I got an email this week from a frantic friend. She had gotten a phone call from an investigator for the county Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) informing her that she and her husband are under investigation and they needed to meet with him.
She is the mother of two children; one diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder and OCD, the other neurotypical. Understandably, she is a nervous wreck. The investigator didn’t say why he was calling or what or who was being investigated. She didn’t know whether to call an attorney or not. She wrote me asking for some advice and some comfort, which I gave, but I punctuated it with a phrase I know she didn’t want to hear, but had to. Get used to it.
Read the rest at S-O-S Research Blog.
I think it's pretty sad that we parents of mentally ill children have to endure 'citings' to the state and other agencies. It's flat out wrong but like you said, "get used to it!" which sucks!
It is so sad that this is a part of the baggage we have to carry and endure in our already difficult and stressful lives, but I can only imagine what it must sound like to neighbors who hear my daughter and I in the midst of her Bipolar rage or the times when, unfortunately, the rage happened in the front yard. It must look and sound terrible to others and I'm grateful that someone would make the call instead of thinking a child is being beaten and just ignoring it.
I say to all parents of mentally ill children: make your neighbors aware of your child's illness and drop off a little booklet informing them about it (be sure the booklet or printed information includes something about the rages the child is prone to due to the illness) and keep an envelope with you at all times with the child's diagnosis and hospital discharge papers. This comes in handy when police need to know that your child is ill, not a juvenile delinquent that needs rude, snide remarks because that will only exasterbate a Bipolar child. It is good to have this information on hand because you never know when you'll be in a situation where you will have to prove your child's illness for one reason or another
I didn't realize there was more to the story. I posted before reading that the reports typically are not because of anything other than the child's behavior making someone think abuse may be occurring in the home.
I apologize for jumping the gun with my post, but it is still so important to carry your child's diagnosis/hospital discharge papers/police reports around with you. It's my safety net and I've had to pull them out a couple times.
Wishing you balance.
~Melissa