Can Someone with a history of depression own a gun?

[HiBC]

I'm not a Doctor,lawyer,or shrink. I don't know what I'm talking about,and anything I say could be wrong! That's a disclaimer.
I don't know if this makes a difference,but "Depression" has multiple meanings.It CAN actually be an illness,chemical imbalance. But it can also be a "mood disorder"
We all go through grief and loss. "Depression" IS a stage of the Kubler-Ross grief process.Its also perfectly normal.

Parenting is tough,homes break up,some parents are better or worse than others.That has a lot to do with the social skills and level of maturity an adult person might have.
A whole lot of pain,angst,suffering and destructive behavior can come from being a 15 year old in a 30 year old body.
One recipe for depression is to be unskilled in dealing with fear and anger.A diet of eating fear and anger will lead to a weight gain of depression.

What CAN happen,is a person can recognize A) This is not working B) I do not seem to be finding the answer alone C) Perhaps someone can help.

Once that occurs,it is possible for a person to make progress on the path of growing up.
Motivation to continue growing up comes from life just working better.

The person who on their own reaches for some help BEFORE they hurt themselves or someone else GROWS.

The person who keeps their jaws clenched and says "I'm fine,I don't need that" Might be right...or not.

But I'd rather go fishing with a person who has owned their problems and grown through them than a person who denies their problems,and sees them as other people problems.

There ARE,for example,paranoid schizophrenics that I can have compassion for.They live in an often painful alternative reality. It might not be good for them to be armed.

Don't get me wrong,the person who IS a 15 year old in a 30 year old body CAN be dangerous. They can behave in a way that indicates...well,maybe a 15 year old is not ready for an AK-47,.They might demonstrate that on the Jerry Springer show.

But making a phone call and asking for help is something we should encourage.

Now,as far as our Veterans:

First,I'm not a Veteran. I don't know what I'm talking about.I'm respectfully giving my best,even if I'm wrong.

These Men and Women go where they are sent,and do the job they are told to do. Multiple deployments,some lose their spouses and families.Some lose the jobs they had when deployed.
They experience the horrific things that come with the job. I won't even try to describe what I cannot know.
Many have had the organ "Brain" slammed around,multiple times.
When we,the non Veterans,and politicians, view our Veterans with fear and suspicion,rather than Respect,and maybe just a little appreciation and compassion, When We,and our lawmakers,or more likely UNELECTED,BUREAUCRAT authors of regulations....treat our Veterans with something like:

"So,when you experienced that IED blast,and what it did to your friends,do you have any unhappy after effects?" or " How do you feel about the foreign troop you were training who started shooting in class" .How do you feel about coming home to see your family,but its different now?"

What sane,normal person would NOT have some wounds to their Soul?

When a stupid idea like A) get the Veteran to reveal pain B) then pronounce Him/Her a flawed,defective Human Being,forbidden to keep His/Her guns????

It is particularly despicable for anti-gunners to prey on the vulnerabilities of these Veterans. To inject platform politics into confidentiality of a relationship with a councilor betrays and destroys the essential element of Trust that MUST form for a councilor to be effective. So our Veteran is robbed again.

Our society,who treats our Veterans this way,is a large part of why over 20 of our Veterans a day kill themselves.

Not just a cute slogan, "Thank You For Your Service!" recognize and respect them.

Dignity. The Dignity of a Home,a Job,.. Coming Home..And sometime,quiet space for solitude as necessary. Resources for Veterans to help Veterans.
We need to open our ears and listen to Veterans tell us what will help.I don't think they will ask for too much.Maybe that we just keep our promises.

Stop treating our Veterans as freaks. ESPECIALLY,our Federal Government and theVA.

 

[Aguila Blanca]

But making a phone call and asking for help is something we should encourage.

In an ideal world, I would agree with you. But we're not living in an ideal world. Until we can be assured -- absolutely, completely -- that we won't be permanently disarmed just for picking up the phone and seeking help to navigate through a rough patch in life, I'm not prepared to universally encourage making the phone call. I'm more inclined to suggest exploring other alternatives.

My wife died suddenly and unexpectedly just over three years ago, and a couple of months later I almost died due to a heart condition that materialized out of nowhere. Was I "depressed"? I don't know, but I sure wasn't a happy camper. But whenever you check in for an appointment at the VA one of the questions the intake person asks is "Are you feeling sad today, even a little bit?"

I have trained myself to answer "No" to that question. I don't care if my house burned down, my dog died, and my pickup truck got run over by an eighteen wheeler, as far as the VA is concerned I'm just singin' in the rain.

 

[Vic1951]

I have been on anti depressants for about 20 or more years and I own a lot of guns. Depression does not manifest itself as sometimes shown in the media and TV. My depression just results in me feeling fatigued all day and obsessive negative thinking about things that can happen to me. No danger to anyone and I can live and function without the meds but I feel better with them.

BTW, my insomnia is classified as a mental illness too.

 

[HiBC]

Aguila,absolutely.I hear you.

Please understand,when I speak of "encouraging" I'm not talking about lovely sirens singing to passing sailors to crash their ships on the rocks! No deception,no suckerbait,no betrayal.
If a person cannot Trust those he asks for help,there is no hope.(At least for help from that source)

I mean a different kind of encourage.

And I get it,what may be True, is that asking for an ear to listen and a reality check could screw your life up.

Government often ruins whatever it touches.

The 10th Amendment needs to be observed

 

[44 AMP]

But whenever you check in for an appointment at the VA one of the questions the intake person asks is "Are you feeling sad today, even a little bit?"

Certainly an innocent sounding question, and not a problem in itself. The problem is what they make of the answer.

If one were to answer totally honestly, how could one answer anything but "just a little bit" sad or unhappy??

You're at the VA, (or the doctor's office) if you didn't have some kind of problem, you wouldn't BE there. Maybe that's just me, but I'm never happy about needing to see a doctor.

Trouble is, if you are honest about that, they put you in a little box marked "depressed" or some other label de jour. Same box contains people who are actually mentally ill and unstable. And, of course, to be "fair" everyone in that box must be the same, and treated the same, right?

NOT RIGHT!, but its what often happens.

BTW, my insomnia is classified as a mental illness too.

IF you look at the standard medical texts published in the 50s, you can find homosexuality listed as a mental disorder. (or so I've heard)

Things change over time, and what is, or isn't a mental illness depends on who is making the list.

I once read a (pre-internet) story about a future society where any interest in firearms was considered a mental disorder and gun magazines were pornography.

We aren't there just yet, but I know of some people who would happily take us there, if they could, and they are trying....

 

[Aguila Blanca]

Certainly an innocent sounding question, and not a problem in itself. The problem is what they make of the answer.

If one were to answer totally honestly, how could one answer anything but "just a little bit" sad or unhappy??

You're at the VA, (or the doctor's office) if you didn't have some kind of problem, you wouldn't BE there. Maybe that's just me, but I'm never happy about needing to see a doctor.

Trouble is, if you are honest about that, they put you in a little box marked "depressed" or some other label de jour. Same box contains people who are actually mentally ill and unstable. And, of course, to be "fair" everyone in that box must be the same, and treated the same, right?

NOT RIGHT!, but its what often happens.

You are 100 percent correct. The question is innocuous enough, but the problem is what might happen if you say "Yes." I'm not willing to take the chance. I am friendly on a personal basis with the retired assistant pastor of the church my wife and I attended. If I need a sounding board, I meet him for lunch. At the VA -- everything's coming up roses for me. Not a cloud on my horizon.

It's potentially worse at a VA facility than at a real doctor's office. The VA has been taking a lot of criticism over veteran suicides, so they are now hyper-vigilant about PTSD. So the problem is that now they would rather "err on the side of caution," so it's entirely possible that an admission of feeling sad or a little depressed will get a box checked for PTSD -- and the VA reports PTSD cases to NICS for disqualification. (At least, that's what I've been told and that's what I've read.) I had PTSD when I came home from Vietnam. I worked through it without any help from Uncle Sam. 48 years later, I don't want to get that box checked.

 

[44 AMP]

The VA has been taking a lot of criticism over veteran suicides, so they are now hyper-vigilant about PTSD.

Forgive my cynicism, but as I understand it, the VA also gets a monetary benefit, based on numbers, which I think also is a factor in their "hyper-vigilance" today.

And, in typical bureaucratic fashion, a "one size fits all" solution is cheapest, and therefore most desirable.

The problem with that is, that while one size does fit everyone, it fits no one properly.

The GCA 68 set the law, and since then its been very clear, there is a specific process that must be followed, and followed in each individual case, before "mental illness" LEGALLY prohibits you from possessing firearms.

One Fed agency putting you in the "mentally ill" box, for ANY reason, then reporting that fact to a different Fed agency, who by their different standards then puts you in the "prohibited person" box DOES NOT follow established LAW!

As I see it, its just that simple.

 

[Aguila Blanca]

Forgive my cynicism, but as I understand it, the VA also gets a monetary benefit, based on numbers, which I think also is a factor in their "hyper-vigilance" today.

I share your cynicism. I don't know for certain, but I suspect that you are correct -- the more people the VA can diagnose as having PTSD, the more money they can get for treating PTSD. The fact that veterans (many of whom are not a danger to anyone) are being arbitrarily deprived of their 2A rights is just collateral damage.

 

[Eazyeach]

Mosin , if you are feeling like you may be depressed please talk to someone you trust. Be it a parent, a pastor ,or a mental health professional.

I know how much we all love our guns, but do not let that keep you from seeking help. Depression is very serious if left untreated.

If you are not depressed and are just asking out of curiosity ,please disregard. If you are asking on behalf of someone else please encourage them to seek help.

 

[Aguila Blanca]

Professional "help" isn't always helpful.

My wife died three years ago last week. Our adopted daughter is her natural granddaughter. The death put my daughter into a real tailspin. She was just starting her first year of university. She went off the deep end, got into alcohol and partying, and then a couple of unhealthy relationships. She says she hasn't done drugs, but other members of the birth family who are closer to the situation are fairly certain that drugs were also involved.

So she was depressed. After a year plus, the alcohol and the partying weren't doing it for her, so she decided to commit suicide. She was taking prescription meds for sleeping and for depression, so she decided it would be a good idea to swallow the whole bottle. A friend found her, called an ambulance, and they were able to get her to a hospital and get her stomach pumped ut. She survived.

Her health insurance covered psychiatric care. About a month later, she tried again. Again she was saved. This time she was checked into a clinic for two weeks. She did well at the clinic. They cut her loose after two weeks -- and a week or two later she tried again.

Over a period of a year, she made at least six attempts to kill herself that I know of. She was treated by at least two psychiatrists, and spent about two months (spread out over three separate stays) in clinics. She got to be very good at blaming everything on depression, and not accepting any personal responsibility. (For example, she never referred to any of the attempted suicides as "When I tried to kill myself." She always referred to the incidents as "When that happened to me.") When they finally started controlling her meds, rather than allowing her to have access to an entire bottle, she tried to jump out the window of an eighth floor apartment. Someone stopped her.

A few months ago, I guess she finally hit bottom and realized that being depressed is not an excuse, it's a choice. She finally chose (she says) to stop being depressed. She had long since been kicked out of the university she was attending. She studied up, took a new set of entrance exams, and got herself admitted to a different (and better) university, with a scholarship. I hope she's getting herself back on track, but I don't give any credit to the psychiatrists who were treating her. I think they made her worse rather than better.

Getting help is good if you can find the right kind of help, but what we're discussing here is the possible unintended consequences of seeking help from people who don't play by the rules regarding classifying you as unsuitable to be allowed to play with guns. Yes, some people really shouldn't be allowed to have guns, but there are a lot more who are being classified as prohibited who shouldn't be.

Choose wisely. Be careful where you go for help.

 

[Evan Thomas]

This thread is 2 1/2 years old, and PTSD, the VA system, and the inadequacies of the mental health care system are all completely irrelevant to the question asked by the OP -- who was asking about a point of law, not for advice about treating depression.

This perfectly illustrates why we discourage people from reopening old threads.