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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 4 of 4. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Kinny on December 10, 2003, at 5:14:26
I am here as a parent and would like to know if anyone can share how this disorder presented in their child. I have a 16 yr old son.
He has gone through a bad time recently but says everything is ok. I don't know if he is hiding his pain and symptoms or not out of fear of having to take another med or going to the hospital.Thanks
Kinny
Posted by Jed_9 on December 10, 2003, at 23:28:41
In reply to Schizophrenia, posted by Kinny on December 10, 2003, at 5:14:26
If you don't get any responses here regarding your child, ask over at http://www.schizophrenia.com The people over there are very supportive.
hope that helps and hope your child is doing better.
Posted by brussell on December 11, 2003, at 11:11:47
In reply to Schizophrenia, posted by Kinny on December 10, 2003, at 5:14:26
> I am here as a parent and would like to know if anyone can share how this disorder presented in their child. I have a 16 yr old son.
> He has gone through a bad time recently but says everything is ok. I don't know if he is hiding his pain and symptoms or not out of fear of having to take another med or going to the hospital.
>
> Thanks
> Kinny
Hi,I'm terribly sorry for both you and your son. Schizophrenia is a terrible thing to have to deal with, but remember that many people go on to have very good lives in spite of it.
Here are a few of my thoughts:
Your son's concerns about medication and hospitalization need to be respected by everyone involved in his treatment. It is a terrible thing to have your autonomy destroyed by a mental illness just when most people one's age are becoming more and more independent. As much as is possible, your son should feel that he has a significant role in choosing treatment.
Make sure he is seeing an experienced therapist regularly whom he likes and trusts. He should be able to share his feelings without fear of being hospitalized--with the exception of cases when he is in obvious danger.
Hopefully you have access to a good psychiatrist who is sympathetic to your son's concerns about medications. If your son is having problems with side-effects, his doctor should take that seriously and try something different. There are a very wide variety of antipsychotics available now, some of which have very good side-effect profiles.
Best wishes to you and your son.
Posted by Interject79 on December 11, 2003, at 13:51:32
In reply to Re: Schizophrenia, posted by brussell on December 11, 2003, at 11:11:47
Excellent comments brussell. It's very important to be able to feel a sense of self and of autonomy.
Symptoms of schizophrenia can be hidden to a certain extent, but agitation, tics or convulsions, and continuity of thought are hard to get around. Hopefully your son will open up a bit, but perhaps not. Just from personal experience with paranoia and delusions, I don't like for people to prod too much or let uncomfortable silences come into conversations when I feel bad.
I can't speak from a parent's point of view though. Mine reported a lot of quiet times for me, depression, eccentric beliefs/actions, and too much sleep as I got a little older. My situtation is more like high-functioning autism though, with some psychotic features. SSRIs can make matters worse, stabilizers much worse, antipsychs better (in very small doses and only for short periods of time), and stimulants generally much better. This is not very consistent with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder I think; it's more consistent with ADD and Asperger's.
I should mention though that not enough sleep and going too long without eating or eating large meals was/is terrible for me...sounds obvious but it sometimes gets overlooked.
Best wishes,
interject
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