Hospital

Last night Avi was admitted to Summit Oaks Psychiatric Hospital.

Over the past few days we have gotten reports from the partial hospital program that Avi was not following directions, that he had to be taken out of group every time; he was kicking and breaking things, etc. So the case manager called Marsha in for a meeting yesterday morning. This was to try and decide what to do next. No decisions were really made, and another meeting of everyone who works with Avi (including the home therapists that we have) was scheduled for Monday.

Marsha went about her day after the meeting but at lunch time she was called back to Princeton House because they were starting the transfer process to send Avi to the Hospital. He was just too uncontrollable and he needed a level of care that they cannot provide. Marsha went back and after a few hours of Princeton House looking for a good facility for Avi and then waiting for an ambulance, Avi was brought to Summit Oaks.

The hospital is in Summit, NJ, which is about 30 – 40 minutes from our home, but it seems to be a good facility. The hope is that they will be able to stabilize Avi while he is there so he can come home soon (God willing before Passover).

Leaving your child at the hospital is one of the hardest things a parent can be asked to do. When Avi finally understood that he was going to be staying there, he burst out in tears. Kids cry for many things; when they get hurt, when they don’t get their way, when they are scared. This crying was one of the hardest things I hope I ever have to endure. We had been through this before, as he was an inpatient at a local behavioral hospital over the summer, but no matter how many times, it is still painful to do.

At the same time, it is hard not to think how much easier it will be in the house without Avi being there, and I pray I never feel this sense of shame that I am feeling now because of that thought. I can only hope and pray that he comes back to us very soon and that we will be able to move on from there.

Avi gets to call us once a day and we can call him if we need to. He called us before bed last night and he seemed fine. I called him this morning and he sounded so tired. He said he did not sleep well because he was crying too much. I know he will acclimate to his surroundings, and he won’t be crying every night, but it hurts so much to hear him say that. He will call again tonight and hopefully after a full day there things will be a bit better.

We can visit him on Wednesday evenings from 6:00 to 7:30 and Sunday afternoons from 1:30 to 3:00. We will see him this Sunday and Wednesday, and God willing by next week we can have him home.

His Hebrew name is Avi Binyamin ben Miriam Rivka for those who might be able to have his name added to any mishaberakh lists.

I will update here when I know more.