My Support Forums - View Single Post - Bipolar check-in #68

Sunflower123 · Aug 07, 2022, 12:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by *Beth*

Thank you very much @Soupe du jour for your suggestions. I deeply appreciate your research, that you took time and energy for it.

London is my cat with asthma. Sidney is my girl with diabetes. I have three others.

I am familiar with the WRAP program. It's called "ACT" in some locations. (It is WRAP here, however.)

I do not have anyone, no one, who can care for my cats unless I pay the person. i.e., a cat sitter. My husband has mental illness that is severe; he is literally not able to function well enough to care for pets. I have absolutely no other family or friends who live in the town I live in.

My neighbors are all friendly, kindly people. Most of them speak Spanish (they are farm workers) and little or no English. They are from Mexico and are here for part of the year to work. The three neighbors I have who do speak English are mentally ill. On occasion, one woman has been so kind and helped me to take out heavy garbage. But no way are any of those 3 people capable of caring for pets.

I'm sure I could find a vet tech who could pet sit (although that would be extremely stressful for Sidney, as she requires a lot of specialized care, and we are extremely bonded) - but no pet sitter will work without payment. I don't have any ability to pay anyone. My checking account right now is at 71 cents, and that's typical. I do not have a savings account.

David's trust fund (left to him by his parents), which is overseen by his sister, pays my rent. I receive CalFresh (food assistance) and I am on Medicare because I receive disability. I literally, seriously, do not have enough food to eat throughout the month. I make do.

The amount of disability I receive pays for my internet, for my gas/electric, and for cat food (an expensive diabetic diet for all cats) and litter. Occasionally, I purchase things for myself - like my roller skates. Those kinds of purchases are rare. The last time I had $20 to see a movie was on my birthday in December. Gas here hovers around $6/gallon. My car, a 2002 Saturn Vue, has not held higher than 1/4 tank for months. I simply cannot afford to put more gas in the car; I keep just enough in it to get to medical appointments and to the grocery store nearby.

David is waiting to find out if he has been approved for 100% veteran's disability. We certainly expect that he will be approved - but it could be several months before he has a decision. Right now, he lives on social security and 50% veteran's disability. Thankfully, he lives at no cost in the home that once belonged to his parents and is now owned by his niece.

David's sister considers my cats "luxuries." She would prefer that I give them away because of the expense of feeding them. No way will she release trust fund money for a cat sitter.

David and his family believe, on NO uncertain terms, that mental illness is a weakness that MUST be controlled by strength of will and by prayer. David's mental illness is out of control because he refuses any type of medical treatment (he also refuses medical treatment for physical needs). David does not approve of me being on medication.

My daughter lives in NYC and refuses to communicate with me, regardless of circumstances. My son lives in San Fran; not so far away, but he works his rear end off to pay for the lifestyle he has chosen, which is an admirable one, but at this point he does not have much time or money to give to me. Facebook messages and an occasional phone call are about it. I actually see him roughly once/year.

A caring "cat person" on this forum set up a donation situation (not connected here) for London so he could receive asthma care from the vet.

Without my cats I would not have much reason to remain in this world.

I consider you a dear, special person and a true friend. Please, understand that I have absolutely no way to pay for a pet sitter. Please stop suggesting it, because it just causes me to stress out. I need to be able to be entirely open and honest here - I know I need to be IP, but it is not possible. Hopefully, the lithium will help after a bit of time. BIG hug~

Thank you for sharing your situation. It touched me deeply. I wanted to show my support and caring for you. Please don’t hesitate to reach out as often as you need so we can help you through this. Many gentle hugs and supportive vibes.