Fighting for Answers | Monthly Archives: December 2016December 2016

The Hard Decision

I title this post “The Hard Decision” because we have had to make a difficult decision. We made the decision to not bring David home on pass. An expert in David’s disorder has recommended for safety reasons that David not come home. So we have made the decision to refuse passes. At 15, as much as the facility would try to have us believe otherwise, David just doesn’t care. I doubt that anyone at the facility has any idea just how difficult it is to do something like this. We have anguished about this decision since the recommendation first came from the doctor. If David was the only one we were concerned about, it would be a no-brainer to us, and we would bring him home all the time on pass. But without support at home, we just can’t put everyone at risk that way. Put aside your fear We

End of Year Update

End of year update. – Things are still moving forward here. There are quite a few things that I won’t write about that have happened, but here is an update. In early December we asked to be referred to the Developmental Disabilities (DD) division. In the midst of that, we spent a lot of time faxing back and forth different releases to ensure we had all of David’s most recent testing from Psychologists and Psychiatrists. We met with some resistance, but in the end, we met with a DD eligibility worker. Shortly before Christmas, we met with her again and formally applied for services. Forty-eight hours later, he was approved for Case Management and a statewide referral was sent out for care, either group home or what. A DD Program Manager was assigned. In the middle of all of this, my health has taken a beating. With the support of

Anxiety high, as we near discharge for David

Anxiety In a little more than a month, David will return from his fifth placement in six years. As a result, we are on edge. Anxiety in people who are already in a heightened state of upset is not good. We are told that things will be different this time. By the admissions of the staff where he is, David needs constant redirects. Last Spring, a psychologist associated with the agency diagnosed David with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder. This is in addition to the Reactive Attachment, Severe Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and Conduct Disorder that he already had. The Specialist So I arranged to see a specialist in August so we could get specific recommendations regarding future care planning for David. Don’t live in the past We aren’t supposed to live in the past where David tried to kill me. Where David stole from everyone in the