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Castaic Woman Seeks To Share Mental Health Lessons

Ed. note:  May is Mental Health Awareness Month. Tune into KHTS AM-1220 on Wednesday, May 27, from 10-11 a.m. to hear Bryant’s story, as well as from mental health experts in the community in a special program focusing on mental health concerns. 

Missy Bryant doesn’t remember much of what happened, but she knows she’s lucky to be alive.

The last time Bryant, 44, of Castaic, went off her medications, there was a Crisis Negotiation Team and a hostage held at gunpoint.


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On Aug. 13, 2014, deputies took her into custody because she stole her ex-boyfriend’s gun, kidnapped a man at gunpoint in Castaic and took him to a mobile home park where a 4-hour standoff ended peacefully with the help of deputies and a crisis negotiator.

“I didn’t take my meds for almost 6 months,” Bryant said, “and that was the result.”

She said she’s not using her mental illness as an excuse, and she takes responsibility for not taking her medication. It was her decision, she said, even if it’s one she can’t remember or understand.

She served time in jail, and is following through on the conditions of her sentence, as well as seeking out treatment, she said.

And now that she’s resumed a medicinal regimen and feeling healthier, she wants to use the trauma she’s been through and, regrettably, trauma she’s caused others, to increase awareness about not only about the dangers and prevalence of mental illness, but also the importance of seeking out and following through on treatment, she said.

Bryant wants to make her story “an open book,” and is discussing her story — including her past as a drug user, sexual assault victim and domestic violence survivor — in order to encourage others to seek treatment and stick with it, during a special hourlong broadcast Wednesday, May 27 from 10-11 a.m. on KHTS AM-1220.

“The No. 1 reason we see people back here is that they didn’t take the medications they were prescribed,” said Mike Dougherty, community relations representative for the Behavioral Health Unit at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital, “or they were taking the medications and they decided to stop for whatever reason. That’s very common.”

Bryant said she’s considered “high functioning,” and her diagnosis of schizo-affective disorder, a combination of severe bipolar disorder and schizophrenia — means in addition to experiencing dramatically emotional highs and then lows, she also hears auditory and visual hallucinations that can be hard for her to distinguish as imaginary.

Her first symptoms manifested after she was raped as an 11-year-old girl in Old Orchard Park, and by age 12, she attempted suicide for the first time.

She’s been in and out of hospitals since age 13, and survived seven subsequent attempts on her own life — eight, if the armed standoff in Castaic is included, because one of the few memories she has of the incident is being 25 feet above her own body and not caring if the deputies “put a bullet in my head.”

But her symptoms, which began to manifest at a young age, didn’t stop her from graduating from Hart High in 1989 with a 3.4 GPA, she said. School was relatively easy for Bryant, and as a result, she graduated by barely going.

Shortly after graduation, attempts to self-medicate her depression and other symptoms, led her to drug addiction by age 24, she said.

Seeking help for mental health issues

“People think mental illness is caused by drug use, but people use drugs to mask or treat the symptoms of their mental illness,” Bryant said. “The scariest thing to do sometimes is to pick up ‘the 1,000-pound phone’ and call for help.”

She eventually sought proper care and help, but she’s still unclear on why she says she “snapped” more than a year ago and stopped taking her medication.

Part of the difficulty, she said, is handling the medicine, which is part of why it’s so critical for anyone dealing with a mental health issue to have a supportive group around them.

The side effects are one of the reasons many stop taking medicine early on, she said, but she knows now how important it is to never stop.

She also wanted to apologize to the man she kidnapped, whom she never knew, and thank the deputies who ended the standoff and were “very helpful and gentle.”

If she hadn’t had a past experience with the Sheriff’s Department and dealing with deputies who understood her situation, things might have ended much worse, she said.

Now she takes numerous medications three times a day, and while there is still a struggle, she’s grateful to be alive and wants to do everything she can to help everyone suffering from mental health concerns, to talk to someone, get treatment and follow through on their prescribed treatment.

“I can’t tell you what it means to me,” she said of the potential her message could help others.

She now speaks with National Alliance on Mental Illness groups in order to help them understand how everyone has a role, including family members, in addressing mental illness concerns.

The old way of treating mental health concerns — as a stigma that should be closeted, locked up or ignored, is not going to solve anything or help anyone, and people should get educated — because mental illness affects more people than most realize. Bryant believes the prevalence of mental health concerns and the high number of people affected, are actually some of the reasons why people are quick to dismiss concern, she said.

“My whole goal,” Bryant said, “is to raise awareness of mental health.”

For anyone seeking information about mental health resources available in the Santa Clarita Valley, below is a list and a link to more information:

A List Of Santa Clarita Valley Mental Health Resources

There are 24-hour numbers available. In the event of an emergency, 911 should always be the first call. Those looking to speak with someone can call 1-800-273-8255, for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline; 1-800-854-7771, for The Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health; and 1-800-784-2433, for The Treatment Advocacy Center. You can contact the SCV Child & Family Center at 661-259-9439. The phone number for the Santa Clarita Valley Youth Project is 661-257-9688.

 

Do you have a news tip? Call us at (661) 298-1220, or drop us a line at community@hometownstation.com.

KHTS AM 1220 - Santa Clarita Radio

Castaic Woman Seeks To Share Mental Health Lessons

2 comments

  1. Missy is one of my all-time bestest friends ever – actually saved my life once. She is a magnificent soul. She’s shiny and she’ll admit it, claim it and be it in every way. While she might be jokingly making reference to her shiny helmet (no she does not wear a helmet), she shines in every way – she is very intelligent, hilarious, fun as all get out, kind as can be and just an all around great person to have as a friend. I couldn’t even imagine my life without her in it. And I’ve only known her for mmmm 15? or so years but we clicked right away. I’m bipolar as well and I have almost as many scary stories to tell as she – it would be a toss up but I think she’d win by a small margin. While I’ve been stable for some 8 years or so, when we first met I was in much worse condition and she was in much better condition than she has been for a good while now. She was traumatized badly – yet again and I think that that played a big part in getting her to a place where she literally didn’t realize whether it was better to take the meds or not – it really does mess with your head very much when you’re in the throws of deep depression – plus in her case fear for her life. For me it’s been like you feel sooo sick and just so nasty and bad that you think well maybe if I just cut back on these pills that make me sleep 16 hrs a day I’ll have more energy and then it’s like a down-ward spiral and you find yourself in hell. You’ll find out in 6 1/2 hrs how it goes for her!!! I cannot wait to hear it. I am so excited for her. Being able to even help a single person get through another day would be I think just such a big victory in her eyes. The fact that she might reach many is just fabulous and I’m just so proud of her!! You go girl! Much Love!!!!!! Cyn

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About Perry Smith

Perry Smith is a print and broadcast journalist who has won several awards for his focused, hyperlocal community coverage in several different regions of the country. In addition to five years of experience covering the Santa Clarita Valley, Smith, a San Fernando Valley native, has worked in newspapers and news websites in Los Angeles, the Northwest, the Central Valley and the South, before coming to KHTS in 2012. To contact Smith, email him at Perry@hometownstation.com.