What Families Have To Deal With
What happens to families when a loved one gets a severe brain disorder?
1. Illness causes family units to become unstable
2.Families loose the lives that they had (mourn) including the ill person.
3.Due to the nature of the illness the loved one withdraws from the family
4.Families become isolated as there is discrimination through lack of knowledge off the illness by other family members and friends (not allowed to attend holidays or weddings)
5.Families are fearful when loved ones are psychotic. Have to lock bedroom door at night.
6.Stress of illness causes rifts between parents….break up of families
7.Siblings traumatized and feel abandoned ,to much attention going to the ill person.
8.Families feel as though they are having a nightmare and cant wake up. Their child does not want to be ill. Some children have an insight into their illness, some don’t.
For those who don’t have insight into their illness, being carried away in an ambulance, in the presence of police, is hugely traumatic to for them, the parents and siblings.
9.Parents feel they are not heard, especially in our current mental health care system. They feel a loss of dignity.They suffer from Post traumatic Stress Syndrome
10. From moment to moment the family does not know what is going to happen. Their lives are unpredictable.
11. Children disappear…leave the country
12. Families cannot leave home for a weekend or a holiday. Cannot leave their children alone.
13.Caregiving results in chronic stress.
14. Duration and level of care causes caregiver depression
15.Caregivers are put in a negative position with their loved ones because it becomes the caregiver to contact the police over and over again to try to get their loved ones help.
16.Police will handcuffs the loved ones making them out as criminals
17.Cost for caregivers is high financially, physically and mentally.
18.Quality of life and well being is negative for both the loved one and caregiver.
