Ambiguous Loss - Living with grief caused by SMI (guest: Jerri Clark) (Ep. 85)

02/28/24 • 49 min

Schizophrenia: Three Moms in the Trenches

Send a Text to the Moms - please include your contact info if you want a response. thanks!

We’re delighted to welcome a return guest, Jerri Clark.

Jerri first joined us on Episode 32, “Channeling Grief and Anger into Advocacy and Acceptance”, and is now working with TAC (Treatment Advocacy Center-, see Episode 71 with Kathy Day. Episode 31 with Lisa Dailey, Episode 35 with Sabah Muhammad ), ) as Family Resource and Advocacy Manager. She has a fellowship as TAC’s DJ Jaffe Advocate this year. Jerri is a family member whose son with SMI died from suicide.

The six coping strategies (not linear)

Normalize Ambivalence
Find Meaning
Adjusting Mastery
Reconstruct Identity
Revive Attachment
Discover New Hope

We Ask:

1. Tell us a bit about your story, Calvin and how you came to your present job at TAC.

2. Tell us about your fellowship as TAC's DJ Jaffe Advocate

3. Who coined the term Ambiguous Loss, and what does it mean?

4. How does one process this complex form of grief when there is little recognition of its impact?

5. How are you developing strategies for dealing with Ambiguous Loss? - what is the

ambiguous loss family training project ?

Links:

https://www.treatmentadvocacycenter.org/

[email protected]

Dr Pauline Boss books

Facebook: TAC Family Support Group:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/tacsupport

Mindy and her book: https://mindygreiling.com/

Randye and her book: https://www.randyekaye.com/

Miriam and her book: https://www.miriam-feldman.com/

Want to know more?
Join our facebook page
Our websites:
Randye Kaye
Mindy Greiling
Miriam (Mimi) Feldman

Send a Text to the Moms - please include your contact info if you want a response. thanks!

We’re delighted to welcome a return guest, Jerri Clark.

The six coping strategies (not linear)

Normalize Ambivalence
Find Meaning
Adjusting Mastery
Reconstruct Identity
Revive Attachment
Discover New Hope

We Ask:

1. Tell us a bit about your story, Calvin and how you came to your present job at TAC.

2. Tell us about your fellowship as TAC's DJ Jaffe Advocate

3. Who coined the term Ambiguous Loss, and what does it mean?

4. How does one process this complex form of grief when there is little recognition of its impact?

5. How are you developing strategies for dealing with Ambiguous Loss? - what is the

ambiguous loss family training project ?

Links:

https://www.treatmentadvocacycenter.org/

[email protected]

Dr Pauline Boss books

Facebook: TAC Family Support Group:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/tacsupport

Mindy and her book: https://mindygreiling.com/

Randye and her book: https://www.randyekaye.com/

Miriam and her book: https://www.miriam-feldman.com/

Want to know more?
Join our facebook page
Our websites:
Randye Kaye
Mindy Greiling
Miriam (Mimi) Feldman

Previous Episode

From Bedlam to the Business of Helping Others: Returning Guest, Eric W. T. Smith, (Ep. 84)

Send a Text to the Moms - please include your contact info if you want a response. thanks!

We’re delighted to welcome a return guest, Eric W.T. Smith. He was also interviewed in Season 1 of 3 Moms (episodes 15 and 16, an AOT Success Story)

In Eric’s words:

“There are peers and supports in large numbers for depression, anxiety, eating disorders, and a host of other diagnoses, but nothing much available in the world of anosognosia and psychosis where a person in recovery and/or their parents/caregivers can regularly reach out and schedule a meaningful block of time to discuss their individual and/or family needs related to anosognosia and psychosis with a person who successfully went through all of that.

I'm here for people to connect with and help them accomplish what meaningful recovery means to them, and to build a bridge of trust and communication between them and treatment providers, within their own families, and with me as someone who lived much of what they are going through or have gone through. That should be part of what we do for appropriate policy and practice, but it isn't.”

Over the years Eric Smith has spoken publicly about his journey through mental illness and addiction to a wide variety of audiences. Now he is a nationally recognized mental health advocate, public speaker, and consultant.

He is a Commissioner at Texas Judicial Commission on Mental Health and owner of Eric WT Smith Consulting LLC

Part of his story is written about in Bedlam , authored by Peabody Award-winning Kenneth Paul Rosenberg, MD.

Part of Eric’s journey is included in the book You Are Not Alone : The NAMI Guide to Navigating Mental Health

Eric also wrote a chapter about being incarcerated without treatment for severe mental illness in the 2022 anthology Navigating Bipolar Country - and was featured in People magazine in 2023.

Links:

www.ericwtsmith.com -- my consulting business, Eric W. T. Smith Consulting, LLC
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=um-Zb-xr9Bc -- a link to a presentation about my consulting services with relevant background info that lead to the creation of my consulting business

https://www.texasjcmh.gov/about-us/commissioners/smith-eric/ -- here is a link to my Commisioner bio for the Texas Judicial Commision on Mental Health

https://www.texasjcmh.gov -- here is a link to the main page for the Texas Judicial Commision on Mental Health

[email protected] -- people can email me directly if they would like to do so

https://www.facebook.com/groups/www.teamdanielrunningforrecover.org

Eric on Linkedin:

Want to know more?
Join our facebook page
Our websites:
Randye Kaye
Mindy Greiling
Miriam (Mimi) Feldman

Next Episode

The Other S-Word: Let’s Talk About Suicide (Ep.86)

Send a Text to the Moms - please include your contact info if you want a response. thanks!

Guests are: Karlyn Nelson and Michelle Post

Karlyn Nelson

Survivor of Suicide Loss | Breast Cancer Warrior | Realtor

Michelle Post, M.A., is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (MFC 40198) with nearly 20 years of experience providing counseling and psychotherapy to clients in the greater Los Angeles area

According to the NIMH, People with schizophrenia have a much higher rate of suicide than the larger population: People with schizophrenia have a 10% rate of suicide compared with the larger population’s 1.3%rate of suicide.

Suicide is the biggest reason for the decreased life expectancy of people with schizophrenia.

A larger number of people with schizophrenia contemplate suicide. Around 40–79% of people with schizophrenia have reported having suicidal thoughts.

Saddest fact is that it is at the time of improved insight that most attempts are made. ie. when the person has finally moved past anosognosia and realizes his plight it is with improved understanding that this decision is made.

We Ask:

What is an “emotional heart attack”/
What are "The Five Things" when dealing with suicide loss in the family?:
Get help yourself (best indicator of how well a child does after the death of a parent is how well the surviving parent copes... so if only one can get help, needs to be the parent).
Use truthful and clear info about the cause of death and explain it in child terms – let the child lead with questions – do not over load them with info. They will need different info as they age
Acknowledge and validate a child’s feelings
1. Reassure them they are not to blame
2. Address their fears and anxieties
Encourage them to continue routine activities, structure gives them a sense of security
Include them in as many memorial / activities around the illness, injury, and death as they choose.
1. Prepare them
2. Let them make an informed decision
3. Share info and allow participation
4. Debrief with them.