The Astronaut Love Triangle
No one is immune from experiencing some type of mental disorder or distortion of reality, and the recent news about astronaut Lisa Marie Nowak is proof once again of that well-known fact in psychiatry/psychology. The mother of three and Navy captain flew on a space shuttle mission just this past July and today she wears another symbol of high tech -- a GPS ankle bracelet. How did it happen, everyone must be asking. How could this woman now face kidnapping and attempted murder charges?
How could a highly successful, bright, career-track woman end up in a Florida parking lot with tools to kidnap and perhaps kill her "love rival" for the affection of another astronaut, a shuttle captain, U.S. Air Force Captain Colleen Shipman? The photos seem to tell the story of a woman who has undergone a dramatic change in appearance, and I'm left wondering what contributed to that change in body and mind.
It wouldn't be ethical for me to try to diagnose anyone from afar, but I can look at some of the details now coming out and offer some thoughts on what might have happened.
When the police searched Captain Nowak's car, they found a steel mallet, a folding knife, rubber tubing, rubber gloves, money, and love letters. This would seem to indicate that some thought went into her actions. The popular notion has always been that someone suffering from any type of mental incapacity is incapable of planning a detailed crime. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Individuals who have distorted reality testing can very well plan and carry out an action. This does nothing to speak to their mental state. They may not have the ability to think clearly regarding situations in their lives, but they do retain the ability to carry out a plan. The main problem here remains that they appear to be lucid rather than in a state of diminished capacity.
If I were to speculate on the lives of astronauts in general, I'd think that they must be under tremendous pressure and are highly motivated individuals as well. However, that need to achieve and succeed can also play a role in any area of their lives and this may be what happens when perception becomes distortion.
We know of cases of individuals who believe that a person in a position of authority loves them and is sending signals of some sort to them. These persons can do rather bizarre and dangerous things such as climbing fences at official residences, straying onto guarded areas, and entering homes via windows to see the beloved. I'm not saying that's the case here, but it points to one possibility.
The details will come out in time and our thoughts must be not only with this highly accomplished woman, but the three children who are victims, too.
Technorati Tags: Lisa Ann Nowak, NASA, astronaut, kidnapping
How could a highly successful, bright, career-track woman end up in a Florida parking lot with tools to kidnap and perhaps kill her "love rival" for the affection of another astronaut, a shuttle captain, U.S. Air Force Captain Colleen Shipman? The photos seem to tell the story of a woman who has undergone a dramatic change in appearance, and I'm left wondering what contributed to that change in body and mind.
It wouldn't be ethical for me to try to diagnose anyone from afar, but I can look at some of the details now coming out and offer some thoughts on what might have happened.
When the police searched Captain Nowak's car, they found a steel mallet, a folding knife, rubber tubing, rubber gloves, money, and love letters. This would seem to indicate that some thought went into her actions. The popular notion has always been that someone suffering from any type of mental incapacity is incapable of planning a detailed crime. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Individuals who have distorted reality testing can very well plan and carry out an action. This does nothing to speak to their mental state. They may not have the ability to think clearly regarding situations in their lives, but they do retain the ability to carry out a plan. The main problem here remains that they appear to be lucid rather than in a state of diminished capacity.
If I were to speculate on the lives of astronauts in general, I'd think that they must be under tremendous pressure and are highly motivated individuals as well. However, that need to achieve and succeed can also play a role in any area of their lives and this may be what happens when perception becomes distortion.
We know of cases of individuals who believe that a person in a position of authority loves them and is sending signals of some sort to them. These persons can do rather bizarre and dangerous things such as climbing fences at official residences, straying onto guarded areas, and entering homes via windows to see the beloved. I'm not saying that's the case here, but it points to one possibility.
The details will come out in time and our thoughts must be not only with this highly accomplished woman, but the three children who are victims, too.
Technorati Tags: Lisa Ann Nowak, NASA, astronaut, kidnapping
28 Comments:
Astronaut Love Triangle: 02/07/07
Did you hear about that space shot woman astronaut in Orlando who tried to kill that other guy astronaut? I think they should send her to the moon in a diaper and leave her there. Although, the jury still may be out on this one….lul….NOT! It still may not be too late for her to cash in on V-day in prison. Watch out guys, I heard she is a go-getter.
Thank-you so much for your article detailing the fact that someone in such a "mental crisis" could still carry out a detailed plan of destruction. Our judicial system really needs a overhaul of education in medical and psychiatric cases. More often than not these folks who need this help,not to mention their victims,are short-changed.
It's true. There's too little education and too much public outrage in these cases. We've got a long way to go.
God, what a nutjob. She'd most likely take a knife up there, and later on we'd find her up there doing weird stuff with dead astronaut heads. What a ZANY gal!!
I am tired of the argument that people with mental defects should be treated differently than the normal polulation once a personal crime has been committed or attempted.
Defects in mental capacity should not equal preferential treatment. The violence they are capable of committing is very real and innocent people should not have to fear for their safety just because certain members ofsociety deserve "compassion".
Once a violent act is committed or attempted, that person should be committed to a mental health ward until they are fully evaluated and treated. Upon release, someone MUST take responsibility for insuring that person remain on his/her medications and treatment. If for some reason, the patient stops treatment or meds (which is very common in mental patients) than the person who assumed responsibility for the patient should be held responsible for any crimes committed.
For anyone who thinks I am a cold, heartless human being... let me just say that I have lost two good friends to the acts of mental patients who were not being properly suervised by their caretakers. Several other friends were seriously hurt my mental patients. But that's the life of a cop.
I feel deeply sorry for this woman's husband and family. The kids will suffer the most. She is bound to be mentally ill and if she proves to be, then she should ot be allowed to be an astronaut. Those people face enogh danger without someone like this lady.
....give her a DISHONORABLE DISCHARGE from the Navy and let a Military Court under UCMJ handle her....
jealousy can be a deterant to sane/safe decisions. Some people cannot deal with extreme or otherwise jealousy, they should seek help with GOOD counseling.
I was initially shocked to hear the news of the astronaut love triangle. Then after considering the unusual happening, I was saddened for all involved, Lisa, her family, Shipman.
Someone who has experienced the heights of heroism, I believe become very vulnerable to distorted perceptions. This may be due to the fact that they have risen to the heights where much attention and many ecolays were slathered upon the them. They may lose a sense of identity with the real world and as a result become subject to perceptual distortions of reality.
The behavior of Lisa needs to be carefully assessed, her motivations understood, and her
ability to cope with reality evaluated. Whatever the outcome,
of such an assessment it does not excuse the action, but simply will provide a plausible reason for her behavior. Perhaps we can all learn from Lisa and become more aware of our diminishing orientation to reality when we are in stressful or unsually lofty life situations.
everyone's entitled to an opinion. how wonderful when we're allowed to share that opinion without unjust consequences.the flip side of that is everyone's subjected to opinions,also. not one of us is exempt from the judgement of others. its also true that not one of us is exempt from stress, pressure, and the effects of it. Lisa Marie is simply in the spotlight more than the rest of us.
fkpmsajhI feel differently about this. Most people including very mentally stable people are not immune to obsession when it comes to a romantic interest real or imagined. I don't think she would have killed this woman. If you want to kill someone, you don't go up to their car and knock on the window. Her tools could have been for breaking into her home or car etc. I think she has had a very controlled and successful exciting life and this out of character, risky behavior could be no different than Bill Clinton risking Hilary's wrath and the downfall of his Presidency for a trist with an overweight young girl.
I have not heard one word from anyone about her age and the fact that she is going thru perimenopause or whatever you want to call it. I had a stable life and went bonkers around that age - not as bad as Ms Novak, but bad enough. And I have talked to many women who have also had a hard time at "that age." When are the professionals going to acknowledge the problems women have around this age, rather than just saying it is caused by the stress of obligations between career and family?
I am really sorry to see comments that ridicule this woman or, for that matter, the newspaper cartoonists who, having nothing better to do, satirize her unstable and potentially very dangerous behavior.
She needs a full psychiatric evaluation and considerable counselling and possibly medication. Of course she should be relieved from her duties at NASA
while she deals with her mental condition and the legal mess that is piling up on her doorstep.
Her life is already a living hell.. and I'm really sorry for ALL
of the people who are victims here.
I hope that NASA continues to be supportive of her, whether or not she continues to work there.
Using expressions like "loony bin"
and "nut job" is part of the reason why so many people don't seek help for their personal problems. There are an awful lot of people out there who need professional help who are not getting it.
It troubles me deeply that NASA had no on-going psychological monitoring program of its astronauts to target potential emotional and mental upheavals in their lives. It also troubles me that NASA does not have a policy that forbids sexual fraternization among its astronauts. Suppose a problem occurs in outer space where two astronauts who are emotionally and sexually intimate are more worried about the safety of one another than the safety of the team? For an astronaut to involve himself emotionally and sexually (if this occured) with a married astronaut should be reasons for dismissal from the program. Potential problems always exist anytime persons working together become sexually involved. It should be a "no-no" policy not only in NASA, but in many work settings. When it happens, then the couple decides which one has to leave the organization, or transfer to another section of the organization. Lastly, we hear much talk about stress in the lives of astronauts. An emotional involvement in a love triangle outside of one's marriage would create acute stress for anyone, whether they are an astronaut or some other profession. Extra marital involvements can easily erupt into violence and that kind of potential problem can be predicted. NASA needs a complete overhual of its staffing policies as it relates to psycological assessment and monitoring of its astronauts and policy on after-hours fraternization involving sexual intimacy.
W
I have deep sympathy for Lisa and profound disgust for those who use her problem to makea profit. What happend to her coud happen to any of us. We are all human and are not hard-wired to avoid mental accidents. Like many others, she simply needs help.
LoL- i just love hearing these feminist-types scrambling to come up with explanations for the simple fact that Nowak has turned out to be, quite simply put, a crazy psycho bitch. the fact that she wore diapers on a 900 mile car trip so she wouldn't have to stop removes all doubt. you can sugar coat a turd all you want, but it's still a turd.
btw, if it was a male astronaut who did this, he'd be in jail right now. where's the equality in that?
Would she be getting all this sympathy if she were a man ? I dought it.
I feel bad for the effect that this will have on her and her family since she was in the public eye. I wish she had someone she could of talked to before doing such a life change decision. It's sad she was in a mental crisis and no one knew so they
could help her. My prayers to include her and her family. It's sad that others don't realize you can carry out detailed plans while in a break down. America read a book mental health is not new just not reconized.
To be honest I am frustrated with some of the responses left on this forum. It is very sad that in our nation, full of educated men and women, we are so uneducated and in many way unconcerned for mental health. I am very thankful to see someone encourage us in understanding and noticing mental health concerns. If we as a nation would rally to find ways to effectively help those dealing with mental conditions than maybe tragedies could be prevented. We should remember that those suffering with mental conditions are still wonderful people dealing with a very frustrating disease, and the disease in no way should outweigh the wonderful things that these individuals accomplish
Please be aware that what you hear in the media isn't entirely correct. She didn't go 900 miles wearing a "diaper" but did stop at a hotel, so take a moment to ponder what else is not entirely correct.
Thank you for this insightful article. Mental Illness is a real disease. I had a reaction to a medicine I was taking which resulted in confusion and mental instability. How terrible it was- I felt so out of control. This experience brought the Native American Proberb to light " Do not judge a man until you have walked a mile in his moccasins".
Mental Ilness does not take note of economis status or prestige. Ms. Novak, it seems, had reached her limit of stress. Her career, a separation, and the daily demands of life I am sure helped push her over the edge. It is time Mental Illness was treated as the reall illness it is. Thank you!
For all of the responders who have purjoratively used the terms "nut job", "zany", "crazy bitch" or suggested she would be treated differently as a man - I address this to you.
1. By using the purjoratives you have made it clear you think there IS something wrong with the Captain, but dismiss it as inconsequential. Mental illness can take many forms - this is just one. In her mind, what she was doing was rational, however, her mind wasn't in the real world. As little as 3-4 years ago, I would probably have joined the mob castigating this woman and wanting her to be thrown into a deep hole. Since then, the PTSD that I had concealed since Vietnam broke through and made me act irrational, as observed by an outsider, but everything I did, including the planned suicide, was a logical progression of facts from a to z - in my mind. Long work and stress can break the smartest, the most high achieving people in the world. The movie, "A Beautiful Mind" was a presentation of something that happened to a person so intelligent, he was years ahead of his contemporaries.
2. Everyone who has commented on the social changes that we need in our judicial system is absolutely on. Instead of the "Not guilty by reason of Insanity" plea, there should instead be an option to the jury. Guilty, but Insane. Wherein the person would first be treated in a facility for the criminally insane until such time as a number of doctors could agree the person was now sane. At that time, they would begin serving the sentence for the crime they had committed with 50% of the time spent being "psychologically" repaired counted against the criminal sentence.
3. Jerry D was bothered by the apparent laxity of the psycologiacl team, to which I can say that there is a phenomenon called "masking", where you conceal your crazy identity from the world by not acting crazy when you can be observed. Mostly, these kinds of things are all played out in the mind. If you do it for a while, you can become a phenomenal liar and equal to the very best actors in Hollywood. Psychologists and psychiatrists cannot read minds. They act on what they can see.
Whether she's mentally ill or not, the bottom line is that she must be held accountable for her actions. No one can be allowed to walk freely if they've attempted to harm someone. If mental illness is involved, the judicial system should include appropriate treatment in its decisions after proceedings. If she was not mentally ill, try her as anyone else would be and hand down an appropriate sentence if she's found guilty. Much needs to be determined and this is the judicial system's responsibility. Hopefully, they'll make decisions that are in the best interest of all.
As a recently betrayed Wife of 12 years, I KNOW how CRAZY an affair can make you, if you are the one who is betrayed! I have been on the verge of killing the TWO responsible for ruining my family and marriage, yet I thought of my son. I think that sometimes people just "snap".. I know, I've almost been there the last couple of months, and this is COMPLETELY out of character for me as well. Sometimes we hold so much in, that once we "snap" we can't control all the hurt and anger we are TRYING to deal with. Also, we don't know why she and her husband seprated.. could he have cheated on her also?? I'm not saying she shouldn't be held responsible for her actions, however we should look at all that encompassed her situation.
Just my opinion...
Peace...
I agree with the person posting that there is not enough information about mental diseases,not only in law enforcement institutions but also for the general public. An acquaintance of mine commited suicide about two weeks ago. It was a shock to me because he was a very active person, with friends and family around him. His family, the people who were around him the most, metioned they were thinking something like that will happen, since he had a clinical depression and the doctors metioned a chemical imbalance on the brain (after the death). My question is whether clinical depression is incurable? could this person have been saved with treatment? If the family would have been more informed, could they have helped?
I kinda find this article empty.
I heard she wore an adult diaper to attack the other woman so she would not have to stop to use the restroom.
NASA should fire all three of them! Plain and simple! There are many people who would proudly serve in the Astronaut Program and conduct themselves Professionally! What really is amazing that Shipman was sending messages to Bill while in orbit in Dec saying she couldnt wait to rip off his clothes... Would any employer think that was acceptable behavior? Not to mention misuse of commication equipment when so many peoples lives depend upon it! FIRE all 3 of them!!!
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