Adult children of parents with paranoid schizophrenia

At last something I can relate to:

http://www.yesandyes.org/2014/09/tru...-paranoid.html "TRUE STORY: MY DAD HAS PARANOID SCHIZOPHRENIA"
Someone writes about their dad having - like mine probably - paranoid schizophrenia. Like for the writer of this article, I know this to be a family secret of some magnitude, one that really hurts the ability to trust people and difficult to carry when you're around age 12 or 14 and have to face up to school friends who might, or might not, know about your weird parents. "It definitely had a huge impact on how I perceive family overall. It created a lot of tension in our house and also created some sense of isolation because it was this big secret that we kept." "It’s necessary to recognize that the delusions and/or hallucinations are very real to the person experiencing them. You should not be dismissive or argumentative about what they are experiencing. Try to stay as calm and nonjudgmental as possible as the person is really likely to respond to your emotions and if they are heightened, it could escalate their experience."

Here's another good article:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jessic...b_8071642.html "How My Father’s Schizophrenia Shaped My Idea of Having Children"

This is a good one too. I recall we had to have the blinds folded in rooms toward the street so the delusions (false beliefs) rings famililar. The physically or emotionally detachment; reserved and remote (aloofness).
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/192621.php
It says that treatment is basically the same for all forms of schizophrenia, but what is it? Dad was periodically hospitalized and ate Haloperidol. It sort of gives it away to me, now at age 50+, but I didn't understand anything when I was 11-16. It says on Google Haloperidol is used to treat schizophrenia. I also recognize several of the side effects in my dad's behaviour such as muscle spasm, stiffness, chest pain. I thought it was him that was just outright weird....

This is a really accurate description of what it is to be a kid growing up with a parent with psychosis:
http://www.camh.ca/en/hospital/healt...psychosis.aspx
Interestingly, people with psychosis have trouble telling the difference between what is real and what is not, or so it says. I can't recall a lot of that except some episodes, my dad wouldn't get out of the car while away and during some periods not leave the house. It was difficult for me. There were periods when I tried to become invisible or, rather, non-noticeable. It says in the article "Make arrangements with a 'safe person'-someone the child feels comfortable talking to-who can support the child if the parent is not available." "If the parent becomes too sick to care for the child, the child may have to stay with other family members". I wish I had had that when I was little but I was always acutely aware that if they would disappear (my parents) I don't know what would have happened.

This is a good one too:
http://www.mommyish.com/2014/04/30/c...y-ill-parents/
As the writer of this article "I never understood that I grew up with a mentally ill parent until a few years ago. I knew very well that my dad was prone to outbursts and extreme highs and lows." (What gave it away was the names and places of hospitals and medication boxes which I Googled some years ago). "I think the worst thing about growing up with a parent with a mental illness is the unpredictability." - that is true. "You may not fear for your safety, but you’ll always fear the worst will happen." - also true. "When the good days are good, they are really good. When the bad days are bad, they’re worse than you can imagine." "Things can change on a dime." - true again. "You feel guilty when you wonder if it’s better to have an absent parent or a mentally ill parent." - so true, it is better to have an absent parent than a mentally ill parent if you ask my 14-year old self.

Sharing is caring, so posting now. :woof (Yes and I know this server is overseas).

When mum died I wished for a dog, but that too was impossible. I was stuck with dad. Long time ago now, because it all happened in 1975-1983 when I was 10-18 years old, but still have some lingering side effects from it which I haven't been able to sort out on my own, still.