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Employer of the Year! There is no plaque, no luncheon, just my undying gratitude for not letting my son’s diagnosis of schizophrenia get in the way of keeping him on as a valued employee.
For that, Ben’s employer – and any employer with the foresight to see and treat mental illness the same way you’d look at any other illness – gets my personal award for “Employer of the Year.”
Thank you. Keep reading
Getting a diagnosis of schizophrenia, or any mental illness, after years of confusion, judgment and blame is both devastating – and a relief.
For Mental Health Awareness Day, here’s how it felt for our family. Watch. Keep reading
It’s May: Mental Health Awareness Month – and I hope you had a great Mothers’ Day on Sunday.
Last week, I had the opportunity to present at the APA (American Psychiatric Association) 165th Annual Conference, about the value of a “therapeutic alliance” between caregivers (often families), healthcare providers, and PAMIs (Person Affected by Mental Illness -a word I use instead of “patient”). My co-presenter was Peter J.Weiden, MD, who advocates for the same respect, partnership and open communication.
My “credentials”, next to his “MD“? Randye Kaye, MRG (Mom who Refused to Give up). Yes, I have other letters that could go after my name – but those are the ones that really matter as I speak to audiences about our family journey. Keep reading
“Katy Jones” is now a high school student. She might not have made it past the seventh grade, though. It took a watchful teacher and a caring school psychologist to take the action that Katy’s family was afraid of: admitting Katy for help when the risk was that “people might think she’s crazy.” Keep reading
a reminder of hope - and the need to be prepared
Today is my son Ben’s 30th birthday. Whoa. How did this happen? I know every parent feels this same sense of disbelief as their children celebrate milestones; still, when your child has dealt with serious illness, that sense of wonder is enhanced by the fear you have felt in the past.
I remember asking myself: will Ben even live to be 30?
I know there are many parents who share these fears for many different reasons – even with perfectly healthy children, fear of losing your child is part of the beautiful package of love. No, Ben has not been diagnosed with cancer or heart disease. He has not been deployed to a war zone.
Ben has schizophrenia, a physical illness of the brain. Yes, it has changed our family forever. But is it life-threatening?
You bet it is. Keep reading
Senator Tom Daschle Delivered an Inspiring Keynote - including an encouraging answer to my question about the Value of Personal Stories to Healthcare Reform!
What a week! Had the privilege of speaking with behavioral healthcare providers and more at the 2012 National Council Conference in Chicago. I not only got the chance to share our family story – from chaos to recovery - in a session, but I also got to meet Healthy Places’ Breaking Bipolar Blogger, Natasha Tracy in person, attend her session “To Blog or Not to Blog”, and share some amazing tapas with her at an Iron Chef restaurant! Natasha is a wonderful writer, and amazing person. We had a great time.
The education track for my presentation was called “Personal Stories of Recovery.” But it can’t just stop with the story. We tell our stories of mental illness for a purpose…and, in this case, I asked the group to note, as they listened, which provider actions worked to help my son, Ben, and our family through crisis to recovery, and which did not (or even made things worse).
Here is the “Top Ten List” that was the take-away: Keep reading
“We’re all human beings too, no matter what anybody says.”
These are the words of “P.G.H.”, age 16, whose art is part of a traveling exhibition called Voices:The Art of Children, Adolescents and Young Adults Touched by Mental Illness now displayed at the Legislative Office Building in Hartford, CT. The exhibit will be there through noon on April 13th, 2012, and then will travel to other areas of Connecticut.
Young adults diagnosed with mental illness often feel their potential is lost in the sea of crisis, diagnosis, treatment, and stigma. Especially stigma. Ann Nelson, founder of advocacy organization A Compassionate Mind, wants to create opportunities that, in her words, “offers a voice for youth living with a mental illness utilizing their artist gifts as an awareness and stigma reduction tool.” Keep reading
Nine years ago, I was appointed conservator of estate and person for my son Ben. I remember the court hearing well. Ben was in the middle of his first hospitalization for schizophrenia, refusing medication and wanted to be released. The only way to keep him in the hospital, if he did not agree to stay voluntarily (and that certainly wasn’t happening), was to apply for conservatorship. The hospital would then be legally required to keep Ben there – at least until the court date. Keep reading
Ever since my son’s diagnosis of schizophrenia, we have had to work around his strong desire to live without his mental health medications. In the past, he has refused them, cheeked them, thrown them up after swallowing them. They’ve been hidden in his pockets, his closet, in the bottom of the garbage. Things are better now, but mostly because we are on to his tricks. I’d like to think he is cooperating now because of some insight – but the most probable reason is that he simply can’t get away with not taking them easily anymore. Keep reading
For Better of Worse? Yes, that’s the vow. But when the symptoms of mental illness seem to change the personality – the very soul - of your husband or wife, how do you keep going? How do you hold the family together? Keep reading
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