Schizophrenia and Success: Why Not?

Posted on October 25, 2011 by Randye Kaye              

Success Stories sometimes appear too

 

Sure, it’s not the story you usually get in the media:  Someone with a diagnosis of schizophrenia or schizoaffective actually has a life. This person loves, works, contributes, has useful skills – and is an active participant in his/her own treatment.
But in the NY Times this week, Benedict Carey’s article is there on the front page: Lives Restored:A High-Profile Executive Job as Defense Against Mental Ills
Keris Myrick, 50, the chief executive of a nonprofit organization, has found ways to manage her illness – and thrive. Will this happen for my son, Ben?  I don’t know – but I can hope.  I can’t expect, but I will dream.  For, right now, there is progress in his life that I hadn’t dared to dream about even one year ago.
The comments on the article range from supportive and grateful to disbelieving and discouraging. Everyone’s got to be somewhere. As for me, this was my response:

“My son has schizophrenia. 14 years ago everyone thought he was headed to Yale Law School and a fabulous career. Ten years ago, I prayed he would survive five months of homelessness and wandering in the Northwest. Eight years ago, he was hospitalized five times. One year ago, he was back in college part-time, and on the Dean’s list every semester (and it mattered to him). I thought that might be as far as he might be able to succeed, and it was still amazing. This year, he surprised us all by landing a job – and keeping it. Employment has made a huge difference in his self-esteem, and is rising to meet the challenge (supported by the right medication, friends, family, and professional input.) He may not be an executive, but it could happen. This article is an inspiration – and a call for respect, research, opportunity, and understanding. Thank you!” ~ Randye Kaye, author  Ben Behind His Voices:One Family’s Journey from the Chaos of Schizophrenia to Hope (Rowman, Littlefield, 2011)

Ben’s life did not end with his illness, nor did it freeze after his diagnosis.  Change is constant – sometimes two steps back, sometimes several steps forward.  But things do evolve, and not always predictably.
Our current situation, after this summer’s  setback, involves Ben’s maintaining his apartment but spending more time with the family as we  help him re-adjust to post-hospital life. His schedule includes the familiar: school, work, and his “Anonymous” meetings in his apartment neighborhood. But we’re going to have to make a change in Ben’s meeting locations, because he is now terrified to go into that neighborhood.
Why? Last week Ben was mugged. Mugged, complete with a knife held to his neck and an injured shoulder from being thrown to the ground.  Thank God he is physically OK , except for the shoulder pain. It could have been so much worse. But we are all left with the post-shock fears: what if they found out where he lives? what if they do it again? Ben, who was attacked after getting off the bus, hasn’t been able to ride it again – yet.
But he will. We have learned that he has more resilience than we, or he, had previously realized. He only took one day off from work, and is back at school after re-purchasing the textbooks that were stolen from him (and, I bet, tossed in the garbage).
Ben has shown incredible strength this week. Anything is possible – with the proper treatment, attitude, and support. We continue to appreciate what is good each day – and hold our breath just a bit more lately.
Success and schizophrenia? Absolutely. Sometimes, we just have to be flexible as to how we define success.