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If I am killed…

If I am killed in my sleep, know that I tried to keep people safe. Our son has severe mental illness, and we are fearful for our lives. He currently is set for discharge this coming week. He told law enforcement that he would get a knife from the kitchen and hurt us in our sleep. If we are killed in our sleep, know that we only wanted the best for our kids. For all of our kids. If something happens to us, lay blame at the root of the problem. Sure our killer should be held accountable, but lay the blame on the broken system of mental health care that exists in the state of North Dakota. Blame If we are killed in our sleep, lay the blame on the lack of compassion in a system that is confused about its purpose. A system that is limited in its

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On Being a Parent of a Child With Mental Illness

Last night when everything went sideways for David, we had law enforcement here. Some fairly insightful comments from them. Now, you should know, it is my belief that law enforcement are not mental health professionals. That isn’t the role they signed up for. So please, keep that in mind. When David was yelling about how illegal everything I do as his father is, the police officer asked him for examples. Take away technology such as cell phone, x-box, television, computer. Not let food in the bedroom. Control what he eats. Ground him to his bedroom. Take away his dance attendance privileges. To each of these points that David made, one of the officers said “that’s called being a parent.” Interesting enough, this morning I had a meeting with the school, and his staff their said the same thing. So maybe I am not crazy. On a side note, I hate

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Beyond the Abyss – The gradual decline of David’s mental health.

It seems that David’s mental health has been declining since before the Christmas holiday. Today was just another example of how far it has gone. David had school, and there were no negative reports that I am aware of. After he finished school he went with his staff. Around 7 pm, I went into my office for a conference call. Mom got ready for bed, though she doesn’t actually go to bed until later. This is all done to show David that it is time to get settled for the night. Only, David didn’t settle. He ramped up. By the time I finished my call at 9:15, he was rapidly declining. I had asked him a question about a substance that was on his laptop in the kitchen, then went over a few things for him. Reminders about what is allowed and what is not allowed. He needs daily and

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