Some Progress

While I've been reading my way through yards of psychology and psychiatry, Julie has been quietly getting on making steady progress with recovery.  She has now been on her latest anti-psychotic, olanzapine, for about four weeks, so we can probably assume this has something to do with it.  As usual, however, it's quite hard to be definite about what is the effect of the latest drug and what is just due to the workings of time, the intensive therapy (or indeed Julie's own determination to get better).

 As I walked through my favourite bit of wood the other afternoon, I was preceded by this speckled wood butterfly, which flitted ahead of me along the path, landing repeatedly just out of reach, before deigning to pose for me in a convenient patch of sunshine.  It was fanciful, but the butterfly dancing just ahead of me, reminded me of Julie, whose recovery is now suddenly leaping forwards, with me always just a little behind!  It is less than two weeks since I was so demoralised by our repeated attempts to bring her home, and keep her safe, that I was prepared to give up.  She is now wild to be back home with her own familiar things, and is full of plans for going back to school and catching up with her friends.  Where a few weeks ago it was me coaxing her to try another half an hour before going back to hospital, now it is me putting the brakes on and insisting we don't run before we can walk.  The amazing resiliance of the young!

Olanazapine will be the fourth anti-psychotic Julie has taken, and the second that may have worked.  It's hard to be certain that a drug works, but it's very obvious when one doesn't!  The big disadvantage about olanazapine, as anyone will tell you who takes it, is the weight gain.  This is so extreme that diabetes is a very serious risk, and the consultant agonized before prescribing it.  At the moment, Julie is being given a lot of advice on healthy eating, and the hospital has a kitchen overflowing with fresh fruit and salad.  Poor Joe blotted his copybook by turning up with a bag full of Tescos doughnuts as a treat!  She has managed to keep the weight gain quite small so far, and is actually looking gorgeous with it - perhaps all the fruit has contributed to her glowing skin and fabulous hair.  I am considering introducing her to the word 'voluptuous' as a more positive description of her new curves.

It is hard not to have a wry smile reading about the mix-up that has seen batches of another anti-psychotic, Seroquel, accidentally introduced into Nurofen Plus packages: Guardian.  You can hardly wish anyone to take these drugs unwittingly, but there is a certain black humour in seeing these being accidentally distributed to an unsuspecting public.  Given the general levels of fear and stigma surrounding psychosis, it remains to be seen how outraged people will be about this.