Virtual TPR

Our Beloved Therapist

My kids' therapist - now all three are seeing her - said terminating parental rights on the basis of mental illness is virtually impossible. She said, ironically, the courts do not want to seem prejudiced against the mentally ill. Hmmmm.

That said, she suggested a course that, not surprisingly, my lawyer had used earlier. In this case it was a crack addict. Basically, they set up a series of criteria to be met - in the crack addict's case it was to be in treatment for a fixed amount of time, and some nine other items and then they could arrange for visitation.

The therapist said that he would not be allowed to be with the children at this point because he is very manic and will need therapy just to be in a mental state to see them. So the criteria would be similar to that in her letter - that he be in treatment for six months, and that his following the treatment be confirmed by all members of his treatment team. That he receive therapy to prepare to meet with the kids. On my end, the kids and I would be prepared by the therapist for the kids to meet with him.

She does not think he will do any of these things so his parental rights of decisions about the kids, input into their lives, and right to hear about their lives will be effectively terminated.

She also suggested tho that the court may order a supervised visit - I have to make sure in this case that a professional supervisor is hired as we have heard stories of the person's mother (the one who needs to be supervised) doing the supervision - effectively not supervised at all - in which case she was sure he would not want to follow the criteria - in fact would be unable to do so - and after two visits we could file to stop them. But she said she was certain he would need to go to therapy before being allowed with the kids and that he would never do that due to his gradiose vision of himself.

The kids and I could live with a series of forced supervised visits. We would be prepared and they would know how to handle it all. So its livable. And in the long run it would take care of him as an issue.