MENTAL HEALTH:

Living with someone with mental illness
was part of our every day lives ...
Then we met a family advocate from ParentsCAN. 
We were able to receive the support that we really needed.

            Living with someone with mental illness was part of our every day lives.  My mother’s bipolar disorder caused her and our whole family to face stresses none of us could handle.  It was very difficult.  My mother felt that if she left us, she would be able to gain stability, and we would have some normalcy.  She left my father and us four children in chaos and confusion.  My uncle was living with us and helping our family, but even then, we weren’t able to make ends meet.  My family became homeless. 
            Then we met a family advocate from ParentsCAN.  We were able to receive the support that we really needed. Our advocate was able to connect us with people who helped us find housing in Napa so my Dad could be closer to his job.  Even though his car doesn’t work, he can walk to work.  Our advocate has been able to help my brother at his new school with special education services that he needs, and he’s finally adapting to school.
            We had no furniture.  Our advocate also knew of someone who was kind and donated furniture to us ... beds, a kitchen table, dressers, lamps, a vacuum cleaner, and even some art for the walls.  We are so happy that we now have beds to sleep in and a table where we can eat dinner together.  And we’re healing. 
            Thanks, ParentsCAN!

This family, and many others in similar situations, was able to be supported by ParentsCAN through a contract with the Napa County Health & Human Services’ Mental Health Services Act. 
A special thank you to “Definitely Different” of Napa for the donation of furniture and the Full Service Partnership team for their expertise in securing a living space for this family.

They have been with us every step of the way,
helping us through the hard times and celebrating
the many successes we have experienced this past year.

          My son “David” is bipolar. He has been home with us for one year now and we are deeply grateful for the support we have received to help us achieve this. David is enrolled in the Village Project, a Napa County Wraparound program for children. His team is made up of a social worker, a mental health professional and a parent partner from ParentsCAN.

         We first noticed that David was struggling at school with his behavior and attention skills when he was 5.  He had his first major “outburst” when he was 5 or 6. By the time he was 7 he was in residential treatment. He stayed in treatment for 2 years and then returned home. Despite all out efforts to help David succeed he went back to residential treatment after 9 months, where he stayed for another approximately 2 years. He was eventually dismissed from this program because the staff could not control his outbursts. He then went to another, more restrictive residential treatment program where he lasted for 2 months, during which time he was hospitalized for 3 – 4 weeks.

            Last summer he was released from the hospital and sent home to us. He was referred to the Village Project and before he was discharged the mental health case manager and the parent partner came with me to the hospital to visit David. On July 26 we are celebrating  one year of David’s success. We are very grateful to the people who have helped David to stay at home this last year and want to share our joy with all of them.

          The year has not all been smooth sailing; there have been many incidents and times when we wondered if David would be sent away again. But the Village Project team never lost hope and never gave up on us no matter how difficult the situation became. They have been with us every step of the way, helping us through the hard times and celebrating the many successes we have experienced this past year.

          David has been working with a wonderful Home Hospital teacher this past year. He will continue in this program and is also due to start a class at Vintage this Fall. He is taking a class in martial arts, has had an overnight with a friend and engaged in many social activities, both with us and with the support staff from the Village Project. These are all activities which most kids engage in regularly and with ease but for David they are huge triumphs and represent a lot of hard work by David, our family and the team.

The best thing about seeing the Family Advocate
was I finally got information of where to start
to get help for Neil.

            My name is Mary.  When I first called ParentsCAN, I did not know what to do with “Neil”, my 9 year old son.  His anxiety was getting worse and he would throw himself on the ground and have what looked like tantrums.  When I met with a Family Advocate, I sat and talked about Neil.  WE made a list of his behaviors and things that had been tried and failed.  We also talked about what I wanted for my son.
            When I left that day I had a tangible list of my concerns, a list of where to go for help and how to obtain services for Neil.  The Family Advocate called me two days later and asked how it was going.  I had gone to see Neil’s pediatrician who, when he looked at the list of behaviors I brought in, agreed that Neil warranted a closer look.
            He started Neil on a mood stabilizer and made a referral to UCSF for a psychiatry appointment.  I also talked to people at Neil’s school about getting a mental health assessment as part of his IEP.  Then I got on a list for an appointment for Neil with Napa County Mental Health.
            The best thing about seeing the Family Advocate was I finally got information of where to start to get help for Neil.  I was also given information on support groups I could attend to help me with what I was going through. 
            Mary’s Family Advocate responds.... “This intervention gave Mary hope and empowered her to advocate for her son herself.  I remain available as necessary to support Mary in the weeks ahead, although I think she is off and running and will be able to now access the services her family needs.”

Coming to Grips with Mental Illness

by Natalie Hoffman

Back in 1995, Juanita Peña of Napa dealt with much more than typical teenage rebellion from her daughter, Erica. After regularly skipping school, using drugs and leaving home for days without warning, Erica was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder in 1997, Peña said. The illness is marked by schizophrenic symptoms, including "delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech and disorganized behavior," in addition to severe depression or manic behavior, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness.