Mental Illness and pregnancy

[HeatherNPete]

I am 5 weeks pregnant and the father has paranoid schizophrenia, among other things. He has been pretty abusive after about the first month of our relationship. He is now in jail and back on his medications and seems to be doing a lot better. I didn't find out I was pregnant until after  was arrested. I guess what I want to know is, what are some things I can do to help with his illness and if my baby could possibly develop mental illness for the simple fact that the father has mental illness. Also, is someone with a serious illness like that suitable to raise a child. I love him so much, but my baby comes first.

[TA283]

I have schizoaffective disorder that I inherited from my mom. She's bat **** crazy but her meth is likely contributing to that.
Mine was set off during my first pregnancy due to the trauma of my mate leaving me and myself having no idea how to care for us. Before that I hadn't had any signs.
My mom would have to constantly be on several meds to manage herself. I can go off them completely for a couple years at a time and do decently. I'm not violent or confrontational, I tend to withdraw and lash out if I'm not left alone.
I cared for my daughter for the first year, I didn't do great but I tried to always be very attentive and never leave her side except to eat or shower and so on.
I think the type and severity of a person's illness is the determining factor, not that the person has an illness to begin with. I don't think I should have been left alone to care for my daughter, but even with no medicine and no partner, I tried my best, never abused her, didn't neglect her, and worked hard to care for her needs.

[aurora92]

My father was schizophrenic, I'm 21 & not showing any signs, so it's less likely it will develop for me. It depends on a lot of factors - a combination of genetic factors as well as environmental factors (influenza in utero, improper nutrition, urban birth, etc). That's what the majority of the current theory suggests. They don't truly know exactly what causes it/triggers onset.. but your child will more than likely be fine. My father was great when I was really little, but abusive (verbally, emotionally & physically) as I got older (8-12). My mom didn't allow me to see him, nor did I want to for about four years after 12, because of how violent some of his episodes were at that time. My parents were separated when I was 2, so I was not affected by or bothered by their not being together. I don't remember them ever being together & that doesn't bother me at all. They had joint custody when I was younger, until she found out about the abuse. Obviously not all schizophrenics are this way, but he would lose control of his emotions & thoughts. I am grateful to have gone through all of this, because it's made me a more tolerant, strong & compassionate person... but I would not risk it on anyone. And my child's interaction will be extremely limited with my father. That's definitely your personal choice and I understand how difficult it is, just remember that every case of schizophrenia is unique & judge based on that. Do what will allow your child to have a safe, happy, healthy life.

[amie1988]

Yes it is a very serious illness. Expecally when the illness can be passed on.but find out as much info as u can. And just pay attention. If u want to talk message me.

[CountryMomToBe]

I'm pretty sure schizophrenia is hereditary.  I would just watch your son/daughter closely for any signs throughout the years.  Sometimes illnesses like say, bipolar disorders don't show up until the kid is like 18... I think it depends on when the parent started showing signs.  Schizophrenia is, to me, the most serious of the mental illnesses.  I used to work at a psychiatric hospital and the schizophrenia patients (off their meds) were always the ones that got to me.  Sometimes a patient would be afraid of the walls because they were poisoned or they claimed their name was Calvin Klein or they thought we were cops or they were being followed.  They'd sometimes yell nasty dirty obscenities about things they wanted to do to the staff... Poop on us, slit our throats... Etc... It was always something different.  Sometimes it was harmless, sometimes it was rather intimidating.  Sometimes they were admitted on warrant bc they tried to stab someone in their sleep claiming they were someone else.  My point: it's a serious illness and should be treated as such.  If the baby's father gets off his meds, then no, he most likely is *not* suitable as a caretaker for an infant.  I would find some local resources to educate yourself more on schizophrenia and how it presents itself.  Maybe a local university has free counseling where you could just ask questions about your situation or a state mental health facility where they help people get their medications at little or no cost when they can't afford then.  They usually provide pretty good information.  You could also call your local psych hospital and just ask for educational references.

[amie1988]

Ok, my daughters father and I both suffer from two different types of schizophrenia. You have to make sure he stays on his meds and goes to doc appts. You actually might want to go with him . To basically make sure he doesn't lie. The reason I say that is because my daughters father did and he basically "snapped" so far my child is ok. I see no signs of it. But alot of times it starts around 18 and up.