Does any one else have this issue where your son/daughter will leave home and just drive for hundreds of miles per day? My son who is paranoid SZ and unmedicated drives for hours and hundreds of miles every day. Wastes gas and the miles are stacking up. He is always in psychosis and no matter what we say to him he comes home, paces, goes back out and drives for several hours, comes home, goes to his room, paces then goes back out again. He was out last week for 16 hours.
A few forum members have mentioned that going for drives with their diagnosed charges seems to calm them and makes them talk more freely. Your son’s behavior’s a bit different, because he does this alone.
From my diagnosed experience, I speculate a combination of the following may in play: a car offers escape, it’s a controlled environment, the white noise of driving may drown out heightened audio perceptions or hallucinations, if you have a persecutory or surveillance concerns you can test if you’re being observed or followed and feel more safe. You can play music at high levels without disturbing others, etc.
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Morning, thank you for the information. Yeah i assumed driving is his escape from the noise and thoughts. He is always talking about “getting out of here”. He wants to move away. We are trying to get his financials in order to allow him to find a place he can afford to move to but its going to take some time.
I know my daughter who is unmedicated likes going for rides everyday!. It does seem to calm her after a while of riding at first she is jabbering like crazy and then she seems to calm. Of course she never want to go home, it always a little while longer. If she could be out the 14 hrs straight she would love it. I have asked her about driving and she will say do you think that is a good idea, I don’t think it would be safe. Which I don’t either just seeing what she say’s. I can have her do directions and she likes doing projects (not cleaning) like taking a door knob off and replacing it. Or moving electronics about and wiring everything up or figuring out how to. If those dam voices that get her so upset to the point of hitting herself would just go away. Or if she would take meds but she thinks the voices are of angels and dead people. She is special for hearing them. She will even say that the voices have schizzy. (schizophrenia). I have tried telling her the voices needs meds, but then she will say she is not taking meds for anyone. There is always and excuse for no meds. Even though I know she did better on them mentally, but too many physicall side effects.
It’s so difficult when our loved ones are unmedicated. We can’t understand irrational behavior rationally. He probably just feels better driving. Thankfully it sounds like he’s driving safely.
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My son likes to get out and ride around. He doesn’t have driving privileges due to my rules. I know it helps him and it’s good for our relationship as well. My heart goes out to you, Refueler1. On the more difficult days my consolation is prayer. Not for everyone, I know, but it does help me endure.
Prayer and meditation are my saviors too. And support meetings help. This is a rough stigmatized journey for our loved ones and for us caring parents who try to support them the best we can.
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My wife and I are going to our first NAMI meeting this evening. Hope someone there has good advice on how to destress from all this. I feel like if i try to concentrate on my work then im ignoring my son but then when i concentrate on my son i have worry, fear, anxiety, all the stress you can imagine. I just cant do work stress and son stress…
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This is giving me a whole new insight into a man i knew, or knew of, as a kid. He drove all day long. We were warned to always be careful when we saw his car because he was a horrible driver. Its been 40 years since I have thought of him. Perhaps he was suffering from schizophrenia.
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It is hard to maintain a balance. Somedays I do, somedays I don’t. Hope you find some consolation & peace at the meeting. 
It is so stressful and sometimes I handle it ok and sometimes I just fall apart and i get feel sooo sad and hopeless and overwhelmed. Yoga, exercise and meditation helps, and I regularly go to support groups and I have anxiety meds from my doctor for when the stress is so overwhelming I can not function. Remember you are not alone. It is a terrible illness and puts a huge toll on the whole family. But we have no choice but to put one foot before the other and go on. Take care.
We did attend the NAMI meeting last night. Many people there explaining there loved ones illnesses. We are going to another meeting tonight on southside of town. My wife and i will be setting some boundaries for our son very soon to inform him that if he continues to refuse to go to a counselor and seek help then he will not be able to stay in our home. We hate to give him that choice but if we let him stay he will continue to go in and out of psychosis and drive us totally insane. We are coming into the winter season so not sure if we should wait till spring to give him this choice or not. Just dont know what to do at this point.