First person account: schizophrenia and motherhood

With this article I want to give insight into what having children and dealing with schizophrenia is like. I go from a young woman wanting to experience motherhood, to being diagnosed with schizophrenia, to marrying and having two children. It is not easy dealing with schizophrenia and mothering, but the rewards are wonderful. In my case, I had one very serious schizophrenia episode, and I became homeless and my children went to live with their father. I eventually got better and reunited with my children, but our lives had changed. In this article I describe the adjustments we all had to make, the heartaches, the struggles, and finally the love that has prevailed. Today, especially with the newer medications, more persons suffering with mental illness are marrying, and the possibility of starting families is very real. Perhaps a young person with a diagnosis of mental illness will read my factual account, and it will help her to make a decision that will change the rest of her life. In closing the article, I raise the question, "If I had to do it over again, would I?" I also share the reason for my decision.