After Don was released to home, the hospital social worker called Brenda telling her he was at high risk for depression and suicide and suggested that she should move back home to monitor him.
I said, “I have asked you guys for information. Nobody will call me. Nobody will talk to me. Now you are going to discharge him, now you want me to step in? I need to know what meds he’s on, what side effects to look for, and nobody will call me back. Furthermore, he’s got an emergency conservator, do I really have any say in this?” They just sent him home. The conservator called me and said, “He’s home. We’ll kind of watch things and work on it together.”
Because of driving infractions, Don lost his driver’s license. Brenda moved back home a week after Don came home from the hospital. After being on a waiting list, he started seeing a psychiatrist. Initially, they went to appointments every three weeks for Don’s medication adjustment for depression, anxiety, and OCD symptoms. He has been on the same medications for the past year. Although he tried some part-time work, he worked infrequently, and decided he was uncomfortable in the work environment because of his physical symptoms. Currently, he spends time on the farm doing mowing and cleanup, which Brenda describes as “slow steps” in reducing years of accumulation of “stuff.”