Description: The musings of a not-so-bland life.
One night, in March 2018, before Sam was put on medication, the aggression and insomnia were so intense, that Scott and I decided to take Sam to Texas Children’s Hospital. We were clawed and bitten and exhausted beyond capacity, and we had no idea where to turn. We thought that the hospital would have a children’s psychiatrist on staff, and we knew Sam needed help immediately.
The hospital nurse triaged us and brought us to a room. When the doctor came in, he had no idea how to help us, so he quickly left and sent in a social worker, instead. When she arrived, she told us that we had the option of placing Sam in an emergency group home setting. We were stunned. Here we were, in one of the best medical cities in the nation, with some of the top doctors in the world, and there was not one psychiatrist or developmental specialist to be found. Not one. Samuel was a just a four year o
We realized then, at nearly four in the morning, that we were truly alone, with no tools or professional to help us. We discovered first hand, how broken the mental health system is in this country. Mental health IS health, yet where were the health care professionals Sam needed? We were abandoned in a battle, that would take years to fight and push through.