The accident.
Two years ago in the spring, my husband had an accident while working.
He was 200ft. up in a tree. He reached up for the chain saw he had hung on a limb and lost his footing. His safety line failed. He fell .
He had massive internal injury's and a brain bleed.
His BP took off like a wild fire.
The meds didnt control it. I remember telling the staff at the hospital there is SOMETHING WRONG WITH HIS BRAIN. I told them, I was afraid to bring him home like that, he had changed and it was not for the good. The pdoc and the other specialist told me that it would pass as the swelling went down, everything would be fine, the CT scan showed some damage, but it was "nothing to worry about" the seizures would be controlled with medication...they would monitor his progress bla bla bla. I didnt believe them. I saw the change in his EYES.
He would shift in and out of personalities and realities. He was aggressive and was using profanity (first time i had heard it) He was angry all the time. He looked like he was on speed all the time. His Mom told me that he always had been "hyper" and that was no secret or nothing new, but this...was worse than ever.
He started to hoard. The seizures increased. His reality shifted more and more often. He would shout out at people that were not present. He had little control of his impulses and thoughts.
Late last spring, he told me he was afraid he was going to burn down his life. He was scared . The outbursts and seizures were getting worse. He knew.
A month later, he announced he was not sick. There was nothing wrong with him, it was the "system" and "demons" were responsible for his health problems. He believed God had spoken to him directly about this.
A evangelist at a church service told him he was healed.
He stopped taking his medications. He had a meltdown.
He got back on this and that to control the seizures, after getting the s*** scared outa him after a seizure. His Dr. told him his other meds were to prevent seizure too, he complied until the meds stopped working as his mania steadily climbed upward and gained momentum. He fueled it by abusing his medications and drinking. ( he had been sober for 12 years prior)
In June of this year,
He would tell me again, the "demonic". Someone was putting curses on his healing and he believed was being poisoned.
He accused me of that, and believed it.
He woke me up in the night and told me he had stabbed a Border Patrol agent with a pair of sizzors. (he hadn't he was hallucinating) I called 911.
He was in the hospital four times in the ER and admitted, only to be let out in 24 hrs, once for 72 hrs.
We had no medical insurance. His medications were over 600.00 a month.
It was crazy scary. He stabilized for a month last summer, then became lithium toxic. He was put on lamicital and some other meds...and the sky fell. It was July 17. We had run out of money and anti psychotics, breaking them in half to make them last while we waited for state funds to become available.
I KNEW something was going horribly wrong that morning, he was refusing to get out from under the covers, sounded 5 years old and angry. He was shaking violently. I called an ambulance. Hauled him to the Dr., and he was put on massive sedatives. They worked not so well. Only for a few hrs a day. He was in complete madness. I mean madness. He pulled his own teeth out. Madness. They sent him home with enough med samples for two weeks. I begged them to keep him. They told me he was not at risk, he was unwilling to admit voluntary and they had no "beds" in the county due to lack of funding.
He was violent and dangerous as hell. He loved doing it. It was unbelievable.
In hindsight, I wonder sometimes if he was right about the demon and it was bigger than him.
The wheels came off the track in late August.
He was charged with assault 4, sexual battery, kidnapping, harassment .
The court had given him some fines and anger management classes. The court had reduced the charges in a plea bargain. I was FURIOUS.
I petitioned the local court to order mental health services , through the state, and order mental health treatment and monitoring.
I petitioned the court to make him a ward of the state as well, and that would make services available and treatment mandatory, AND petitioned to have the charges restored, and the prior sentencing thrown out to MAKE this all happen.
I won the case.
I wanted to hold him accountable. I wanted to hold the county accountable. I wanted to hold the police and the courts accountable. They had done NOTHING in the months prior. It was time to do what was right, so I could be SAFE.
The case set precedence , now mental health services are linked with criminal probation. This city had never done that, seen that...lol...this is "smallmindsmalltownUSA."
Well,,,,that's my story.
He skipped the state and was hauled back, brought before the court and the hammer came down, DO IT OR GO TO JAIL. That was a couple weeks ago.
As of this writing, he is living in the city, going to a pdoc, on meds, and getting clsg. (this week)
The term of probation is five years. If does not comply, he goes back to jail, and get treatment there.
He is getting better. I wish him peace and good health.
I cant watch anymore.
I am glad that he is now getting the services he desperately needed last summer.
I want to put thousands of miles between us.
I have to.
Post edited by: livinginablender, at: 12/03/2010 09:47 PM
