Julianne L. on Birdeye 3 years ago
10/02/2019, 08:19 AM
After an incredibly frightening and overwhelming introduction to our son's mental illness--during which he went from being a highly productive student at a very prestigious university to being a suicidal, self-isolating, and all but non-functioning young man--we desperately sought appropriate treatment. We began with a mental health outpatient program, but therapists there were so alarmed by his suicidal cycling that he was admitted to the psychiatric ward at the university's hospital. From there, he went to an intensive 28 day program at The Retreat at Sheppard Pratt, which he considers the best education he has ever received about himself. However, the private pay program is cost-prohibitive, and the controls we tried to implement following his discharge could not promote the same level of self-care. He was readmitted to a hospital within weeks of his discharge. As anyone who has gone thru this process knows, all you are trying to do is make your child better, and help them return to the person they were before their breakdown. What I've learned, though, is that the person they were before was also deeply troubled and in pain; In the case of my son, he was able to better hide those feelings at first. After his breakdown, all of the controls that he had so carefully knit into place were stretched to the point of breaking. We reached out to Skyland Trail because we have an older son in the Atlanta area, and wanted to have family close by. (My husband and I live in a semi-rural area, and the only mental health facilities near by cater to addiction, which has not been our son's problem.) He entered the 90 day DBT program, and it was by no means easy. The administrators and therapists at Skyland expect you to show up to your sessions, to keep your room clean, to take responsibility for yourself, and to function in the community around you. Our son struggled at first, but eventually used the tools he was taught there to progress thru their developmental stages, and to forge a path forward for his life. He also received his first definitive diagnosis at Skyland (on the Autism Spectrum, OCD, anxiety, and major depression.) He has become the most self-aware and contemplative young man, and since graduating from the program, he is living independently, and working towards finding a part-time job and volunteer opportunities as he prepares to return to college in the Spring. If he's not ready in the Spring, we'll continue to try and help him work towards any goal he sets for himself. We've learned thru this process that you can not rush a loved one's recovery, so we are trying to be patient, and support him as best we can. I recommend Skyland Trail highly. The physicians and therapists there are excellent. The program itself is well-developed, with thousands of patients contributing to its structure and outcomes. The facilities are beautiful, reminiscent of a small college. In addition, the extra programs--like meditation, art, and gardening therapy--were particularly helpful to my son. He even discovered a passion for singing there, and it has become a means of soothing and self-expression for him. The professionals who are at Skyland sincerely want to better the lives of their patients. The only downside, again, is the prohibitive cost. We have mental health care coverage with our insurance, but it paid less than 5% of the program costs, which we're trying to appeal. It is criminal that mental health care coverage is so limited at a time when mental health distress has reached a crisis point in America. I wish everyone going through this difficult journey a safe and self-renewing outcome. Be patient and understanding, and show your love for others whenever you can.