Paranoid schizophrenia6/4/2023 ![]() ![]() In reading further, please keep in mind the content may cause emotional distress. The article below mentions suicidal thoughts. ![]() Contact us to learn more about our renowned program and how we can help you or your loved one start the journey toward recovery.What It’s Like to Live With explores the stories of people who see and experience every day a little differently. BrightQuest offers long-term treatment for people struggling with schizoaffective disorders, schizophrenia, and severe bipolar as well as co-occurring substance use disorders and process addictions. If you’re concerned about a loved one and believe they may need residential care, we can help. With a solid foundation of medical care, therapy, and family support my son has a great future ahead of him. The future looks different, but it looks good. Treatment, both for my son and me, has been the best thing for both of us. He’s planning to stay at home and try community college for a year or two before we decide what his next steps will be. He is back in school and spends most of his time in regular education classes. He makes decisions for himself, and I let him do things his own way most of the time. We have hope.Įvery day, my son works on managing symptoms and learning to be independent. The reality is that, while our vision of the future has changed, it isn’t terrible. Any parent wants their child to be healthy and happy, and for a long time I thought this diagnosis would mean that my son couldn’t possibly have the life I dreamed for him. This has been the biggest challenge of my life. With therapy, I learned how to manage my stress better, how to cope with the challenges of my caregiving position, and to minimize depression symptoms. But it’s proven to be well worth the time. ![]() So, on top of caring for my son I need to take time out to get my own treatment. He told me that depression was actually pretty common for someone in my position. She encouraged me to see her therapist, and he diagnosed me with major depression. My sister was the first to notice that something was wrong, something beyond the normal difficulties of caring for a child with schizophrenia. I struggled to get out of bed and was doing the bare minimum to get by each day. I felt as if I just couldn’t do right for my son. Since my son first got his diagnosis, my own mental health has deteriorated. It feels like abandonment, like being a bad parent. But when you’re a mother and your son is struggling, it’s hard to take time away. Anything you read about being a caregiver will tell you to also take care of yourself. I’ll never forget the day my son came to me to confess that he thought the CIA was following him and that this was why he had stopped leaving the house and didn’t want to go to school. I look back now and understand why these signs didn’t immediately register as schizophrenia or psychosis, but I still feel guilty that it wasn’t until he got really paranoid that I actually did something about it. Around the rest of the family he seemed so emotionless, not like our usual boy who always had an opinion and something to say. I first considered this to be a type of normal teenage behavior, but it did start to worry me. ![]() He started spending less time with his friends and more time alone in his room. He had always been a good student, but the change was subtle at first. Looking back now, I realize this was probably the first sign. His grades started dropping in his junior year. So when my son started exhibiting early signs of psychosis, I ignored them for too long. Schizophrenia is not common, and no mother expects her teenage son to have this serious condition. ![]()
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