Andrea Yates R.N.

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Did you know that Andrea Yates, the woman who is now being re-tried for drowning her 5 children in Texas was a nurse? I just thought it was interesting.

on a sidenote, a better question would be: why did her husband allow her to continue to care for their children when she confided this information to him?

exactly, if she were really psychotic! i'm from this area and everyone here is sick of hearing about her and how the rest of the world is hopping on her bandwagon. everyone is like "poor andrea." poor andrea?!!!! where is the justice for her 5 children?!!!!

and if she were truly psychotic, i agree with the previous post... there is no excuse for killing 5 innocent children. none. whether you had a mental disability, you were high, drunk, whatever. i hope & pray that if i ever get that sick someone around me will say "hey, she's in no shape to care for her child!"

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Specializes in High Risk In Patient OB/GYN.

kenni, are you a nurse? I sure hope not. You're incredibly miseducated and ignorant regading mental illness. You admit you're of the belief that if she were truly psychotic (how wasn't she??!) that there's still no excuse for what she did. Go to the library and read a few books on mental illness.

Someone in a psychotic state cannot help what they do much more than an epileptic can help having seizures.

I call BS on anyome who thinks she was faking, The faking had to have been going on for years and years (during which she got pregnant and birthed more kids!), and would have included being heavily medicated, hospitalized, isolated from family and society as a whole, etc.

Find ONE poster here who doesn't feel horribly for what those poor children went through. One. You won't, because we don't exist. I cannot begin to imagine their pain, suffering and horror.

:bluecry1:

Just because some of us have compasion and understanding of the mentally ill does not mean we do not feel terribly for the family members who suffer because of it. Wake up--life is not so black and white. It's not always one or the other. :no:

Read the posts a little better--you'll see that those of us who are all "poor andrea" :icon_roll are also in favor of better medicine, more education re: mental illness, prevention, early intervention, elimination of social stigma, family support, etc SO THAT THIS TYPE OF THING DOES NOT HAPPEN EVER EVER AGAIN.

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Kenni,

If I ever have another pyschotic break, I hope that you're not my nurse. Yes, the childern suffered but now their suffering is over. They are in a better place now. This suffering may never have had happened if;

1. Andrea Yates would have had better access to better and more complete mental health care, and

2. Her husband would have been more caring and supportive to Andrea's needs instead he kept her barefoot, pregnant, and isolated.

This was a tragic event that has hurt many families and individuals. It's not just "poor Andrea" it's a poor system, stigma, and the way that mentally ill people are treated in general.

Fuzzy

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Wound Care.
exactly, IF she were really psychotic! I'm from this area and everyone here is sick of hearing about her and how the rest of the world is hopping on her bandwagon. everyone is like "poor andrea." POOR ANDREA?!!!! where is the justice for her 5 children?!!!!

and if she were truly psychotic, I agree with the previous post... there is NO excuse for killing 5 innocent children. none. whether you had a mental disability, you were high, drunk, whatever. I hope & pray that if I ever get that sick someone around me will say "hey, she's in no shape to care for her child!"

Unless you have witnessed a psychotic reaction to certain drugs you cannot make a judgement. I HAVE seen a reaction like this in a loved one. There was no rational thought going on.

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Specializes in Happily semi-retired; excited for the whole whammy.
exactly, if she were really psychotic! i'm from this area and everyone here is sick of hearing about her and how the rest of the world is hopping on her bandwagon. everyone is like "poor andrea." poor andrea?!!!! where is the justice for her 5 children?!!!!

and if she were truly psychotic, i agree with the previous post... there is no excuse for killing 5 innocent children. none. whether you had a mental disability, you were high, drunk, whatever. i hope & pray that if i ever get that sick someone around me will say "hey, she's in no shape to care for her child!"

i don't understand the rationale of your last sentence. you say you hope and pray that if you were ever that sick (how sick? sick enough to do what andrea did? question it all you want, that woman was psychotic.) that someone would say ''hey, she's in no shape to care for her child''. it sounds as if you're agreeing that if she was psychotic, it was up to her husband, doctor and other people who had a significant presence in the lives of their children to intervene. and if that's what you're saying, you're absolutely right. they should have. how can you say psychoses is ''no excuse'' when it is a legal defense? perhaps morally you feel as if she had no excuse, but whatever justice may come in that realm isn't up to us. we the people get only to assign civil and criminal penalties. if locking her up in prison forever and throwing away the key would bring those kids back, i'd be all for it- even though i don't believe that is where someone like her belongs. we are all mortified at the fate of those poor children. it isn't even necessary to debate that, because like another poster told you, you won't find a soul on allnurses or anywhere else to say that andrea matters more than them. it is just that andrea is the one with whom we are left to deal.

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BTW, why are we surprised that Ms. Yates was a nurse? I know plenty of nurses that have just about every mental health diagnosis. It is not a diagnosis solely for the uneducated 'trailer trash' masses. Having a mental health diagnosis doesn't preclude someone from being a healthy, happy and productive member of society.

Well said....I agree 100%.

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Yep, I knew that.............

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i hope & pray that if i ever get that sick someone around me will say "hey, she's in no shape to care for her child!"

are we our brother's keeper? i would think as a whole we are where did this or with whom can the "guilt" be pinned? family, friends, doctors, church ministers, it's difficult to educate people on how to best handle this kind of a deal and until you are in the middle of it yourself i would think you really don't know how you'll do?

your right though!

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I don't understand the rationale of your last sentence. You say you hope and pray that if you were ever that sick (how sick? Sick enough to do what Andrea did? Question it all you want, that woman was psychotic.) that someone would say ''hey, she's in no shape to care for her child''. It sounds as if you're agreeing that IF she was psychotic, it was up to her husband, doctor and other people who had a significant presence in the lives of their children to intervene. And if that's what you're saying, you're absolutely right. They should have. How can you say psychoses is ''no excuse'' when it is a legal defense? Perhaps morally you feel as if she had no excuse, but whatever justice may come in that realm isn't up to us. We the people get only to assign civil and criminal penalties. If locking her up in prison forever and throwing away the key would bring those kids back, I'd be all for it- even though I don't believe that is where someone like her belongs. We are all mortified at the fate of those poor children. It isn't even necessary to debate that, because like another poster told you, you won't find a soul on allnurses or anywhere else to say that Andrea matters more than them. It is just that Andrea is the one with whom we are left to deal.

Excellent post. This is exactly what I was thinking. First she places sole blame on Andrea Yates and wants her to fry, then she says she hopes someone stops her if she ever gets that way. Huh?

I truly believe that she was completely psychotic at the time. She has stated that she thought that only then-governor Bush could slay the devil that was living in her, and the only way to keep her children from going to hell and to get Bush to kill her was by killing them and getting the death penalty. I've read the transcripts from her psychiatric studies, both before and after the killings, and they are major eye-openers. I encourage all who have not read these to do so before passing judgement. They are at thesmokinggun.com.

I do feel sorry for her. She was and is a very sick woman, and she is suffering terribly. I don't think she should be released, but I truly believe that she needs to be in a mental institution, not a jail cell.

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Specializes in Acute Care Psych, DNP Student.

Proof you can buy an MD opinion for court testimony:

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2006-07-18-yates_x.htm

This psychiatrist is often on the various cable news shows yapping. I recall him making completely incorrect predictions with the DC area sniper situation. Recognize him?

http://www.welnerenabled.com/imgs/mikeframe.jpg

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Specializes in pure and simple psych.
Proof you can buy an MD opinion for court testimony:

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2006-07-18-yates_x.htm

This psychiatrist is often on the various cable news shows yapping. I recall him making completely incorrect predictions with the DC area sniper situation. Recognize him?

http://www.welnerenabled.com/imgs/mikeframe.jpg

Some folks will do anything for money.:angryfire :madface: :angryfire

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Specializes in Acute Care Psych, DNP Student.

I remember during the DC sniper situation this Dr. Welner said that the sniper was a single white male who was severely psychotic. He insisted that the single white male would commit suicide if approached by police.

I also remember Nancy Grace saying to him something like "I know I'm just a little lady from Georgia...and you are the DOCTOR...but I'm telling you...this killer will NOT kill himself and I wouldn't be so sure that it is just a single, psychotic, white male." :rolleyes:

Anyway, I remember seeing this Dr. Welner so arrogantly be wrong about other cases too. A few weeks ago I saw him interviewed regarding the Phoenix serial killers. I thought at the time, whatever he says...think something else.

Also, I shouldn't have said "buy an opinion" above. The good doc could be sincerely, arrogantly, wrong.

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