Jacob Needs Help
Donation protected
Mental illness has been a taboo topic for far too long. Mental illnesses, such as depression, afflict so many people... yet we still aren't comfortable talking about it.
Adolescents in particular suffer from high rates of depression and suicide. For instance, an estimated 11.4% of teens suffer from depression and suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the U.S.A. (regardless of age range). It is way past the time to start having open and honest conversations about depression and mental illness. Therefore, I am sharing this deeply personal story about my nephew Jacob who, on top of being mildly autistic, has been suffering from severe depression and anxiety for the past several months.
Jacob was diagnosed with PDD-NOS (also referred to as atypical autism) when he was 11 years old. Jacob is incredibly intelligent and high functioning, however this disorder has created a great deal of struggles for him in his day to day life, particularly in social and academic situations. Navigating high school has been an up-hill battle for Jacob and unfortunately his junior year became more than he could bear. Jacob became very depressed during this past year and his schoolwork suffered as a result of not being able to cope with his emotions or his life. For instance, in just in one semester Jacob went from having a 3.5 gpa to having a 2.5 gpa and 3 incompletes. Although his family explored ALL treatment options and worked extensively with Jacob's school and therapists, Jacob has not gotten better.
Jacob's depression became truly crippling this past winter. Over the Christmas holiday it was devastating for myself and the rest of his immediate family to see him as a shell of his former self and not as the loving and witty Jacob that we all know and love. His now severe psychosis left his family with only one unexplored option: a residential treatment program. Thankfully, Daniel's Academy, a residential treatment program "designed for males with academic or social struggles due to learning differences" has agreed to take Jacob. There, he will spend 12-14 months where he will not only finish the remainder of his high school coursework, but gain valuable life skills (i.e. financial planning) as well.
However, because Jacob is so mentally fragile right now, Daniel's Academy requires him to first go through a 3-4 month interventional therapeutic wilderness-type program called Seven Stars. Seven Stars will hopefully get Jacob to a better, more stable place psychologically before he transfers to Daniel's Academy.
So here is where I humbly ask for your help.
While these two programs are fantastic, their costs are unfortunately astronomical. It is estimated that both programs will cost Jacob's family $217,100. Little to none of that will be covered by health insurance. This has placed a huge financial burden on Jacob's mother and step-father; they may have to sell their house in order to get Jacob the help that he so desperately needs.
My goal for this "Go Fund Me" page is to raise $20,000 in order to off-set a small portion of Jacob's programs' costs. Raising this money would mean all the world to Jacob and his family (including myself)! It would help to alleviate the huge and potentially devastating financial burden that has been placed upon his mother and step-father.
I cannot express how incredibly grateful I will be for any donation that is received. There is no amount that is too small since any little bit will help!
I honestly believe Seven Stars and Daniel's Academy is Jacob's best chance to turn his life back around. Nothing else has worked but both of these programs have amazing success rates.
Thank you all for your thoughts, support, and prayers.
- Chelsea O'Toole
To learn more about Jacob's treatment programs please visit the following links:
http://www.discoversevenstars.com/
http://danielsacademy.com/
Adolescents in particular suffer from high rates of depression and suicide. For instance, an estimated 11.4% of teens suffer from depression and suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the U.S.A. (regardless of age range). It is way past the time to start having open and honest conversations about depression and mental illness. Therefore, I am sharing this deeply personal story about my nephew Jacob who, on top of being mildly autistic, has been suffering from severe depression and anxiety for the past several months.
Jacob was diagnosed with PDD-NOS (also referred to as atypical autism) when he was 11 years old. Jacob is incredibly intelligent and high functioning, however this disorder has created a great deal of struggles for him in his day to day life, particularly in social and academic situations. Navigating high school has been an up-hill battle for Jacob and unfortunately his junior year became more than he could bear. Jacob became very depressed during this past year and his schoolwork suffered as a result of not being able to cope with his emotions or his life. For instance, in just in one semester Jacob went from having a 3.5 gpa to having a 2.5 gpa and 3 incompletes. Although his family explored ALL treatment options and worked extensively with Jacob's school and therapists, Jacob has not gotten better.
Jacob's depression became truly crippling this past winter. Over the Christmas holiday it was devastating for myself and the rest of his immediate family to see him as a shell of his former self and not as the loving and witty Jacob that we all know and love. His now severe psychosis left his family with only one unexplored option: a residential treatment program. Thankfully, Daniel's Academy, a residential treatment program "designed for males with academic or social struggles due to learning differences" has agreed to take Jacob. There, he will spend 12-14 months where he will not only finish the remainder of his high school coursework, but gain valuable life skills (i.e. financial planning) as well.
However, because Jacob is so mentally fragile right now, Daniel's Academy requires him to first go through a 3-4 month interventional therapeutic wilderness-type program called Seven Stars. Seven Stars will hopefully get Jacob to a better, more stable place psychologically before he transfers to Daniel's Academy.
So here is where I humbly ask for your help.
While these two programs are fantastic, their costs are unfortunately astronomical. It is estimated that both programs will cost Jacob's family $217,100. Little to none of that will be covered by health insurance. This has placed a huge financial burden on Jacob's mother and step-father; they may have to sell their house in order to get Jacob the help that he so desperately needs.
My goal for this "Go Fund Me" page is to raise $20,000 in order to off-set a small portion of Jacob's programs' costs. Raising this money would mean all the world to Jacob and his family (including myself)! It would help to alleviate the huge and potentially devastating financial burden that has been placed upon his mother and step-father.
I cannot express how incredibly grateful I will be for any donation that is received. There is no amount that is too small since any little bit will help!
I honestly believe Seven Stars and Daniel's Academy is Jacob's best chance to turn his life back around. Nothing else has worked but both of these programs have amazing success rates.
Thank you all for your thoughts, support, and prayers.
- Chelsea O'Toole
To learn more about Jacob's treatment programs please visit the following links:
http://www.discoversevenstars.com/
http://danielsacademy.com/
Organizer and beneficiary
CJ O'Toole
Organizer
Lake Oswego, OR
Devon Payne
Beneficiary