Tag Archives: conservatorship

Guest Blogger: CJ Hanson, Mental Health/Brain Illness Advocate

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One day into June, and the official #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth is over – but the fight is far from over.
Please welcome guest blogger, C.J. Hanson, with these thoughts regarding her brother who has serious brain disease.  CJ is one of the authors in Dede Ranahan’s award-winning book, Tomorrow Was Yesterday.
“I have strong opinions regarding the many different causes for the continual denial of help and easier access to real treatment for my brother since the beginning of his trauma and brain illness of Schizophrenia and Anosognosia.
We initially thought the care he needed was going to be available to him given how severe his multiple disabilities including having lost his eyes in an accident and then brain illness.
We each have our own obstacles. But, like most families – access to that elusive help – was slammed shut on us because Mark is an adult who happens to have anosognosia related to the brain illness.
CJ Hanson, Mental Health/Brain Illness Advocate

Waiting for him to figure out what is best for him.. what is safe for him… that he even has a serious mental/brain illness… will never happen.

No one can understand the respective roles that we are each left to play amidst the absolute expectation from society that we should just innately have all the answers, when we have a loved one with SMI/SBD – an expectation that we are fully capable to physically house and care for someone so floridly psychotic after he has fallen 34 years into the abyss and the tiniest of cracks of his mental illness. Our shattered and fragmented Mental Health Policy & Laws which includes abandoning the most vulnerable of those among us and their families is cruel.
Many of us are just family members struggling to be what we are not. – Medical professionals, Neuro Psychiatric professionals, Medical intervention, Legal and Financial advisor, Psychiatric Technician, Social Worker, Protector, Nurse, even Guard – day and night. Every day and night.

Continue reading Guest Blogger: CJ Hanson, Mental Health/Brain Illness Advocate →

The Public Cry: #freebritney! Is There More to the Conservator Story?

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We become conservators to rescue.

Listen, I want Britney Spears to be happy too. She’s incredibly talented, seems nice, obviously loves her children, and has worked her ass off pretty much all of her life. And, yeah, her dad seems like a controlling asshole. Also, it has to suck to have your adolescence questioned and paraded all over the media. She was not treated with respect, to say the least. The paparazzi and press were shameless in their interference – and, well, sheer gall. Anyone might crack under that kind of pressure and scrutiny.

(Imagine if all Your teenage love starts and fits has been plastered over the tabloids. I mean, Seriously.)

But, after watching  Framing Britney Spears (and to channel Carrie Bradshaw), “I couldn’t help but wonder…..” even now, are we getting the whole picture of her conservatorship?

This is not a popular take right now. And I’m not saying that Brit shouldn’t be “set free”.  Honestly, it’s none of my business.  But, since I am a conservator myself, I’m just saying there might be more to the story. Have we fully seen in that documentary what a conservator can do to help? To avoid disaster? To protect the conservatee? We have not.

Even Brit herself, speaking out after the documentary aired, has said “everybody has their story.” 

Here’s mine.

I applied for conservatorship in 2003 when my son Ben was about to sign papers to “set himself free” from the psychiatric unit in the hospital. He was psychotic, confused, a danger to himself – but would have been released anyway because he had “rights.”

But by applying for conservatorship and right to treatment, I bought him some time – time to stabilize and to plan for discharge.

Continue reading The Public Cry: #freebritney! Is There More to the Conservator Story? →

Amanda Bynes: Will She Become the Celebrity Face of Schizophrenia?

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BynesAmanda Bynes is in the news – again. But this time, much of the focus is on the possibility of a schizophrenia diagnosis.  I mention this to Ben, and he says, “Hmmm. Interesting.” This story will not, I suspect, make a dent in Ben’s insight into his own illness – not now, at least. Patience is key when you love someone with schizophrenia – along with many other qualities.

But we follow the story, to see what the media does with it.  I see Hollywood Gossip report she is on a “drug cocktail” and comment:

“I’m so glad to hear that Amanda is responding to medication (not “drugs”…these are medications to restore balance, not drugs to alter it). Yes, the big question is there: will she take the meds on her own? In my experience, probably not. Many medical reasons for that (see “anosognosia“) but her parents should definitely go ahead with conservatorship. It has been a huge help for us! I blogged about this at healthyplace.com, website with great info and support. “
My blogs on conservatorship have gotten the attention of Marketplace, a smart and fair show on marketplaceNPR that is business-oriented, and they have invited me to be part of a show  (coming up this week) on the topic of conservatorship, with Amanda in the news and all.
This same issue came to light in when Britney Spears‘ parents sought to help their child after bizarre behaviors in public brought attention to her possible mental illness as well.  At that time, I was booked to appear on Dr. Drew’s HLN show, but got bumped by a Hurricane Irene story. This time, I hope I can be of some help on Marketplace, sharing the family view of how conservatorship can help.
safety-net
I am Ben’s conservator, but it doesn’t mean I run his life, or control him. I am simply allowed to help him when he needs the help – and, yes, sometimes when he doesn’t know he needs that help. (when schizophrenia symptoms take hold.) It’s a safety net. And we need it.
Watch this blog for updates!