet Earth - alternative burials...

A green departure from Planet Earth - alternative burials...





NEWS: First published  at Fortitude.



by peter petterson



A green departure from Planet Earth — alternative burials to oldtime funerals, such as cremations, are increasingly becoming more popular. Yes, nearly half of burials in the western world are now cremations.



As land for cemeteries become increasingly more scarce with major cities extending for many miles in most countries, cremation has become increasingly more popular in recent times. About half of all funerals are cremations; something so very different from just a few years ago.



But there are other alternatives to traditional burials and cremations. Climate change is bringing in its own sets of regulations, such as emissions trading schemes etc.



A new option of burial for families' loved ones is now available on Queensland's Gold Coast — the world's first water cremation centre.



Aquamation:



The CEO of a company known as Aquamation Industries, John Humphries, has recently been interviewed by the media and had this to say about his company's new service at the ECO Memorial Park at Stapylton near Dreamworld.



He said Aquamation Industries uses a new process it hopes to revolutionise the funeral industry. 'Aquamation' is a new natural, ethical and environmentally friendly alternative to traditional cremation — it uses water instead of fire to return a body to nature.



It is expected that this process will be available anywhere in Australia within a year — and undoubtably offshore soon afterwards.



John Humphries likens the process to that of a dead animal in the bush of Australia. It disintigrates into the natural state of things.



But with Aquamation we have what is a totally natural process, known as alkaline hydrolosis, in a stainless steel tube where the body is washed for four hours, creating the same breakdown of tissue as out in the bush, but at a faster rate. Mr Humphries also claimed support from the Catholic Church for the new technology.



He said further that the equipment is based on an experimental unit in America that uses extreme pressure and temperature to destroy the infectious remains of mad cow disease. Its a natural process, not an invented one.



The equipment has been redesigned so that water breaks down the cells and brings the body back to a chemical component, leaving just chalky bones which are returned to the family in an urn, just like the ashes of a traditional cremation.



This technology answered the demands of new European Union regulations that demand the reduction of mercury and pollution at crematoria by 2012.



Another green burial alternative to Aquamation:



There is another alternative to Aquamation itself, that results in the same return to nature. These are called biodegradable urns that reportedly suit the desire of the baby-boomer generation to have a 'green burial'.



These biodegradable urns, this time from America, also allow the return of a former life to nature. This is in return to those who advocate cremation and eco-friendly products.



Biodegradable cremation urns are designed to allow body remains to dissolve into the Earth.They are made using organic materials that are both drawn from and safe for the natural environment. One urn, called the Unity Heart, by its suppliers, The Light Urns, are actually made from Mulberry tree bark (a bark that sheds naturally). As they have no plastic or metal components at all, they just biodegrade naturally.



Another urn that is available is both beautiful and environmentally safe, and called the Shell Bio-urn; it is also made from ecological materials. This urn is designed for people who want to scatter the 'ashes' of their loved ones into the sea. The shell includes a water- soluble plastic bag for the cremains. Eco friendly glu is also used to seal the lid and designed to float for five minutes before decending beneath the waves. There is reportedly a large selection of urns to choose from.








































Published on Fortitude August 18, 2010

Copyright 2010 peter petterson