Found Safe TX - Michelle Reynolds - 6th Grade Reading and Language Arts Teacher - Missing Since 22 Sept 2022

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Lilibet said:
I wonder if her problems actually only began at 41 or perhaps the MH issues were mild and manageable when she was younger, but she has needed more help as she headed into middle age. I agree with you that peri-menopause could exacerbate the situation.
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This report indicates Michelle's mental health issues date prior to 2015 per her husband...14 years ago would be when she was 34.

"She has never had an episode where she disappeared," husband Michael Reynolds said. "We've had bouts of mental health issued before but we've been working through this for 10, 12, 14 years, but never to this extent."

 
GMS said:
This report indicates Michelle's mental health issues date prior to 2015 per her husband...14 years ago would be when she was 34.

"She has never had an episode where she disappeared," husband Michael Reynolds said. "We've had bouts of mental health issued before but we've been working through this for 10, 12, 14 years, but never to this extent."
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Thanks for the link and quote. So it does sound as if the issues are long-standing but have accelerated in severity recently, for whatever reason. Depression, for example, can be well-managed with meds and therapy for years…until it isn’t. And she had stopped taking her medication recently. A friend of mine forgot to refill her anti-depressant on time and went several days without it. She was a mess by the second day until she could get it refilled. It can be really hard to come off of some antidepressants. If Michelle is bipolar, stopping meds can be even worse. Add all this to hormonal issues and it can really mess with your mind. Here’s hoping she’s safe somewhere.
JMO
 
DocBrew said:
So MH issues beginning at 41 and appears they have escalated over time. Unusual for MH issues to just "spring up" so late in the game. I can think of 3 potential causes offhand - 1. Early/difficult menopause (hormonal), 2. Substance-related, 3. trauma. Am leaning towards 1.

JMO.
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I've had it my whole life into my 40s and no one has ever suspected. A lot of people also just want to die and don't want a phone number to call

It's a stigma, people can't afford it because of half the country being delusional about many faucets of reality (it's not free blah blah <modsnip> etc) and workers mostly have no protections to take time off unless you're in one of the rare unions remaining (she was)

Tens of millions of people suffer in silence I can't assure you.
 
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annemc2 said:
It can definitely exacerbate existing mental health issues (depression, bipolar d/o). It's possible to have first onset during perimenopause, as well. Psychiatry Online

It's one of those things that sounds bizarre until you've experienced it. My body has been throwing me some curve balls the past few years, physically and mentally. It can be quite unsettling.
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It is frustrating because it is a physiological condition essentially mimicking a psychiatric one, yet it tends to get treated solely as the latter. A competent physician should know to consider it first, but unfortunately women tend to quickly get shuffled out to MH professionals who have little to no understanding of it (and it is - for obvious reasons - psychiatric treatment resistant). It would be akin to giving an antipsychotic to an elderly person who is suddenly experiencing delusions and hallucinations (instead of an antibiotic - a UTI is the most likely cause).

Now I'm reading where she may have had some level of MH issues since her mid-30s. Sounds like perhaps she battled a chronic dysphoria that, combined with aging, life experience, and hormonal changes, manifested into an emergent schism. Indeed, I think she may have very well 'lost her mind' (if temporarily). While this seems terrifying on its face, it's probably the best hope we have that she will be found safe at this point.

JMO.
 
DocBrew said:
It is frustrating because it is a physiological condition essentially mimicking a psychiatric one, yet it tends to get treated solely as the latter. A competent physician should know to consider it first, but unfortunately women tend to quickly get shuffled out to MH professionals who have little to no understanding of it (and it is - for obvious reasons - psychiatric treatment resistant). It would be akin to giving an antipsychotic to an elderly person who is suddenly experiencing delusions and hallucinations (instead of an antibiotic - a UTI is the most likely cause).

Now I'm reading where she may have had some level of MH issues since her mid-30s. Sounds like perhaps she battled a chronic dysphoria that, combined with aging, life experience, and hormonal changes, manifested into an emergent schism. Indeed, I think she may have very well 'lost her mind' (if temporarily). While this seems terrifying on its face, it's probably the best hope we have that she will be found safe at this point.

JMO.
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RBBM
Where is a source that says hormonal menopausal changes can be "a physiological condition essentially mimicking a psychiatric one." Or am I not understanding your statement? I think the psychiatric condition (whatever her diagnosis) is legit, not a physical one presenting as a psychiatric one.

Regarding the other statement I bolded, how is losing one's mind the best hope of being found safe? It would seem to be just the opposite to me.

I don't understand your assumption that "women get shuffled out to MH professionals" rather than getting a competent medical diagnosis. It's a very complicated thing to diagnose & resolve in the 15 minutes or less of time with a doctor.

I do think, based on personal experience, that women's hormonal issues are not as well-studied & understood so diagnosis is more complicated than it should be.

Oversimplifying treatment of these kinds of problems just adds to the stigma in my opinion.

It's very complicated even with the best of care. Just trying different meds to see what works best for an individual puts them into potential peril until & if the right combo of treatment is found. Even with excellent treatment, a person can still flounder. It's very individual & very complicated.

In fact, I'm surprised there are not more cases like hers in the news. I don't think this situation, while appearing extreme, is completely outside the norm. Most just don't get media attention.

JMO
 
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WingsOverTX said:
RBBM
Where is a source that says hormonal menopausal changes can be "a physiological condition essentially mimicking a psychiatric one." Or am I not understanding your statement? I think the psychiatric condition (whatever her diagnosis) is legit, not a physical one presenting as a psychiatric one.

Regarding the other statement I bolded, how is losing one's mind the best hope of being found safe? It would seem to be just the opposite to me.

I don't understand your assumption that "women get shuffled out to MH professionals" rather than getting a competent medical diagnosis. It's a very complicated thing to diagnose & resolve in the 15 minutes or less of time with a doctor.

I do think, based on personal experience, that women's hormonal issues are not as well-studied & understood so diagnosis is more complicated than it should be.

Oversimplifying treatment of these kinds of problems just adds to the stigma in my opinion.

It's very complicated even with the best of care. Just trying different meds to see what works best for an individual puts them into potential peril until & if the right combo of treatment is found. Even with excellent treatment, a person can still flounder. It's very individual & very complicated.

In fact, I'm surprised there are not more cases like hers in the news. I don't think this situation, while appearing extreme, is completely outside the norm. Most just don't get media attention.

JMO
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We have been speculating that if she had been struggling with an underlying psychiatric condition for some time, which her husband reports that she has, then her current age might suggest that it could have been exacerbated by the physiological changes women experience with aging (re: perimenopause). This isn't an oversimplification. Rather, the opposite. Which is why doctors often overlook it, as the sourced article posted suggests. Hormonal changes/imbalances can and often do intensify underlying mental health issues in women, up to and including psychotic breaks from reality.

<modsnip>

As for why it might be the best case scenario? Because it is better (although not great) if she broke from reality and is wandering the streets of New Orleans than if she was lucid, depressed, and suicidal when she left Texas. The latter would be an almost certain sad and unfortunate outcome at this point.

The only other positive outcome scenario I can think of would be an affair, but the facts as we know them so far don't suggest or support that.

JMO.
 
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This is going on in New Orleans and started right when she arrived. Lots of visitors.
 
According to Michelle's Facebook, she's suffered a number of traumas the past few years (both psychological and physical). Her brother suffered a major heart attack, her mother died, and she had a total hysterectomy just a few months ago (interestingly, when she was first reported missing, most of her posts were not public; at some point afterwards, many of them were made public). Those are all difficult on their own, much less grouped fairly close together, and would definitely compound any mental health/trauma issues she may have already been struggling with. IMOO.
 
coffeeismyspiritanimal said:
According to Michelle's Facebook, she's suffered a number of traumas the past few years (both psychological and physical). Her brother suffered a major heart attack, her mother died, and she had a total hysterectomy just a few months ago (interestingly, when she was first reported missing, most of her posts were not public; at some point afterwards, many of them were made public). Those are all difficult on their own, much less grouped fairly close together, and would definitely compound any mental health/trauma issues she may have already been struggling with. IMOO.
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The loss of a parent coupled with a hysterectomy? Oh man. So the case that she may have been having elevated symptoms of underlying MH issues due to hormonal issues just got stronger. I imagine if she was close to her mother, which most women tend to be later in life, that she struggled with an irreplaceable void left when her mother passed. Add the instability/depletion of hormones via the hysterectomy and its a recipe for major depression/anxiety. :(
 
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coffeeismyspiritanimal said:
... (interestingly, when she was first reported missing, most of her posts were not public; at some point afterwards, many of them were made public)...
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Now this is interesting. I'm not on FB so didn't notice it. I wonder whose idea it was to make her FB public and why.
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Re speculating on Michelle's mental state, I think bipolar disorder would be a very likely one for someone taking off like this.
 
DocBrew said:
...The only other positive outcome scenario I can think of would be an affair, but the facts as we know them so far don't suggest or support that.

JMO.
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I agree that an ill advised affair would be a common reason someone would run off from their life, especially if they were in a mental state that impaired their judgement. Also agree that the facts as we know them so far don't support that, after seeing the latest photo that Equusearch posted of Michelle (along with their statement that those were the same clothes she was wearing when she left). She's far more dolled up than that in her FB pics. In fact, it took me a while to even recognize her in the Equusearch photo. And I'd definitely expect someone who was running off in the throes of some wild affair to appear "dolled up."

Also re her appearance, I really wonder what the deal is with that jacket. It would have been in the mid-80's or higher in NO at that time and probably about the same when she left Alvin the day before. Definitely not jacket weather.
 
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More speculation here. I noticed that a few of Michelle's photos (I'm not on FB so have limited access to them) show her in long sleeves. Wondering if that's just the few I've been able to see or if that stands out to others too.

The Houston area is semi-tropical so jackets and long sleeves are rather rare. That, along with the jacket Michelle is wearing in the Equusearch photo makes me wonder if there's a reason and if it could shed any light.

IF it applies, a few reasons I can think of for a person to wear a lot of long sleeves etc. when others aren't are: thyroid problem, track marks from shooting up, being a "cutter," scarred wrists from a suicide attempt, tattoos (in many school districts, tats have to be covered up at school).

Or I could have just put these pieces together wrong. As I said, I'm not on FB so not able to see the full picture on this.
 
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DocBrew said:
So MH issues beginning at 41 and appears they have escalated over time. Unusual for MH issues to just "spring up" so late in the game. I can think of 3 potential causes offhand - 1. Early/difficult menopause (hormonal), 2. Substance-related, 3. trauma. Am leaning towards 1.

JMO.
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According to her facebook page, she told friends she was in the hospital following a total hysterectomy. I'll have to go back and check when that was.
 
LaborDayRN said:
According to her facebook page, she told friends she was in the hospital following a total hysterectomy. I'll have to go back and check when that was.
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I just went to her FB to check this and found she posted that she was "at home and recovering" on June 10. She tagged the post "day 3" so I presume the surgery was on June 7. Link to that post: Michelle Townsend Reynolds

I also noticed that her FB profile picture is different now than from when I looked at her FB last week. Someone has changed it in the last couple of days.
 
SherryLock said:
More speculation here. I noticed that a few of Michelle's photos (I'm not on FB so have limited access to them) show her in long sleeves. Wondering if that's just the few I've been able to see or if that stands out to others too.

The Houston area is semi-tropical so jackets and long sleeves are rather rare. That, along with the jacket Michelle is wearing in the Equusearch photo makes me wonder if there's a reason and if it could shed any light.

IF it applies, a few reasons I can think of for a person to wear a lot of long sleeves etc. when others aren't are: thyroid problem, track marks from shooting up, being a "cutter," scarred wrists from a suicide attempt, tattoos (in many school districts, tats have to be covered up at school).

Or I could have just put these pieces together wrong. As I said, I'm not on FB so not able to see the full picture on this.
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I read this article recently about people who wear hoodies or jackets even in warm weather. The author suggests that hoodies "administer emotional comfort, too, similar to that of a weighted blanket. Research shows that weighted blankets — and also hoodies, going by this logic — encourage the release of serotonin and dopamine, neurotransmitters that make us feel more relaxed, a highly coveted feeling in today’s increasingly panicked world."

Basically, wearing a heavier sweatshirt or jacket can provide a feeling of protection and comfort, which is another reason why someone who's feeling emotionally upset or vulnerable might wear one, even if it's not cool outside.

IMO. MOO.
 
SherryLock said:
More speculation here. I noticed that a few of Michelle's photos (I'm not on FB so have limited access to them) show her in long sleeves. Wondering if that's just the few I've been able to see or if that stands out to others too.
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SBM

I think there are just as many photos on her facebook of her wearing sleeveless tops. What are the temperatures like in her area, is it seasonal weather??
From looking at her facebook pictures, I can't see a preference to wearing long sleeved tops, it just seems like she's wearing similar weather appropriate clothing as others in the photos with her. MOO






 
This might seem far out there, but could she have suffered a stroke and have amnesia from it? The Equisearch flyer has a photo of her walking. It could just be the photo, but the right side of her face looks droopy to me (our left when looking at picture). Her right arm seems to be straight down, while her other arm appears to be in a swinging motion like our arms do when we walk.
 
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