Hi There,

My mom has suffered from Schizophrenia for years now.
I am now 23 but when I was 9, she had a pshycotic episode. The situation got out of hand. We were renting an apartment at the time but due to her actions and paranoia she lost her pension she was getting that meant losing the flat and getting locked out. We ended up on the streets that we walked endlessly. There were times she didn't let me fall asleep believing that I was never going to wake up again.

When the police realised that we were in a particular spot for a few days they took me away from my mom and placed me in a foster home. In the mean time, she was in a hospital then given a Housing Commission place.

Now further down the track she has recently suffered another pshycotic episode. But this time with the help of the police and Health care workers I put her in a hospital for a while to get the proper care she needed.

Now she is doing fine but she has got noone besides me. I visit her every week and ring her to see if she's ok.

Her daily routine of cleaning and cooking has deteriorated and so I was thinking of placing her in a nursing home. Cause mind yo I lived with her again from when I was 17 to 20 and I was just stressed out and edgy.

I cannot see her like this and want to make sure that she is in the right place with the right care. She is now 65 yrs old.

Can anyone suggest anything I could do? Where I could put her?

hello cheeky.this is Mr.X.

i need to know some things first. what medication(s)is/are she taking? neuroleptics? if you live in the US, theres a new mediaction called Abilify, that i've heard have changed peoples lives dramatically. no symptoms, no side effects.

another thing i can tell you is she can have a nurse come to her house daily. i had this done to me when i was 9 years old, in school to help me take my medication for asthma. i'm not sure how much money it would be or if its covered by benefits or government. but look into it and maybe you can find out something. i know my grandmother used to have a nurse come to her house daily and prepare her breakfast, help her shower and get dressed, clean the house , and even prepare her meals for the day and make it simple for her to do it herself when she was ready to eat later on in the day.i hope you and your mother the best, and best of luck to her.

respectfully,
Mr.X.

Thanks for your reply Mr. X much appreciated....

firstly we live in Sydney, Australia...

Secondly I would agree to getting her a nurse at home... but due to her lack of English as well on the other hand and not getting around much she gets pretty lonely....

That's why I was kinda thinking of a nursing home...

bad idea?

Cheeky

Hi there,
My story is a bit like yours. I have a mom who was not able to raise me and my siblings. So we were raised in orphanages, foster homes, and group homes. Unfortunately, my brother inherited the disease, but much worse - he eventually died because of his paranoia.
She has been in and out of our lives in visiting us while we were institutionalized. When she got out her last mental hospital, she decided to return to Detroit (we are from Chicago) because she had many brothers and sisters there. Eventually, her physical and mental health deteriated (sp?)(mostly because she was abusing the many pills prescribed to her) and I placed her in minimum care facility. She was accepted because she was not violent and could physically move around. But then, several years later, her health further deteriated and she went into a full care nursing home. Her medications are closely monitored, and I think this was the best move for her. She, like us, got used to institutionalization. Further, although we don't visit her often (mostly out of choice as she is not a nice person - and this is NOT due to her condition), we can console ourselves that she is being well taken care of.
Regarding your situation, it seems that you have alot deeper connections to your mom than we do. Speaking another language other than the language spoken in your country will not be good for her, unless of course being bilingual is quite common, and others speak her language as well. Is she nice to others where she won't start fights with them? This is a great advantage. Further, nursing homes tend to be much more careful if family constantly visit them. My mom does have some frequent visitors.
I hope this helps you. God bless. I dealt with my younger brother (the one who was also ill) and it was very difficult - particularly because I felt like I was my brother's keeper. Please don't feel obliged - remember it is not your fault and it is also not her fault - so make the decision accordingly. Good luck

Hi Esperenza,

I greatly appreciate your advise.....

A lot of times it feels like I'm alone in this world cause the rest of the family just won't help when it comes to my mom....

After I got put into the orphanage/foster home I hated my mom.... but as I grew up I got over it and understood more what happened and why....

and now its my turn to return the favour.... just want to make sure she is at the right place with the right people and medication.

Cheers,

Cheeky :0

Originally posted by Excalibre:
hello cheeky.this is Mr.X.

i need to know some things first. what medication(s)is/are she taking? neuroleptics? if you live in the US, theres a new mediaction called Abilify, that i've heard have changed peoples lives dramatically. no symptoms, no side effects.

another thing i can tell you is she can have a nurse come to her house daily. i had this done to me when i was 9 years old, in school to help me take my medication for asthma. i'm not sure how much money it would be or if its covered by benefits or government. but look into it and maybe you can find out something. i know my grandmother used to have a nurse come to her house daily and prepare her breakfast, help her shower and get dressed, clean the house , and even prepare her meals for the day and make it simple for her to do it herself when she was ready to eat later on in the day.i hope you and your mother the best, and best of luck to her.

respectfully,
Mr.X.

Mr x,
You seem to be very knowledgeable. I have a dear
relative that is now taking Geodon and Celexa.
I would say the voices are deminished but he is unmotivated, still delusional, mild paranoia, fearful,
vomiting, withdrawn, obssessions and weight gain.
His doctor mentioned changing to Abilify. What do
you think? He is taking 160mg Geodon and 20 mg Celexa.
He has sufferred from this for 4 years. He is now 23
years old and unable to concentrate well enough to continue college. His history of drugs have been
Risperdol, and Geodon. Before Risperdol he took one
that started with a P but I can not think of it.
Please help.

Cheeky - have you made a decision yet?

Hi Esperanza,

Well I gotto take her to her GP and get what is called an aged care assessment team to assess her. Then I can put her on the nursing home's waiting list.... though they said it may be a fair bit of a wait.

Other then that I guess just do as I've been doing visit her every week and call her during each week until the times comes when they accept her in the nursing home.

Hopefully its not big of a wait!

Have they made their assessment yet?

Hi there,

No they haven't....

We'll probably have to wait for a month....

Cheeky

Cheeky - http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/wave.gif how are you holding out?
I am thinking about you and sending you the best.

Hi there,


Bit stressed out.... her doc is on holidays but should be back shortly....

but apart from that I try my best to keep an eye out for her.... at this stage....

I just wish that I could push a good place into accepting her so she can get 24hr assistance that I can not give.... but I think the wait will be quiet sometime.

Cheeky http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/smile.gif

Hi,

My thoughts are with you! My mom is schizophrenic, too, and I just wanted to share a few things,

First, I think your mom absolutely needs 24 hr care like a nursing home, most important that they feed her proper meals and keep her on a regular schedule, and monitor her medicine, and watch her comings and goings. This is more than you can probably handle on your own, but don't feel guilty.

Second, the doctors, etc., can and will give you a lot of opinions about what to do with her, but ultimately she's YOUR mom and you should trust your own judgement in the end,

Third, my mom tried the medicine Abilify and landed in the hospital for three weeks with very bad side effects, I would not recommend it, there are some more "tried and true" medicines out there. Also, don't let the health care people overmedicate her either...

I hope for the best for you.

Hi Summit 71,

I appreciate your opinion.... its not easy sometimes, is it....

This friday I'm actually going with my mom to her doctor who's been on holidays.... and organising the health/aged care assessment people referral.

Hopefully all goes according to plan.

Love,

Cheeky

Cheeky - my prayers and best wishes are with you. I know that we are all glad that our mom is in a facility that takes care of all her needs.