"Born Schizophrenic" - The Story of Janny

Post Reply New Topic

Maybe someone here is familiar with this story:

http://health.discovery.com/tv/psych-we ... renic.html

Last night I watched the beginning of a TV show where this girl's parents talked about and even showed videos of their struggles and her life, and I just wonder what anyone here might be able to add. The part I found most interesting was her mother's telling of the difficulty they had in getting access to good doctors who could help them discover an accurate diagnosis. At the point I had to leave the show and go to bed, the school had just called and said they would be calling the police if the parents did not get there within a certain time ... and the parents decided to just let that happen because they could not get Janny into a certain facility any other way.

A Beautiful Mind (movie)(2001) - A Beautiful Mind is a 2001 American film based on the life of John Forbes Nash, Jr., a Nobel Laureate in Economics. Directed by Ron Howard and stars Russell Crowe. (Wikipedia)

Yes, I know the story. Infact, I have it on my DVR. I find it interesting because juvenil schizophrenia is extremely rare and it is amazing to learn about it. I wonder if she still sees "Friday" and "9"?

I've seen the documentary about her... the link was posted on this forum a while ago. Her parents must be constantly exhausted, and worried about their daughter's future. I understand her brother is okay.

I've seen this. Or at least I've heard of this particular person; I don't know if I saw the same documentary as you. I thought it was interesting how the parents said that, as a baby, she would be intensely focused on things that weren't there. Do you think that someone can really be born with schizophrenia? I have a feeling that I was born with whatever I have (I didn't cry when I was born).

I've seen this. Or at least I've heard of this particular person; I don't know if I saw the same documentary as you. I thought it was interesting how the parents said that, as a baby, she would be intensely focused on things that weren't there. Do you think that someone can really be born with schizophrenia? I have a feeling that I was born with whatever I have (I didn't cry when I was born).

I had already heard about her, some people claim that she is autistic and has been given the wrong diagnosis. I think schizophrenia is one of the more rejected disorder one can have since people are always thinking so badly about people who have it and fear them so much.

I have read about it and seen a show about it. I find it sad for her and her parents. I can't imagine having that life and I wonder how they deal with the stress. The father has a blog and I know his words have been twisted around and judgments have been passed on him and his wife. Some think he is abusing his child and so is his wife, some thing Janny isn't a schizophrenic and she has AS. Of course the parents have admitted that they have tried everything like hitting her back and other stuff and letting her starve so she eat other foods they make but then after she was diagnosed with a mental illness, they stopped treating her like a normal child. They also stopped taking other peoples advice since they don't have a sick child. Of course when Janny was starving, she lost like seven pounds if I remember correctly so the mother decided that method wasn't working and they went back to letting her have her mac and cheese. It was a doctor that told them to do that method and instead she starved and was losing weight. When people read that in his blog, they turned it around and said she acts that way because she is being abused. No the parents were doing that stuff because of how she was acting and they thought they had a brat. Heck my mom has done stuff back to me too growing up to show me how it feels. She has bit me, scratched me, spat at me, sprayed me, pinched, etc. me all because I was doing it to my brothers or to other kids. She used to tell me "this is how it feels."

Childhood schizophrenia is rare. Some people don't even think it exists in kids.

I agree League Girl that people have been very quick to judge Janny's parents. I'll admit, when I first heard about her I wasn't sure, but funnily enough, it was reading her father's blog that persuaded me. They're right not to listen to parents without experience of childhood schizophrenia... after all, they are the closest thing on the planet to experts on their own daughter. I wouldn't dream of telling them what to do. It's hard enough for them as it is.

I found this part of the article very sad:

Another really sad thing about Janni's situation is how her parents have stopped treating her like a normal child. She has debilitating problems, but they don't need to structure her home life like a mental hospital!