Mom of Two Sons with Schizophrenia

Family
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*I have three sons, but two sons with Schizophrenia…

One son is 44 years old,and he stays on his medication… He does fairly well,and lives with a wonderful caregiver. We have a good relationship with him,and he was diagnosed in his late 30’s…

My youngest son , diagnose at 22 years old, is now 38 years old… We did everything to try helping him to him living with us, living with his brother, group homes, to buying him a trailer to live in, and renting motels for him…

He is very violent, and yes, still does drugs…

No living arrangement worked with him, so when my husband retired we moved,and he contacts me by my phone for his disability money…which isn’t very often anymore…

My husband has never been diagnosed with mental illness,but he pretty much stays depressed…

The disease has pretty much destroyed our family,and my faith in God, is my hope…

Sorry for a depressing post,but that’s been our experience , since my sons were young teens…

No doubt , in my mind, marijuana triggered their disease which we never allowed or did drugs in our home, so I sincerely hate drugs…and this disease…

Schizophrenia runs in both sides of our family which neither one of us knew or I wouldn’t had children…

Society still doesn’t accept the disease,and we don’t share it with anyone since we moved…

People just does not understand…

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Yes @Jeani, this is an awful disease that destroys lives. I’m so sorry you lost two of your children to it.

I’m pretty certain the THC in pot triggered our son’s illness as well. He’s now 23, but a shell of who he was.

I understand. We here on this forum understand.

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Oh, @Jeani, yes, I understand, I share your feelings that other people, not affected in their family by sz, do NOT understand. I pretty much stopped talking about it to anyone except for this forum and NAMI meetings. My daughter never did any illegal drugs, very little alcohol, and almost no medicines during her life, but got ill at age 32. She is currently medication compliant on a monthly injection, and has a life, very different from her old life, but a life outside of her illness. Her three siblings are fine, but scared of course that it could happen to them. She was the oldest. I am sorry that mental illness had hit two of your children and depression has hit your husband. A terrible lifelong burden for you to bear, for sure. It is OK to post here about your feelings, whatever they are. I am glad you found this forum.

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@Jeani I read your post and can related with your comment that marijuana triggers this disease. My son’s first psychotic episode happened when 911 was on the TV news, my son could not sleep and was smoking marijuana - 5 days, senior in college. He is now 39 and has no insight into his illness. He did from 2001 to 2015, took his medication and followed the recommendations. In 2015 his psychiatrist changed his medication and he hasn’t recovered yet after many, many hospitalizations. My mother-in-law also had severe mental illness, but I was ignorant to this disease and it never crossed my mind that my children could come down with this illness.

You are absolutely correct when you stated that people just do not understand.

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Hi,

My son was diagnosed 2 weeks before his 24th birthday… he was the typical teenager… smoking pot and experimenting with drugs… however, his psych doctor and the psych doctor for the SS administration both believe that a severe blow to the frontal lobe of my son’s head and severe trauma from a dog attack is what brought on my son’s schizophrenia… the blow to the head came at the age of 16.5 when he was jumping over a couch chasing a girl and his head struck the iron IBeam in the basement of our house… knocked him out for a little bit… no bump, just a huge bruise. The psych docs agree that the fact that he had such a blow to the head he probably began his journey with schizophrenia at that point. It was a few years later that he began being paranoid. It’s been 9 years, hard to believe, but it sure makes sense. I guess what I’m getting at is have either of your sons ever had a severe blow to the head or a traumatizing event in their lives? Just curious.

Thanks.

Val

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@valegregg58 my son never had a blow to his head. My son was the type of child that he would get upset if he did something wrong. I never had to discipline him as a young child; in fact he would get so upset that would cause him to vomit. The only thing that I remember while he was in school is that every year there would be one teacher that seemed to favor the girls more. Or there would also be one teacher that just doesn’t like me for one reason or another. I really do not know of any trauma other than 911, which was one of the triggers along with a divorce of his parents in 1999, and he was an architect major which required many nights working through the entire night. Those events were very stressful for him. Mental illness runs in his father’s family, my son’s grandmother had a severe type of mental illness like my son.

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I’m so sorry for what you’re going through your story sounds so much like mine. My oldest son 45 and has schizophrenia he’s been in hospital 4 times now he’s on a community treatment order for six months. The doctor doesn’t want to renew his CTO. In the past he always stopped taking his medication he has gained 50 pounds and is really obsessed with that.
My other son is 41 and suffering from depression and is a bindge drinker.
My husband is bipoler. You arecso right people just don’t understand. I don’t talk to anyone in my family or outside. My thoughts go out to you.