Posts by mellowhawk84

Hey everyone. It’s actually really nice to find a corner of the internet like this where you can share something useful with others. I’m new here, so please don't judge if someone has already shared a similar story. Basically, my family is going through hell—not just me, my brother, and my dad, but our whole extended family too—because of my mother's mental illness. Every single day is nothing but screaming and chaos. Everything is somehow our fault. We can barely have a normal conversation with her, and even when we try, she just finds something to pick at and immediately raises her voice. God forbid anyone tries to make a joke; she takes everything the wrong way instantly. Her mood swings constantly throughout the day, flipping from crying to shouting without warning. It’s exhausting living with her. Her behavior is destroying us; we’re all just suffering through these outbursts. It's impossible to get anything done around her, let alone focus on studying for an exam—my brother is still in college, and I've already finished my degree. At night, she doesn't sleep at all. She wakes up a hundred times, coming into our rooms to check if we're sleeping. We have zero privacy and zero peace. This has been going on for seven years now. She's been hospitalized twice at a psychiatric facility, most recently back in 2006. Right now, she doesn't work at all, just handles housework. She used to work seasonal jobs down at the coast, which used to help calm her down, but she won't do that anymore. Her condition is just getting worse and worse. The yelling is constant. It's gotten to the point where our relatives barely visit because she's picked fights with almost everyone, including her own mother. I honestly can't remember the last time I brought a friend over, or a girlfriend, or even had a chat with a neighbor. When people see or hear her, they just shut themselves away inside the house. Sometimes it's even hard for me just to walk down the street. My dad works out on the coast, so he's fine while he's there, but when he comes home for the winter, he has to deal with this exact same thing. We would all be so much happier if she would just agree to treatment. Whenever we suggest seeing a doctor, she tells us that we're the ones who are crazy, and then the fighting starts all over again. Maybe someone else here has dealt with something like this at home and knows how it feels. I've seen plenty of different illnesses, but I think this one is the absolute worst. Honestly, I'm terrified that one day I'll end up just like that.