TexasCHLforum.com

JSThane wrote:Wow. All kinds of things wrong with this post.

A) ALL teenagers are "bipolar." It's part of puberty. Diagnosing someone with bipolar disorder while that person is in the middle of the -natural- hormonal imbalance that is puberty is an act of medical malpractice.

B) If you diagnose a teen or younger child with "bipolar," and put them on mood- and mind-altering drugs to "stabilize" them, you can seriously screw up their brain chemistry.

C) Bipolar drugs in someone who is NOT bipolar can do very, very bad things. Aggression, depression, suicidal tendencies, and more. Mis-diagnosing puberty as bipolar can emphasize some very dangerous traits in people. I've seen "bipolar drugs" actually cause bipolar symptoms. On the flip side, if you stuff a kid full of mood-regulating drugs, you can make them reliant upon them.

D) A person with true bipolar (and I have known some) is not inherently dangerous, even off their meds. A person who is stable, with no "mood disorders," is not inherently safe either. There are people with bipolar who don't take medication, because they have learned how to manage, how to control, their emotions. There are people who are "stable" who have no self-control.

E) Bipolar is not schizophrenia, multiple personality disorder, or any other mood or mental disorder where a person's very perception of reality is distorted. It is where a person's internal emotional control is on the fritz, and they go through mania/depression cycles. While the mania and depression can emphasize darker sides of the person, they don't make the person do a single thing. A person suffering through mania or depression CAN control themselves, and a great many people do.

F) If the OP isn't trolling us, then whatever psychiatrist diagnosed him as bipolar at 10 did him a great disservice. At this point, there is no way of knowing how much damage the bipolar drugs have done. Frankly, if he's telling the truth, then there is a "doctor" out there who belongs in jail for medical child abuse.

For the record, I ran all this past a family member who WAS diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and they agreed with every point.

cb1000rider wrote:I can tell you that you'd be disqualified if you were seeking a pilot's license. Your condition is considered to be something that can't be cured.
It's also a condition, that even when treated, will likely manifest itself over your lifetime. Generally that manifestation is via "overt acts" - acts directly related to the condition that you wouldn't have otherwise taken.

It seems like you're asking to "get around" a condition that you're still being treated for. You're not claiming that you're not bi-polar, you're just claiming that you're stable. That's not enough (in Texas).

Apparently in the context of a CHL license:

A person is incapable of exercising sound judgment with respect to the proper use and storage of a handgun if:
The person has been diagnosed by a licensed physician as suffering from a psychiatric disorder or condition that causes or is likely to cause substantial impairment in judgment, mood, perception, impulse control, or intellectual ability;
The person suffers from a psychiatric disorder or condition described by Paragraph (A) of this subdivision that:
Is in remission but is reasonably likely to redevelop at a future time; or
Requires continuous medical treatment to avoid redevelopment; <----- HERE
The person has been diagnosed by a licensed physician or declared by a court to be incompetent to manage the person's own affairs; or
The person has entered, in any criminal proceeding, a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity.

I know that as a pilot, if you were misdiagnosed, you'd have a shot at it. And there are some specific things around proving you were misdiagnosed, but it's very expensive, and requires that you be medication free for years.

And in the context of owning a firearm - in the last 16 years have you ever had your medication adjusted? Were any of those circumstances dangerous to you or other people....


I feel for you - and understand that if you were essentially symptom free for 16 years that you should be treated like everyone else, but chances are that you'll have some "overt actions" in your lifetime if you're bipolar...

healthinsp wrote:(d) For purposes of Subsection (a)(7), a person is incapable of exercising sound judgment with respect to the proper use and storage of a handgun if the person:
(1) has been diagnosed by a licensed physician as suffering from a psychiatric disorder or condition that causes or is likely to cause substantial impairment in judgment, mood, perception, impulse control, or intellectual ability;
(2) suffers from a psychiatric disorder or condition described by Subdivision (1) that:
(A) is in remission but is reasonably likely to redevelop at a future time; or
(B) requires continuous medical treatment to avoid redevelopment;


Welcome to the forums first off. While you requested our opinions, they are nothing more than that unless the rules change.

It seems that (2)(B) applies to you and DPS will deny your application. Case by case does seem a more idea way to deal with things, a flat prohibition is definitely easier. Case by case gets into opinions and what makes one person's opinion more valid than another? Mental illness and firearms is a major hot button issue. I don't see anyone will to make any effort to RELAX the rules regarding diagnosed mental illness and possessing a firearm.

You got delt a tough hand. I wish you well.

Texas Government Code

(e) The following constitutes evidence that a person has a psychiatric disorder or condition described by Subsection (d)(1):
(1) involuntary psychiatric hospitalization;
(2) psychiatric hospitalization;
(3) inpatient or residential substance abuse treatment in the preceding five-year period;
(4) diagnosis in the preceding five-year period by a licensed physician that the person is dependent on alcohol, a controlled substance, or a similar substance; or
(5) diagnosis at any time by a licensed physician that the person suffers or has suffered from a psychiatric disorder or condition consisting of or relating to:
(A) schizophrenia or delusional disorder;
(B) bipolar disorder;
(C) chronic dementia, whether caused by illness, brain defect, or brain injury;
(D) dissociative identity disorder;
(E) intermittent explosive disorder; or
(F) antisocial personality disorder.

Allow a tool to take guns away from the "mentally ill," and our enemies will have US declared mentally ill. When reflecting on restrictions of ANY kind, think not "what good can this do?" but "what evil can this do, in the hands of our enemies?"

JSThane wrote:@ Jbarn -

No, I'm not a physician. I am a layman observer. That does not disqualify my observations.

Jumping Frog wrote:

Allow a tool to take guns away from the "mentally ill," and our enemies will have US declared mentally ill. When reflecting on restrictions of ANY kind, think not "what good can this do?" but "what evil can this do, in the hands of our enemies?"

There are great dangers in allowing a physician diagnosis by itself to remove a person's right without some form of judicial due process. "Slippery slope" statements get mocked by the anti-gunner crowd, but they are no less valid.

Joetb9552 wrote:About the last sentence in my post I would like to apologize. It's a very touchy subject and in truth there are many people who will pass judgment on people with bipolar disorder with out any knowledge of the disorder. Y'all make a valid point and it definitely could and should have been worded better

nightmare69 wrote:Would someone who has been diagnosed with clinical depression by a medical doctor be legally able to own a firearm?

nightmare69 wrote:Would someone who has been diagnosed with clinical depression by a medical doctor be legally able to own a firearm?

nightmare69 wrote:Would someone who has been diagnosed with clinical depression by a medical doctor be legally able to own a firearm?

jbarn wrote:

healthinsp wrote:(d) For purposes of Subsection (a)(7), a person is incapable of exercising sound judgment with respect to the proper use and storage of a handgun if the person:
(1) has been diagnosed by a licensed physician as suffering from a psychiatric disorder or condition that causes or is likely to cause substantial impairment in judgment, mood, perception, impulse control, or intellectual ability;
(2) suffers from a psychiatric disorder or condition described by Subdivision (1) that:
(A) is in remission but is reasonably likely to redevelop at a future time; or
(B) requires continuous medical treatment to avoid redevelopment;


Welcome to the forums first off. While you requested our opinions, they are nothing more than that unless the rules change.

It seems that (2)(B) applies to you and DPS will deny your application. Case by case does seem a more idea way to deal with things, a flat prohibition is definitely easier. Case by case gets into opinions and what makes one person's opinion more valid than another? Mental illness and firearms is a major hot button issue. I don't see anyone will to make any effort to RELAX the rules regarding diagnosed mental illness and possessing a firearm.

You got delt a tough hand. I wish you well.

In fact, Bipolar is specifically listed...

Texas Government Code

(e) The following constitutes evidence that a person has a psychiatric disorder or condition described by Subsection (d)(1):
(1) involuntary psychiatric hospitalization;
(2) psychiatric hospitalization;
(3) inpatient or residential substance abuse treatment in the preceding five-year period;
(4) diagnosis in the preceding five-year period by a licensed physician that the person is dependent on alcohol, a controlled substance, or a similar substance; or
(5) diagnosis at any time by a licensed physician that the person suffers or has suffered from a psychiatric disorder or condition consisting of or relating to:
(A) schizophrenia or delusional disorder;
(B) bipolar disorder;
(C) chronic dementia, whether caused by illness, brain defect, or brain injury;
(D) dissociative identity disorder;
(E) intermittent explosive disorder; or
(F) antisocial personality disorder.