June 26th 2012
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Illustration 1: From left to right, Caleb, Mitch May 2011
Waking up to terrifying screams at my house is not such an uncommon event. When I was awoken to these screams once again I thought we'd run though what had become known as
the normal routine. I would gather all the younger kids into my bedroom where we would then lock the door and wait for our parents to come tell us it was safe for them to go back to their own bedrooms.
You see, ever since my older brother, Mitch, was two years old, he has had night terrors.
Night terrors are commonly mistaken for just regular nightmares. However, night terrors happen during a non-Rem sleep stage where as nightmares happen in REM sleep, which is the normal sleep stage for dreaming. Night terrors generally last from five to twenty minutes but can last up to an hour or more. They occur while the person is still sleeping but the individuals eyes may be open and the individual is likely to be up moving around seemly awake; sleep walking. The symptoms of night terrors include but are not limited to screaming, confusion, the inability to explain or understand what happened, and they generally have no memory of anything that happened the next morning.
Mitch is one of the cases where sleep walking during these night terrors is common. He has even been known to act out the events occurring within his night terrors which can obviously be very dangerous, however, he had never harmed anyone but himself. My brothers episodes usually occur two to three times a year and are brought on in times of high stress and anxiety.
Mitch had been diagnosed with a form of Schizoaffective disorder. Schizoaffective disorder is a life-long mental disorder that involves both the psychotic symptoms of schizophrenia and the extreme mood changes of Bipolar Disorder. Individuals with Schizoaffective disorder experience hallucinations and delusions. His doctor also diagnosed him with a severe anxiety disorder.
A week or two before this incident, Mitch had a night terror at his apartment in Salt Lake City in which he slept walked a few blocks to a park where he then attempted suicide while still sleeping. He woke up due to the pain and was able to find his way home and get to a hospital before his blood loss was to great. He was admitted to the psychiatric ward of LDS hospital but was released just days later because the Doctors there found him no longer to be a threat to himself or anyone else.
the normal routine. I would gather all the younger kids into my bedroom where we would then lock the door and wait for our parents to come tell us it was safe for them to go back to their own bedrooms.
You see, ever since my older brother, Mitch, was two years old, he has had night terrors.
Night terrors are commonly mistaken for just regular nightmares. However, night terrors happen during a non-Rem sleep stage where as nightmares happen in REM sleep, which is the normal sleep stage for dreaming. Night terrors generally last from five to twenty minutes but can last up to an hour or more. They occur while the person is still sleeping but the individuals eyes may be open and the individual is likely to be up moving around seemly awake; sleep walking. The symptoms of night terrors include but are not limited to screaming, confusion, the inability to explain or understand what happened, and they generally have no memory of anything that happened the next morning.
Mitch is one of the cases where sleep walking during these night terrors is common. He has even been known to act out the events occurring within his night terrors which can obviously be very dangerous, however, he had never harmed anyone but himself. My brothers episodes usually occur two to three times a year and are brought on in times of high stress and anxiety.
Mitch had been diagnosed with a form of Schizoaffective disorder. Schizoaffective disorder is a life-long mental disorder that involves both the psychotic symptoms of schizophrenia and the extreme mood changes of Bipolar Disorder. Individuals with Schizoaffective disorder experience hallucinations and delusions. His doctor also diagnosed him with a severe anxiety disorder.
A week or two before this incident, Mitch had a night terror at his apartment in Salt Lake City in which he slept walked a few blocks to a park where he then attempted suicide while still sleeping. He woke up due to the pain and was able to find his way home and get to a hospital before his blood loss was to great. He was admitted to the psychiatric ward of LDS hospital but was released just days later because the Doctors there found him no longer to be a threat to himself or anyone else.
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Illustration 2: Ambian
Mitch had been given Ambien by his Doctors to help with his extreme insomnia. Ambien is a
sedative that has been known to cause patients to do activities such as driving, talking on the phone, and eating that they later have no memory of. It is also known to impair thinking and reactions. Ambien patients have also experienced “abnormal dreams, more outgoing and aggressive behavior than normal, hallucinations, depression, and sleepwalking” (Monson par. 3). It doesn't seem logical to prescribe this medication to someone one already experiencing hallucinations, depression, night terrors and sleepwalking but when my parents questioned the Doctors choice their concerns were pushed aside and dismissed. Mitch moved back home so my parents could keep a better eye on him till he was once again mentally stable.
sedative that has been known to cause patients to do activities such as driving, talking on the phone, and eating that they later have no memory of. It is also known to impair thinking and reactions. Ambien patients have also experienced “abnormal dreams, more outgoing and aggressive behavior than normal, hallucinations, depression, and sleepwalking” (Monson par. 3). It doesn't seem logical to prescribe this medication to someone one already experiencing hallucinations, depression, night terrors and sleepwalking but when my parents questioned the Doctors choice their concerns were pushed aside and dismissed. Mitch moved back home so my parents could keep a better eye on him till he was once again mentally stable.
In June my cousin Cameron usually comes and stays with my family for a few weeks to spend time with my younger brother Caleb. Cameron is fourteen years old and from a large family, he is the third of seven children. He lives with his family in Arizona. On June 26th2012, at 1:30 AM I was pulled from my bed to the familiar screams of a night terror. Something was different this time, I could hear multiple people yelling and crying. I ran upstairs as fast as I could to get Cameron and Caleb who were sleeping on the 3rdfloor in our TV room.
As I got to the 2nd floor I found Cameron at the top of the stairs in the kitchen. His arms were folded across his chest, he was pale white and shaking. I thought he was just in shock and scared because he had never seen Mitch have a night terror before. I ordered him into my bedroom and to stay there not to come out for anything.
I then continued my search for Caleb who I found in the doorway to our parents bedroom. As I got closer I could here Mitch yelling and screaming things like, “What did I do?” and “Why is there blood?”. My Mom was on the phone giving our address to be thepolice while my Dad tried to calm Mitch down in the master bathroom. I heard my Mom them to send an ambulance and fast. I rushed to the conclusion that Mitch
had hurt himself during this episode like he had a few weeks before. I grabbed Caleb by the arm and yanked him away from the door we rushed down to my bedroom. When we got downstairs I went across the hall and tried to get into Megan's room, my little sister, sixteen, but her door was locked so I yelled at her that Mitch was having a night terror and she needed to stay in her room or come into mine.
Once I had the boys in my room and knew Megan was safe in her room I asked Caleb and Cameron if they were alright, they were both sobbing. Cameron looked at me and calmly said “I've been stabbed.”. I stared blankly at him, confused. There was no way Mitch would hurt anyone let alone a child. He was the type of person that would take spiders outside instead of killing them because He thought they deserved to
live as much as a human being. But then I noticed the blood pouring from the upper right side of his chest, it flowed down his body to form a small puddle on my floor. A cold shock ran through my body as I fought back the urge to vomit. Caleb started screaming and hyperventilating so I yelled at him to get to Megan's room. I didn't want Caleb to freak Cameron out with his screaming or risk giving him the chance to watch his cousin die on my bedroom floor.
My mind was running at a million miles an hour with possible outcomes and what I needed to do. I finally snapped out of it long enough to tell myself to grow up and be an adult. Cameron needed me and I couldn't let him see me worried. He need to see that I was calm and collected about the situation. I was terrified for Cameron. I didn't know if he was going to live long enough to get to a hospital. I grabbed the nearest absorbent material near me, a purple jacket, and lied Cameron down to apply pressure.
I kept repeating that he was going to be okay and that the wound wasn't as bad as it looked or felt even thought I had no idea how serious it was. After a few minutes my Dad came down to get Cameron upstairs and lied him near the door on the piano bench and waited for the ambulance. We waited seemed like an hour, time was moving so slowly. I replaced the blood soaked jacket with a clean kitchen towel once we
got him settled. I sat with him and continued to apply pressure to the wound. In order to keep him distracted from the pain and help him stay conscious I made him tell me about what he did all day. He would tell me about a sentence or two then he stop talking, his breathing would get more shallow and I'd have to ask him what he did next to keep him talking. By this point Megan and Caleb had come upstairs and were quietly sitting in the next room holding each other.
As I got to the 2nd floor I found Cameron at the top of the stairs in the kitchen. His arms were folded across his chest, he was pale white and shaking. I thought he was just in shock and scared because he had never seen Mitch have a night terror before. I ordered him into my bedroom and to stay there not to come out for anything.
I then continued my search for Caleb who I found in the doorway to our parents bedroom. As I got closer I could here Mitch yelling and screaming things like, “What did I do?” and “Why is there blood?”. My Mom was on the phone giving our address to be thepolice while my Dad tried to calm Mitch down in the master bathroom. I heard my Mom them to send an ambulance and fast. I rushed to the conclusion that Mitch
had hurt himself during this episode like he had a few weeks before. I grabbed Caleb by the arm and yanked him away from the door we rushed down to my bedroom. When we got downstairs I went across the hall and tried to get into Megan's room, my little sister, sixteen, but her door was locked so I yelled at her that Mitch was having a night terror and she needed to stay in her room or come into mine.
Once I had the boys in my room and knew Megan was safe in her room I asked Caleb and Cameron if they were alright, they were both sobbing. Cameron looked at me and calmly said “I've been stabbed.”. I stared blankly at him, confused. There was no way Mitch would hurt anyone let alone a child. He was the type of person that would take spiders outside instead of killing them because He thought they deserved to
live as much as a human being. But then I noticed the blood pouring from the upper right side of his chest, it flowed down his body to form a small puddle on my floor. A cold shock ran through my body as I fought back the urge to vomit. Caleb started screaming and hyperventilating so I yelled at him to get to Megan's room. I didn't want Caleb to freak Cameron out with his screaming or risk giving him the chance to watch his cousin die on my bedroom floor.
My mind was running at a million miles an hour with possible outcomes and what I needed to do. I finally snapped out of it long enough to tell myself to grow up and be an adult. Cameron needed me and I couldn't let him see me worried. He need to see that I was calm and collected about the situation. I was terrified for Cameron. I didn't know if he was going to live long enough to get to a hospital. I grabbed the nearest absorbent material near me, a purple jacket, and lied Cameron down to apply pressure.
I kept repeating that he was going to be okay and that the wound wasn't as bad as it looked or felt even thought I had no idea how serious it was. After a few minutes my Dad came down to get Cameron upstairs and lied him near the door on the piano bench and waited for the ambulance. We waited seemed like an hour, time was moving so slowly. I replaced the blood soaked jacket with a clean kitchen towel once we
got him settled. I sat with him and continued to apply pressure to the wound. In order to keep him distracted from the pain and help him stay conscious I made him tell me about what he did all day. He would tell me about a sentence or two then he stop talking, his breathing would get more shallow and I'd have to ask him what he did next to keep him talking. By this point Megan and Caleb had come upstairs and were quietly sitting in the next room holding each other.
The Police arrived first and promptly arrested Mitch. Once the ambulance arrived they took Cameron to Primary Children's Medical Center where they learned the wound was 7 ½ inches deep. The knife had gone through his lung and nicked his liver. No surgery was required and he made a full recovery.
The West Bountiful CSI team arrived and did a search of the entire house they spend most of their time upstairs in the TV room where the stabbing took place and my bedroom. They tore the place apart looking for whatever would help them build a case against Mitch. Several hours after the police arrested Mitch they charged him with attempted murder felony one, which carries a 5 to life prison sentence. He is currently in the Davis County Jail awaiting sentencing for a crime he doesn't even remember committing.
Because Mitch is in jail he is not receiving the psychiatric care he needs or the medications that are essential to his mental well being because of this he has had more episodes of night terrors and has had one serious suicide attempt. As a society we need to make sure that those with serious mental illnesses are getting the mental health care that they deserve and desperately need. This is a major issue throughout the United States and it needs to be addressed and taken seriously. Most of the inmates in the United States are mentally ill and because they are not being given the proper mental health care while incarcerated they are not mentally stable when they get released and because of this they are more likely to commit crimes and be reentered into the system. The tax payers pay more money in the long run to keep these individuals incarcerated and arresting them over and over again than they would if we gave them the proper care in the first place.
Angie Howe
The West Bountiful CSI team arrived and did a search of the entire house they spend most of their time upstairs in the TV room where the stabbing took place and my bedroom. They tore the place apart looking for whatever would help them build a case against Mitch. Several hours after the police arrested Mitch they charged him with attempted murder felony one, which carries a 5 to life prison sentence. He is currently in the Davis County Jail awaiting sentencing for a crime he doesn't even remember committing.
Because Mitch is in jail he is not receiving the psychiatric care he needs or the medications that are essential to his mental well being because of this he has had more episodes of night terrors and has had one serious suicide attempt. As a society we need to make sure that those with serious mental illnesses are getting the mental health care that they deserve and desperately need. This is a major issue throughout the United States and it needs to be addressed and taken seriously. Most of the inmates in the United States are mentally ill and because they are not being given the proper mental health care while incarcerated they are not mentally stable when they get released and because of this they are more likely to commit crimes and be reentered into the system. The tax payers pay more money in the long run to keep these individuals incarcerated and arresting them over and over again than they would if we gave them the proper care in the first place.
Angie Howe