I am wondering if any others contemplate whether they might be attacked or killed by schizoaffective adult child? I have read about such happenings and don’t think it’s even on any horizon but how does one know ? I know the sick ones are more likely to be attacked by others due to their vulnerable mental health.
But it is a curious wonder if I might ever be the victim and I didn’t see it coming. He is good about meds and isn’t in an active psychosis that I can see. But one wonders if other customs often thought the same as me but were wrong.
I can financially support him but it would be helpful if he would look out for his own welfare more but it usually falls on me. It is like having a 6 y.o. Again as far as getting him Medical care, dental care and getting his meds at cheapest rate due to charity programs.
His dad is uninvolved and we are divorced. I think how convenient to ignore your own son’s serious medical problems and doesn’t even reach out to him. I chalk it up to his being a self centered person and I can’t influence that behavior.
Anyway. Thanks for listening. It could be worse and I am grateful for current peaceful relationship w my adult son. It can’t be fun for him to live w mom at age 40 and not have a girlfriend.
One day at a time.
I experienced violence before my son and was diagnosed and a lot of threats around the time of his diagnosis but since he has been treatment-compliant he is his usual charming and loving self. I’m not afraid at all now.
As long as he takes his medication, he should be ok. You ca tell when he stops . Try and get him on social security disability, that is what my son is on, and helps. Maybe he is elgibile for Medicaid, look into it and one day at a time.
Only a small percentage of individuals with schizophrenia are violent. My daughter has never been physically violent with me. She does raise her voice, but I have learned to deal with it over the years. I acknowledge what she says, and let it go.
My son was unexpectedly violent to me during his second psychotic episode. I didn’t see it coming, although I knew he was in another hole. His meds were sub-therapeutic and he crashed quickly, in a matter of a couple of days. Pay attention to his symptoms- be sure he takes his meds, hide the knife block in the kitchen… I know violence is rare and I sure didn’t expect it. Good luck to you.
In Family to Family they teach that if they are medicated, their potential for violence is the same as the rest of the population. Dr E Torrey Fuller says NAMI underplays the possibility for violence.
I have known several people who encountered violence at the hands of their family members with scz. A member of our FtF class and her husband were killed by their son with scz. He had been threatening to kill them for some time.
The sources seems to agree that the most predictable factor is behavior before becoming ill with scz. Someone who had a tendency for violence before the illness would be a higher risk for violence with scz.
We have to always be careful with our son. Even though he was not a violent person before the illness. His scz is paranoia based and he has delusions that we have sexually abusied him. People with scz that suffer from severe paranoia can sometimes hurt someone because they believe they themselves are in danger.
Our son has never hurt us, but he has had episodes where he destroyed things and threw a large rock at me. He did thousands of dollars of damage to the garage apartment we built for him.
My mother is schizophrenic. Sometimes the voices tell her to kill her boyfriend, me and herself. she really wants to kill herself sometimes, but doesn’t “for me”. I love hearing about how I’m “the reason she suffers so immensely, how she’d be dead and at peace if not for me tethering her to this world.” so grandiose. she’s also diabetic. She’s seriously thought about killing me in my sleep by injecting me with insulin. I worry about that every night, because she goes back and forth.
I agree with Hope as this seems to usually apply to what they were like before their illness. That is not to say you shouldn’t have your guard up just in case…