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[quote=Anonymous]Hi OP.

My husband is diagnosed schizoaffective. His mother hospitalized him involuntarily in 2001 when he was 19. He is 41 now. I've heard that the condition chills out with age and that seems true in DH's case. He lives a generally normal and peaceful life, even if more intense than most people. Definitely now DH is in the realm of eccentric rather than out of control. Your DC is not doomed to a terrible, chaotic existence. That said, I wanted to share some from DH's experience that may be useful to you:

- The involuntary hospitalizations can be an extremely traumatic experience. Many people argue that this cure is worse than the disease. True for my DH. I would suggest you tread lightly here. For many, many people the harm from hospitalizations/psychiatry has been severe. You'd dowell to consider their experiences. See "Inner Compass Initiative" and Mad in America for in depth on this. Not that you must agree with them, but they are also speaking from very much experience and are worth listening for more informed decisions.

-DH says that when his symptoms are acting up, oftentimes these are distress signals that are drawing attention to some underlying physical condition. For example, when without symptoms, he loves coffee. With symptoms, he gets bad indigestion from coffee, among other physical changes at time of a mental flare up. This mind/body connection may be worth looking into for your DC.

- People with a mental illness are far more likely to be victims of abuse than perpetrators. Along this line but less obvious is that when a person has a diagnosis like schizoaffective, it's too easy for family to treat them like second class citizens, to dismiss their concerns, that their hostility or disagreeableness is a symptom of disease rather than a legitimate reaction to hard circumstances. Probably in most cases, this will make the interactions far worse. Try your best to hear your child and to understand them.

- Do not underestimate the impact of your actions on your child's reactions and behaviors, try not to confuse their dismiss their real, legitimate frustration as symptoms that must be numbed and silenced.[/quote]

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