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Sharing Hope
Photo by Waqar Bukhari Our lives – me, my kids, my husband, other parents like us, other kids like mine – are complicated and messy. Everyone’s lives are complicated and messy but our lives have an extra added shot of complication and a healthy dose of mess more than the average life. Trying to make…
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What is Schizophrenia?
See the entire graphic novel chapter by Darryl Cunningham here or buy his book, Psychiatric Tales.
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Waiting for the Other Shoe to Drop
Photo by Roman Skrada My son has been in residential treatment for two years this month. I can’t believe he’s been living away from home for that long. It seems like it was just a few months ago we were sitting at the kitchen table, making the decision on the residential programs we wanted to…
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He’s Leaving Home: A Love Letter
I don’t talk about them a lot here, but we do have two children besides Tim. Our oldest, “Sandy,” is 20 years old. He’s our biological child and, for better or for worse, is a chip off the old blocks. Both of us. He’s got the tall, lanky body and strong chin of Tom and…
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On Memorial Day, Honor ALL That Died, Mr. President
This was posted on To Write Love On Her Arms today: In both 2009 and 2010, more soldiers died by suicide than were killed in combat. On this Memorial Day, as we pause to remember the men and women killed in combat, we choose also to remember the soldiers lost to suicide. And in an effort to do…
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Parents of Disabled Children Giving Up on Illinois
By Bonnie Miller Rubin and Monique Garcia, Tribune reporters May 28, 2011 Chrisa Hickey, a northwest suburban mom whose 16-year-old son hears voices, has bought property in Wisconsin with an eye to the future. She wouldn’t leave Barrington for career, retirement or the more languid pace of small-town living. Her relocation plans are strictly a…
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HealthyPlace Radio: Parenting a Child with Schizoaffective Disorder
I’m honored to be the most recent guest on HealthyPlace Blog Talk Radio, talking about parenting a child with Schizoaffective Disorder. You can hear the segment below: Listen to internet radio with HealthyPlace Radio on Blog Talk Radio
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Medication or Prison – One Mother’s Choice
I’ve spent the last several hours reading the saga of Maryanne Godboldo, the Detroit mother who had her 13 year old daughter removed from her care and was taken into custody by police after a long stand-off between her and the police. She wasn’t being pursued because she was a criminal or was abusing her…
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Not Ready for Independence: the “Super Senior” Program
My son Tim turns 17 this summer, and I’m terrified. 17 means just one more year until the Government says he’s an adult. And I know, if “the Government” knew my kid, they’d know he’s not ready. I know what it’s supposed to look like. My oldest child turns 21 this year, and he’s settled…
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I’m really honored that Chato Stewart, the funny bone of Psych Central, drew me as part of his May Mental Health Heroes Cartoon-a-thon. Thanks, Chato!