Folks,
As many of you know this past year has been a very difficult one for me and my family. In April 2003, at the age of 18, my daughter Bessie was diagnosed with a mental illness. From March 2003 to March 2004 she had a total of 18 hospitalizations.
She is finally doing much better and has managed to stay out of the hospital for 7 weeks, which is a record for her. It has been a long year, but we seem to be finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. I feel quite strongly that her improvement is linked not just to the right mix of medications, but also the fact that she is now residing in a young adult group home.
Bessie has not lived at home since August. She entered her freshman year at Simmons College and lasted only 3 weeks before she was admitted once again to the hospital. This time it was Beth Israel Hospital and she spent 2 weeks there before she was transferred to McLean Hospital where she stayed for an additional 6 weeks. As she was still not stable enough to come home In November she was promised a bed in Millbury House, a young adult group home in Millbury, MA. The bed was not available yet so she spent 4 1/2 months in a respite facility in Hopedale. The environment was not very good for her and during her stay there she had 4 more hospitalizations.
She finally was able to move to Millbury House this past March and has been doing wonderful! Just as I suspected she needed a particular environment in order to be able to heal, gain additional coping strategies, and begin the process of accepting and managing her illness.
I can’t say enough about the staff at Millbury House. The program at Millbury House has helped Bessie get her life back. Right now she is working towards taking a college class this summer at one of the area colleges. She plans on taking more classes there in the fall in the hopes that she will be able to return to Simmons College in either January 2005 or September 2005.
Millbury House is a DMH (Department of Mental Health) facility in Millbury, Massachusetts. It is run by an organization called Alternatives. The house can hold up to 8 residents, and has staffing 24/7. It provides services to young adults from the age of 18 to about 28. Bessie at 19 is the youngest resident. She lives with four young men and one young woman. Two more women will be entering the house within the next few weeks. The staff is all young, probably no older than 34 or so. So, when the whole house decides to go to the movies it just looks like a bunch of friends hanging out together.
Thanks for all of your understanding during this difficult time for our family. Your consideration and understanding has been greatly appreciated.
It looks as though Bessie is moving forward now instead of two steps forward and one and a half steps back. I’m elated!
Dave