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My son
has been diagnosed with Schizophrenia.
Nearly 1 year ago our son had his first psychotic break.
Within a week of this we were receiving counselling from
Diane Grenier and Olga Lipadatova and continue to do so.
With their guidance we were able to help our son get the
treatment that he needed. He was a patient at the Lakeshore
General Hospital for over 2 months last summer, within weeks
of the onset of psychosis.
Our summer of 2005 was
very difficult. On June 30, our son was brought into the
Jewish General Hospital acutely psychotic. We went through a
nightmarish week, in and out of the hospital a few times,
then the Lakeshore General, then West Island Crisis Centre,
before the Lakeshore General decided to take out a court
order to have him confined for 21 days. While on a court
order in the hospital, our son was difficult. He would not
take his medication, was quite obsessed with escaping and
had absolutely no insight. After his release from the
hospital he spent four days walking the streets sleeping in
shelters and metro stations as we would not take him in.
The weather was extremely
rainy during those four days, and when he could no longer
stand it anymore he came to our door step begging to come
into our house. We opened a window to talk to him, and we
said no, you can’t come in. This was part of the strategy of
limit setting that Dianne and Olga had taught us.
However we did tell him that if he wanted to go to the
hospital we would call an ambulance. He asked that we call
for an ambulance, and then he walked right into the back of
it with the attendants. We did not go with him to the
hospital. This was his decision. We prayed that when he got
to the hospital he would not change his mind and that he
actually would get admitted into 4 East. He stayed in the
hospital for 30 days voluntarily, until he decided to go to
a group home.
Last
Sunday, our son was talking to us, about those four days on
the street. He said, he did not realize how sick he was, but
he knew we loved him, and we kept telling him he needed to
go to the hospital. He also said that he could not stand
living on the street anymore because he felt like he was a
mouse in a very rainy jungle. This was his rock bottom.
It
was a very difficult time for us watching our son go through
this, but he is thankful to have been hospitalized long
enough to recognize the benefits of medication.
When
mental illness strikes it is incredibly painful for the
family. Our son suddenly became acutely psychotic so denial
was not an option for us, but we had no idea what to do.
With the help of Diane and Olga we found the support we
needed, we were coached on the best ways to handle all the
different crisis situations that came up, were informed
about the different resources on the West Island, and guided
on how best to communicate with the treatment team. As a
result our experience with Lakeshore General Hospital, the
psychiatric outpatient clinic and the different mental
health groups has been very positive.
Throughout this period, our family has benefited from all
the educational opportunities that are available through
Friends
which have helped us
to learn more about psychosis and schizophrenia. In the fall
I took the NAMI course at
Friends.
Through the NAMI course I was able to learn about the
illness in a supportive setting. I made many new friends,
and as we learned, we shared, grieved and got stronger
helping each other along. Then, in October, my husband and I
attended the Bill Mc Phee conference. Bill Mc Phee’s talk
showed us that recovery from schizophrenia was possible and
that mental illness was not all about despair. He gave us a
lot of hope. In addition, your pamphlets and newsletters
provided us with more needed information on the illnesses
and local services.
As
our son now had insight and wanted to talk to us about his
illness, we found these resources were very helpful.
We also attended the
different fundraising activities that Friends organized.
Through attending these events, we have been able to connect
with our new friends and the mental health workers who have
been part of our support network. It reminded us that we
were not alone, and it allowed us to help your organization,
which has now become so important in our lives.
A very special evening
for us, was the conference featuring our son’s psychiatrist
Dr. De Ciccio talking about psychosis. We were pleased that
our son had asked us to take him. As we followed Dr. De
Ciccio`s lecture we could see that all the steps that we
took last summer following Diane and Olga`s counselling
resulted in a quick response to obtaining treatment. Our son
participated in the question period following the talk and
we all left with much optimism.
Our son has gone from being
acutely psychotic last summer with no insight into his
illness, to being stable, taking his meds faithfully without
being told to, and working with his psychiatrist in regular
follow-ups to manage his symptoms. He is now living in a
group home, learning how to play the guitar and is
determined to go on with his life. He says that his quality
of life is much better now. As research claims, quick
response to psychosis and family support is beneficial in
the path to recovery. We know this path is not going to be
easy but we are very proud of how far our son has come and
know we still have far to go, and it is going to be up and
down and round about as we go.
I would like to say to you
at Friends that what you do is so vital for families going
through a mental health crisis. You are there for us when we
need you. You let us know we are not alone. You guide us and
help us develop the strength needed to assist our loved ones
in getting treatment and to see them through the recovery
process.
Thank you for your
incredibly important work.
Thank you all,
Susan
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