Guardianship for adult

[Anonymous]

Has anyone gone through securing this? We are trying to support SIL who is a single mom to a 19-year-old who pretty clearly seems cognitively and developmentally impaired. SIL is still holding onto hope that DD will grow up and be independent but truly her capacity seems to be about that of a 7 or 8 year old, her self-care is atrocious and she’s becoming increasingly self destructive. For her own safety we think guardianship is going to be essential for adult life and would welcome any advice , experiences or words of warning

[Anonymous]

a lawyer from the special needs alliance could be helpful. a court will have to order it. the rules vary by state. there are alternatives to guardianship or limited guardianships to protect her while still allowing her to do the things she can do. for example, some guardianships mean the person can't buy a gun or take out loans, but they're still allowed to vote.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone gone through securing this? We are trying to support SIL who is a single mom to a 19-year-old who pretty clearly seems cognitively and developmentally impaired. SIL is still holding onto hope that DD will grow up and be independent but truly her capacity seems to be about that of a 7 or 8 year old, her self-care is atrocious and she’s becoming increasingly self destructive. For her own safety we think guardianship is going to be essential for adult life and would welcome any advice , experiences or words of warning

7-8 is elementary school level. I assume her disabilities have been flagged and diagnosed at least through school. Did she attend a special school? The school would have performed tests if she wasn’t passing levels beyond 2 nd grade.

Is she intellectually impaired for example IQ is below 50? Does she have autism? Does she have the ability to communicate?

[Anonymous]

I did it for a parent. It was sadly an easy process. Filed with the court, got two doctors to agree to the medical condition, and she got assigned an attorney to confirm it. Her attorney handled the court hearing for us as we were unrepresented and we got the order. It was a pretty easy and smooth process. The court staff guided me through the paperwork and were really nice.

[Anonymous]

I had to obtain guardianship for my niece who won’t be able to live independently because of Autism. She was 17 and I had her for a few years. She’s in a group home now where they can watch her 24 hrs a day. She’s a wanderer.

The 19 year old must have a diagnosis. A Guardian Ad Litem will be assigned for the girl. He will recommend whether he thinks she needs one or believes she can care for herself. Good luck.

[Anonymous]

Guardianship has pros and cons, even for someone who won’t live independently. It’s not a decision to make quickly. I think the fact that you don’t know enough about her disabilities to talk about precise diagnoses makes me think that you don’t know enough to pressure her on this.

More urgent questions would be whether she has applied for things like social security, DDA/DDS/Waiver and whatever Vic rehab is called in your state.