[thaumaturgy]

I've got plenty of family with severe mental illness. Some of them have died from it. More will.

The unfortunate reality is that we haven't yet figured out how to really help these people. There are no perfect solutions. There aren't even really any good ones. Even for a family member who's motivated to help, and who's spent a lot of time and effort understanding these illnesses, there's very little that can be done.

For the most severe illnesses, the drugs that are available are still too primitive to ease the symptoms without bringing other side effects that many people have trouble accepting. Some classes of illness work so that while taking the medication, the person doesn't believe they need it, and without taking it, they're incapable of making the decision to start taking it. Keeping those people medicated is difficult, at best.

For anyone suffering with less severe forms of mental illness, I'd strongly encourage you to try out different doctors and medications until you find something that works for you. Many illnesses seem to progress with age, and the people who are treated early in life have much better chances of living happier, healthier, longer lives.

There are no easy answers, but I think that early treatment and de-stigmatization of mental illness probably offers our best chances of real progress.