H’s DD diagnosed. I’m kinda freaking out.

[Anonymous]

OP. Thanks everyone for the kind responses, I'm a little less freaked out today

Ordered choline supplements (can't stomach eggs right now, thanks nausea!) along with DHA. Figure I can use as much brain-boosting nutrients as possible.

Termination definitely isn't an option. I'm not upset with H, he definitely wasn't intentionally hiding anything. I think it's just something neither of us brought up.

Interesting data about weed. I have terrible reactions to weed, I think it would probably induce psychosis in me, ha!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Raise your child in an environment that is encouraging of honesty about feelings, don’t brush off warning signs, have a family culture of medical compliance (I.e let your child see you take your vitamins at the same time Every Day). In other words what you would probably do to support your child’s mental health anyway.

+1. I would specifically suggest that you take a look at the work being done to intervene when people have first psychotic breaks. There is preparatory stuff you can do that will substantially increase the odds of successful treatment (even with today’s flawed tools) and at the very least mental health education won’t do harm.

[Anonymous]

Also, speaking as the wife of a man who is the sibling of a person with severe bipolarity, there is not a chance in hell that your husband “just didn’t bring up” having a schizophrenic sibling, unless you were on Married At First Sight or w/ev. You have more of a. issue there than you want to admit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My bestie had a schizophrenic mother but neither she nor her sister got it. The mom was a real nut job, though. My friend and her sister were removed from their home a couple of times for neglect and abuse. My friend decided on no kids, and her sister decided to have just one.

OP are you too far along to consider termination?

Please do not refer to people with legitimate mental health issues as “nut jobs”. It contributes to the stigma and is just cruel.

[Anonymous]

When you marry into a family with mental health issues you know that there are odds your children will have it. You never know in what form it will take though. Just be proactive about getting help.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Raise your child in an environment that is encouraging of honesty about feelings, don’t brush off warning signs, have a family culture of medical compliance (I.e let your child see you take your vitamins at the same time Every Day). In other words what you would probably do to support your child’s mental health anyway.

+1. I would specifically suggest that you take a look at the work being done to intervene when people have first psychotic breaks. There is preparatory stuff you can do that will substantially increase the odds of successful treatment (even with today’s flawed tools) and at the very least mental health education won’t do harm.

Unfortunately many mental health disorders come along with non-compliance to medication. It isn't about will, it's about the mental disorder itself. Using the perspective of a mentally healthy person to project onto an unwell one that is medicated still isn't the same thing.

[Anonymous]

My brother went to Stanford and has something like schizoaffective disorder. He won't get help and is a grown man. You can be very intelligent with mental illness! It is unpredictable. You cant control everything in life. Just cultivate an attitude of mental wellness snd balance as much as possible and seek professional help early if anything manifests.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Make sure your child understands that due to her genetics, it’s ESPECIALLY important that she never uses marijuana as a teen or early twentysomething.

Lots of studies on the link, but here’s just one: https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/teens-who-smoke-pot-at-risk-for-later-schizophrenia-psychosis-201103071676

I’m so sorry your husband kept his family’s medical history from you. I would feel that my trust were shattered—either in his honesty, or in his intelligence (if he really didn’t think you would want to know).

+1 about marijuana use is adolescence. There are also some studies looking at other ways to reduce risk in kids who have a high genetic risk-certain antioxidants, for example. The great likelihood is that your child will not have it but I would be worried if I were you also because it can be such a heartbreaking illness. As your child gets older I would consider meeting with a psychiatrist practicing in an academic setting yourself to talk about the latest in research for high risk kids and signs to watch out for in adolescence. (This is important because early intervention in the prodromal stage of schizophrenia does seem to lead to significantly better outcomes. Parents sometimes mistake the signs and symptoms for teenage angst.) good luck to you and congratulations on the baby!

+2. You will have to make it clear that she can not do drugs or abuse alcohol due to her genetic risk, not just because it’s bad for you and that’s what all parents tell their teens.

[Anonymous]

That’s a nightmare I’m sorry. Currently raising a teenager with mental illness and a learning disability — genetic links were covered up during my marriage to her father. It is the hardest thing I’ve ever done. 10/10 do not recommend

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP. Thanks everyone for the kind responses, I'm a little less freaked out today

Ordered choline supplements (can't stomach eggs right now, thanks nausea!) along with DHA. Figure I can use as much brain-boosting nutrients as possible.

Termination definitely isn't an option. I'm not upset with H, he definitely wasn't intentionally hiding anything. I think it's just something neither of us brought up.

Interesting data about weed. I have terrible reactions to weed, I think it would probably induce psychosis in me, ha!

That’s not something you just skip bringing up. Come on. Good luck.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Raise your child in an environment that is encouraging of honesty about feelings, don’t brush off warning signs, have a family culture of medical compliance (I.e let your child see you take your vitamins at the same time Every Day). In other words what you would probably do to support your child’s mental health anyway.

+1. I would specifically suggest that you take a look at the work being done to intervene when people have first psychotic breaks. There is preparatory stuff you can do that will substantially increase the odds of successful treatment (even with today’s flawed tools) and at the very least mental health education won’t do harm.

Unfortunately many mental health disorders come along with non-compliance to medication. It isn't about will, it's about the mental disorder itself. Using the perspective of a mentally healthy person to project onto an unwell one that is medicated still isn't the same thing.

Yes I know, which is why I suggested the family culture support medical compliance— then if her child is non-compliant she will be able to see that as an early warning sign rather than “but her dad always says doctors don’t know what they’re talking about” or other confounding factors.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My H has an adult DD from a previous marriage. I’m not very close with her (lives far away), but I know she’s had a lot of struggles with mental health.

She was just diagnosed as schizophrenic. H also told me he has a sister who is schizophrenic, which I did not know about.

I’m currently pregnant with our first child together and I’m freaking out a little. My family has its issues too, but schizophrenia seems like a pretty big deal. Honestly, had I know about this, I wouldn’t have gotten pregnant.

I’d like to ask my OB about it, but he comes to my appointments and I’m worried he’ll be offended if I bring it up.

I’m not totally sure what to do. There’s really nothing I can do, I suppose, but I’m terrified that my child will inherit this.

Sorry, OP. Biology isn’t destiny even for schizophrenia. I did read that older parents have more risk of birthing future schizophrenics. But I wonder if older parents might just be more likely to detect it than younger ones.

[Anonymous]

I had a best friend who developed schizophrenia after college. I think one of the biggest issues was that no one was looking for warning signs (of which there were many) and she wasn’t diagnosed until years after she started showing very severe symptoms. Make sure that you are keeping an eye out for warning signs as early diagnosis and intervention is important.

Your child’s risk of having it is very low. Take care of yourself and enjoy your baby.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I had a best friend who developed schizophrenia after college. I think one of the biggest issues was that no one was looking for warning signs (of which there were many) and she wasn’t diagnosed until years after she started showing very severe symptoms. Make sure that you are keeping an eye out for warning signs as early diagnosis and intervention is important.

Your child’s risk of having it is very low. Take care of yourself and enjoy your baby.

This is true because most of the time the symptoms develop at that age and the kids are almost never around their families anymore. New friends don't notice a change because they had no "before" picture.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I had a best friend who developed schizophrenia after college. I think one of the biggest issues was that no one was looking for warning signs (of which there were many) and she wasn’t diagnosed until years after she started showing very severe symptoms. Make sure that you are keeping an eye out for warning signs as early diagnosis and intervention is important.

Your child’s risk of having it is very low. Take care of yourself and enjoy your baby.

This is true because most of the time the symptoms develop at that age and the kids are almost never around their families anymore. New friends don't notice a change because they had no "before" picture.

pp. very true. She was actually by BF in college and just started acting withdrawn and a bit anxious towards the end of senior year. She also started using a hard drug which seemed very strange but I put it down to her dating a slimy older guy who also used it. I approached her with concern of the guy and the drug but did not realize, at the time, that she was experiencing very troubling mental health issues and self-medicating. We drifted apart and I thought, for years, that she had just become an addict which seemed wildly out of character but I didn’t know any better. I wish I had known what she was going through and that she had known about any family history of schizophrenia.

OP knowing about the genetic component and being able to share this with her child is so, so helpful.