Child psychosis hand holding please

[MerdeAlor]

My wonderful, sweet, kind, fragile DS has been really really anxious since moving up to secondary. He has multiple challenges AS, ADHD, and dyslexia and can't cope with the demands the school are placing on him.

After a wait of nearly a year he started going to a day time psychiatric unit once a week.
In our meeting today with the psychiatrist - she said she thinks he is having psychotic episodes and wants to put him on an anti psychotic. The episodes may lead to or be a precursor to schizophrenia.
I'm devastated and terrified that he will stay fragile into adulthood and not be able to live his life to the full.
Someone please hold my hand? I'm so so sad and scared.

I'll hold your hand. I'm sorry you and he are going through this. It's so worrying and upsetting.

My DD has recently come off anti-psychotics. She was on them for just two months following psychotic episodes. I'm not entirely sure whether they helped or not as she's pretty silent about what's going on in her head, and the doc has to keep to a code of privacy, but they made no noticeable difference to her general demeanour or anything. She was monitored as an in-patient at the beginning of the treatment.

However, her psychiatrist now thinks she may have a form of epilepsy, which kind of adds up. Or not. Awaiting more tests.

Hope you both find peace soon.

Thank you Alternateen I'm sorry to hear about your daughter.
can I ask what happened or how your DD behaved during her psychotic episodes?
My DS became really paranoid, terrified, armed himself with anything he could find. Reading that back I can see why they have diagnosed psychotic episodes, especially as they don't last - the next day he's back to his old self with a high level of anxiety though.
Our poor kids.

Hmm, that's really tricky to answer tbh. It's very hard not to see her as manipulative (apologies for sounding callous, it's been a tough week and she's pushed my last button).

She doesn't particularly behave in a different way and her episodes could be classed as teen tantrums. If she doesn't get her own way, or if someone has upset her, she can go into full blown panic attack/screaming tantrum. She threatens suicide. Then she self harms. Then she is calm again. She's worse during PMT - ie this week.

She has intrusive thoughts, and has catastrophic thinking tendencies. Always has had. She sees dark, threatening figures, hears voices and -the one that has trigger the possible epilepsy dx - smells things that aren't there. However, I feel the psychiatrist led her to this latter answer as the doc asked first and DD said yes. Having said that, she had an EEG a couple of months ago which showed anomalies, so I'm hoping (?) for epilepsy as that would help me make more sense of her behaviour. Does that make sense?

She has always been sensitive and anxious but her adolescence hit hard and relatively early (puberty started at around 9 yrs). Now she comes across as 'hard' and insensitive. It may be her way of coping with life but I feel she's squashing her sensitive nature down too hard.

Now she is on Prozac but we aren't seeing much difference. It's escalating in my opinion, but it's hard to separate this with normal, expected teen behaviours.

Jeez, it's hard! But good to spill.

Alternateen It sounds so fucking hard.

Unfortunately abnormal EEG results are common without any known cause. It may not be diagnostic in itself but they must do it to aid diagnosis - right? I had an abnormal EEG myself as a teen. No problems though.

Finding it preety hard not to have some catastrophic thinking myself today

Yeah, I know what you mean. I veer from catastrophic thinking to - well, I don't know what, every day. Be kind to yourself. Our psych said the anti-psychotics wouldn't be a permanent thing and they were just to help her through a specific period and gain perspective. Don't think they worked tbh. But as I say, it's been a very tough week with her. I'm usually much more positive than I am today!

I find it easier trying to hook onto a potential physical problem that is causing her issues, because then I think my guilt may ease? Selfish?

Our psych also said that a psychotic episode could be just that - an episode that would be a one-off and not recur. Hopefully your boy will be in this camp.

Is taking him out of school an option for you? Home-ed? Drastic, I know, but it may suit your DS with his additional needs. It's something I keep considering for DD but she desperately needs peer company and would only get this via school.

Merdealer

I'd be careful letting the doctors diagnose your child as psychotic. Psychosis basically means to believe something that isn't true or sense things that aren't real. For a child believing something that isn't true is the norm. All kids are delusional about Santa Claus, the bogey man, ghosts, imaginary friends. It's normal.

I would say the main issue with your son is an anxiety disorder. A child can't really rationalise reality, nor be expected to. Well a small child, teenagers onwards it would concern me but young children,no.

I don't mean to down play your son's experience, there could be more to it then what ive read and if so then I apologise. It's just some mental health doctors are diagnosing kids with all sorts, mud sticks and they grow up terrified of who they are.

My son is going through a psychotic episode, just managed to avoid him being sectioned, however it's heartbreaking. He is 17, had been prescribed respiridone, won't take it. He sleeps all day, awske most of night. Wears a hat all the time, covers his face, lost over stone in weight, has ringing noises in ears so wears ear muffs. Refuses to shower, at my wits end. Yes I feel scared as his Mother as I'm concerned he will never improve..... Please someone tell me he will???????

I'm not sure how helpful that is Coco unless you are you a psychiatrist? Please please don't attempt to diagnose my child.

You don't know how old my DS is and yes childhood imaginative play is one thing but being utterly terrified of things that aren't there is not normal if they are 6 foot with a moustache.

I don't care about the label as such. We've been through all that because of his autism and ADHD, when a child needs help a label can help access services that are needed.
I am aware that psychiatrists can overdiagnose but I agree with them.

I also know that psychotic episodes don't automatically mean a life sentance of poor mental health.
I myself had very fragile mental health as a young person and am mentally and intellectually robust now. Hold on to that smileyforest that is what I'm going to do.

How are you both today Merde ?

Hi Alternateen
I'm Ok thanks. I recognise that I'm going through a process of shock. OK one minute, tearful the next.

I suspect the most difficult thing will be keeping it quiet. I want the taboo around mental illness to end and recognise that that can only happen when we are open about our own mental health in the same way we are about our physical health. In addition to that, I could do with the support of my friends.

BUT I live in a very tight knit community where everyone will gossip and judge. I'm afraid my sweet son with ostracised by his friends families and his school.

So, I will tell friends in my home country and keep it to ourselves where we live now, but I hate keeping it like a dirty secret.

My DS seems marginally better, still anxious but less confused and no psychosis so far, although it is early days.

How are you and everyone else doing?

Tight knit community here too, so I know what you mean. It doesn't help. I've told a few of my friends - some are supportive, others have disappeared. A couple of DDs friends have not been allowed to see her out of school since she was an in-patient, which is sad.

I'm almost at the end of my last tether - she won't stay at school. Does an hour or two then goes to sick bay with some ailment or other, so I've got to drop everything and go get her. We have had some 'incidents' over the past week or so which have rocked me and our relationship quite badly.

Got to find a new psych too as she doesn't like the latest one. It's just one thing after another right now. But we keep on going because we have to, don't we?

I agree with you Merde, my son is also undiagnosed Aspergers, I know that for sure as his Father is the same ,(divorced). I don't like labels but as you said, sometimes it helps and opens doors to other help. Yes some people don't like to discuss mental health, but it is the same as physical health. I have talked about it openly to friends and family as this can happen to anyone. Unfortunately my son started smoking cannabis ( stopped) which I believe was when puberty set in and he wanted to fit in with other's. Obviously this has exacerbated his problems at the moment. Not a good w/e but its a daily battle. He did go out with his Dad today to visit his grandmother, that's a positive . He is isolated from friends but always had difficulty socialising anyway. Quite lonely. Seeing his Mental Health Nurse tomorrow and hopefully going to receive more physiological intervention x

I meant psychological help . Helps to talk about it because, I'm OK and then I can be in tears. We don't like to see our children suffering do we x

I found an interesting article linking ASD or ADHD with the onset of psychosis at puberty. It made perfect sense, that in a stressful and chaotic world puberty is a trigger. Add to that cannabis and it can have consequences.
Cannabis was one of the triggers for my own poor mental health when younger, it is a dangerous drug on a growing brain.
And yes, when a label is truly needed, it is a welcome thing. Smiley, doesn't Rispiridone come in weekly injection form? Would that help your son?

Alternteen do you have any choices or options as to where to go from here, how to access more help? It strikes me that we as parents are often left alone without appropriate support.
I'm so sorry your week sounds shit

Yes Merde, I do feel medication may be needed now, but refusing orally and such a small dose. It's getting to the point where I feel he may need hospital because there is no daily help in the community, if there was I'm sure it would help. If I had the finances I would pay privately....I'm currently off work as is my exH where he is staying for the moment, but we both have to get back to work at some point, Its so worrying as not sure he is safe to be left alone. He has been barracading himself in the bedroom, which because of his vulnerability I became quite anxious myself so removed the door from its hinges on advice from mental health care team. He then took himself to his Dads and he did the same there, the door has been removed there as well today. How do you get life back in order? Lack of support and help is frustrating.

Where do you live Merde?

How is everyone doing? How are the DC?

My DS is really struggling still.

He seems to have given up at school and they are getting anxious about it. Added to that I haven't told them about his recent diagnosis (because I think they'd ask him to leave the school, it's private and not set up to cope with severe mental ill health).
He feels overwhelmed, I feel overwhelmed, the teachers feel overwhelmed, my DH is staying in his man cave and not being able to talk opening about it is making me feel depressed.

His psychiatrists are pleased with his progress though and intend to double his meds shortly which I hope will help him feel more able to cope with life.