As a veteran of 23 years in education and recently a linguist expert, I have compared schizophrenia therapy to learning languages.
During my foreign language teaching, I often watched the strength of my students as well as their weaknesses. Some could assimilate quicker by singing their lessons; some others had a photographic memory and assimilated better through illustrating their lessons. Every human being varies and it is up to us, educators, to introduce what suits our students individually and as a group functioning together.
What is the reason I am bringing this up? During my visits to my son at the "hospital," I was not impressed by the atmosphere. I perceived "Patients" were mostly left on their own, erring, walking around in a daze, sleeping or watching a loud television. I detected boredom and fear...
I know about your group therapy sessions as well as the individual ones. I know about the importance of routine and a rigorous schedule but.... what about free time? What do you provide for the inflicted?
Problems and solutions
- Not everyone wants to watch or hear television? Provide headsets for the ones who want to watch or listen to the one program you have on. And with these headsets, you will be able to have more than one television set with more variety!
- I didn't see any music center in your facility: I know that music is very therapeutic and can help tone the "voices" down. Since this is clearly something, I learned from valid literature on schizophrenia, why isn't it more present at some centers where the patients learn to cope with their illness?
- Reading, writing, and drawings are extremely important for many human beings, obviously there are discernible differences from one schizophrenia patient to another, as observers you need to ensure that, their inklings are dealt with in a different fashion, we are counting on you to provide individual attention, and not allow boredom and habit to take over, which conforms your staff into an absolutely uninspired mold. Going back to the literates, provide them with a mini-library get their mind to think beyond the voices beyond their illness and introduce productivity, imagination and information.
Some of your doctors, nurses, technicians, may think who is this woman? What could she really know?
I am a mother who has watched and observed her son, self- educated herself about schizophrenia and through successes and failures, through books and articles, through blogs, tweets and websites through advice gathered from patients themselves, I have concluded that, somehow, their holding time in the hospital should be more cheerful, for the duration. They are scared and lonely... more attention is needed during this time. This crucial moment, when we depend on your expertise so that our "children" aren't terrified to go back seeking help and support when they need it.
Instead of looking like a "center" or a hospital or moreover, an asylum, make it so it looks, smells and feels more like a haven where patients are willing to "visit" seeking care and understanding.
During my foreign language teaching, I often watched the strength of my students as well as their weaknesses. Some could assimilate quicker by singing their lessons; some others had a photographic memory and assimilated better through illustrating their lessons. Every human being varies and it is up to us, educators, to introduce what suits our students individually and as a group functioning together.
What is the reason I am bringing this up? During my visits to my son at the "hospital," I was not impressed by the atmosphere. I perceived "Patients" were mostly left on their own, erring, walking around in a daze, sleeping or watching a loud television. I detected boredom and fear...
I know about your group therapy sessions as well as the individual ones. I know about the importance of routine and a rigorous schedule but.... what about free time? What do you provide for the inflicted?
Problems and solutions
- Not everyone wants to watch or hear television? Provide headsets for the ones who want to watch or listen to the one program you have on. And with these headsets, you will be able to have more than one television set with more variety!
- I didn't see any music center in your facility: I know that music is very therapeutic and can help tone the "voices" down. Since this is clearly something, I learned from valid literature on schizophrenia, why isn't it more present at some centers where the patients learn to cope with their illness?
- Reading, writing, and drawings are extremely important for many human beings, obviously there are discernible differences from one schizophrenia patient to another, as observers you need to ensure that, their inklings are dealt with in a different fashion, we are counting on you to provide individual attention, and not allow boredom and habit to take over, which conforms your staff into an absolutely uninspired mold. Going back to the literates, provide them with a mini-library get their mind to think beyond the voices beyond their illness and introduce productivity, imagination and information.
Some of your doctors, nurses, technicians, may think who is this woman? What could she really know?
I am a mother who has watched and observed her son, self- educated herself about schizophrenia and through successes and failures, through books and articles, through blogs, tweets and websites through advice gathered from patients themselves, I have concluded that, somehow, their holding time in the hospital should be more cheerful, for the duration. They are scared and lonely... more attention is needed during this time. This crucial moment, when we depend on your expertise so that our "children" aren't terrified to go back seeking help and support when they need it.
Instead of looking like a "center" or a hospital or moreover, an asylum, make it so it looks, smells and feels more like a haven where patients are willing to "visit" seeking care and understanding.
And... Please make it colorful, the iceberg appearance of the sterile white walls has affected your staff, patients and visitors alike! After all these institutions
are not infectious disease wards or prisons...or...
are they?!
