Hello all. This is my first post, so I don’t know how much information I should share.
I’m looking for guidance how to help a member of our community that has been diagnosed with schizophrenia. Jane was diagnosed after a traumatic brain injury around 2012. Her primary caregiver was her grandmother who passed away around 2018. Her mother passed away shortly thereafter. She has no other family involved. We live in a small rural community in Texas. She wanders the streets all day and night and I (along with many others) feel she is going to be hurt. She doesn’t eat properly and has lost so much weight. How can we as a community get help for her when law enforcement and APS are unwilling to help? She lives alone in abhorrent conditions. There are several of us in the community that try to help her by giving her rides home and making sure she’s fed. I just don’t know what to do for her and she’s getting much worse everyday.
Try talking to your county judge about Jane’s situation. Our county judge has placed people, in circumstances similar to Jane’s, to live in nursing homes and the expenses are paid by Medicaid.
The judge can declare the state of Texas as her guardian.
I am glad @Cat10102 that you found this site. I hope you find some help here. You are very kind to be trying to help this woman.
In my city, there are so many homeless mentally ill people. They “system” doesn’t really work well unless someone pushes for help for the ill person. I think you should try to find help through a judge. It was ONLY through a judge and social services that I was able to get my daughter into treatment.
She likely needs medication, and psych, counceling and can get a caregiver that cones free to clean, make sure she takes meds, and gets to doctors, gets groceries, ect. I used to do this job…make sure ahe is signed for free medical, food stamps (snap), and all. Social workers are also suppose to help with this…
My son is with me but he would be like that if I wasnt here. There r also, people that take others in their homes and have a fee…but is she paying the bikks? She likely needs help.with that and to pay property tax so they dont take home.she may need conservator
Whatever happened to the Wellstone/ Domenici MHPAEA (mental health parity addiction act of 2008) There are poor services for mental health. Just look at homelessness as above. NAMI does have some support groups and education but does little to champion for services… I was on the NAMI Bd for MA for 7 years… but have been off ten or so years and it’s so much worse.
America only listens to lawsuits … and big ones… I cannot believe that between mental health and autism there isn’t enough $$$ out there to have a class action suit… of course, this in a country that in a few years will be cutting social security – including disability SSI etc… and medicare for it’s citizens… This country no longer is a world leader in so many ways… and this is one of them… To just simply have EVERYONE pay 7.5% on earned income no matter WHAT or how much it is would change this— as of now I believe you only have to pay 7.5% on the first $140,000… so the wealthy win again.
So I live in the best state for mental health… but have seen the system in KY, a not so great state, when our daughter lived there for ten years. It was terrible there… People who worked for social security could care less… of course, there were some good ones but most just collected a pay check.
How did tobacco do it… Who was the organization that got that suit going? There seems like there should be a play book somewhere…
But maybe it’s everyone for themself… I applaud any town or person etc… who wants to help someone. This is a tragedy happening all over the country.
No wonder suicide is seen as a treatment option…
I think that she has an aunt that lives in a different town that makes sure her rent is paid. She doesn’t want to bother herself with the other stuff. I was told by another person that cares about her like I do, that she has used up all of her lifetime mental health days with Medicare. Like I said, this is a really small town with no resources to help someone like her. The nearest city is 45 minutes away and the NAMI office there closed permanently during the pandemic. I have a feeling that she uses up all of her SNAP $ very quickly. She is hyper religious and has been buying lots of different oils (coconut, grapeseed, etc) and wants to eat only honey. It’s a sad sad story. We are going to continue to care for her however we can and hope and pray that someone comes up with something to help her. Thank you all so much.