Help for Tanner Schroeder
Donation protected
Our sweet son Tanner has been fighting for a long time. His mental illness issues started long before it became apparent to people outside of his family. We watched as the anxiety and depression got worse, as he desperately read, researched, watched videos, etc - seeking a way to overcome his pain. Over the last few years he has been in dozens of hospital E.R.'s, treatment facilities, many psych wards, etc. And we've been along with him each time.
For years his mom Shannon and I have done everything in our power to help find Tanner a program that works. With each new place we raise our hopes again, but each time takes a toll (financially, mentally, emotionally and spiritually). The sad fact is that our mental health system is very broken, and it doesn't seem that treating or curing underlying issues are the core focus at all. Indeed, paired with insurance companies, and complicit physicians, the system is designed to facilitate a financial revolving door of patients. Open beds are increasingly harder to come by. Those with money can pay for better programs, but often it takes a lot of trial and error to find pathways to treatment and cure that take hold. For us the money went out the door consistently over the course of that last four years. And there is none left.
Thus far Tanner has become steadily worse. His official diagnosis is BiPolar Disorder 1 with Dysphoric Mania and strong Schizoaffective features. He sees demons doing unspeakable things to his loved ones, he has false beliefs about events in the past, he often is delusional and believes himself to be someone like Kurt Cobain or Elvis reincarnated. His paranoia and fear are paralyzing. All of this goes on in his poor head 24/7, for years, and he still keeps trying and seeking happiness.
That is all we want for him. That he may find a place of peace again in this world. Mental illness and it's effects on family, can be devastating. It certainly has torn up our world. But we keep trying and hoping.
At this point all of my resources have been taken by this process. We were able to get Tanner into an excellent program last week but the remaining cost of it after insurance, and after I help the facility to find cost savings through healthcare group purchasing contracts and volunteer to work there free on various projects - is still approximately $50,000. This is a six month program called Crownview Co-Occurring Institute in Oceanside, CA. www.crownviewci.com
I believe that CrownView has the right plan to bring Tanner back to a place where he can come back to us functionally and enjoy the life he deserves.
The money raised on this page will go to pay for his participation in the program. If we can't raise it the likelihood of Tanner getting the help he needs is very low. We've exhausted most options for him and he typically ends up on the street and gets picked up by police and taken to the psych ward. There, they bombard him with anti-psychotic drugs that only "zombify" him and cause his healing process to start over from square one. Insurance then kicks him out just as he begins to show stability and healing. Thus he is booted back to a facility where he knows nobody and forced to begin again piecing his life and thinking back together through a fog of meds.
So I am humbly asking for help. Last week at the program the staff was saying that by now, with the serious issues he has, they would have assumed everyone would have given up on Tanner. That was hard to hear but it reinforced in me that I need to do anything possible to help this sweet beautiful boy.
If you know Tanner's spirit you understand how much of a shame it is that he isn't able to be out in the world sharing it.
Tanner deserves to have a life of peace and to explore this world, to find love, to be happy. All of us do. His path has just been a lot harder than most. We are determined that the difficulty will not be ultimately in vain.
Please help us to get our boy back. Anything you can give will be forever appreciated!
Thank you,
Stan Schroeder
Shannon and Ryley
For years his mom Shannon and I have done everything in our power to help find Tanner a program that works. With each new place we raise our hopes again, but each time takes a toll (financially, mentally, emotionally and spiritually). The sad fact is that our mental health system is very broken, and it doesn't seem that treating or curing underlying issues are the core focus at all. Indeed, paired with insurance companies, and complicit physicians, the system is designed to facilitate a financial revolving door of patients. Open beds are increasingly harder to come by. Those with money can pay for better programs, but often it takes a lot of trial and error to find pathways to treatment and cure that take hold. For us the money went out the door consistently over the course of that last four years. And there is none left.
Thus far Tanner has become steadily worse. His official diagnosis is BiPolar Disorder 1 with Dysphoric Mania and strong Schizoaffective features. He sees demons doing unspeakable things to his loved ones, he has false beliefs about events in the past, he often is delusional and believes himself to be someone like Kurt Cobain or Elvis reincarnated. His paranoia and fear are paralyzing. All of this goes on in his poor head 24/7, for years, and he still keeps trying and seeking happiness.
That is all we want for him. That he may find a place of peace again in this world. Mental illness and it's effects on family, can be devastating. It certainly has torn up our world. But we keep trying and hoping.
At this point all of my resources have been taken by this process. We were able to get Tanner into an excellent program last week but the remaining cost of it after insurance, and after I help the facility to find cost savings through healthcare group purchasing contracts and volunteer to work there free on various projects - is still approximately $50,000. This is a six month program called Crownview Co-Occurring Institute in Oceanside, CA. www.crownviewci.com
I believe that CrownView has the right plan to bring Tanner back to a place where he can come back to us functionally and enjoy the life he deserves.
The money raised on this page will go to pay for his participation in the program. If we can't raise it the likelihood of Tanner getting the help he needs is very low. We've exhausted most options for him and he typically ends up on the street and gets picked up by police and taken to the psych ward. There, they bombard him with anti-psychotic drugs that only "zombify" him and cause his healing process to start over from square one. Insurance then kicks him out just as he begins to show stability and healing. Thus he is booted back to a facility where he knows nobody and forced to begin again piecing his life and thinking back together through a fog of meds.
So I am humbly asking for help. Last week at the program the staff was saying that by now, with the serious issues he has, they would have assumed everyone would have given up on Tanner. That was hard to hear but it reinforced in me that I need to do anything possible to help this sweet beautiful boy.
If you know Tanner's spirit you understand how much of a shame it is that he isn't able to be out in the world sharing it.
Tanner deserves to have a life of peace and to explore this world, to find love, to be happy. All of us do. His path has just been a lot harder than most. We are determined that the difficulty will not be ultimately in vain.
Please help us to get our boy back. Anything you can give will be forever appreciated!
Thank you,
Stan Schroeder
Shannon and Ryley
Organizer
Stan Schroeder
Organizer
San Clemente, CA
