1 Mother / Son, eyeshades /headphones, black armchairs: referencing handicap, poor communication, ‘see/hear/speak no evil’; using colour symbolism. Mother / Son shouting, dominating, ‘normal’ teenage / parent dynamics? Staircase, open doorway: son withdrawing? Removing himself from parental influence? Son crying, mother watching, helpless but present; mirror blocking window = inward looking, reflecting blackness. Wooden furniture for religious symbolism. Kitchen, Son (crouched in ‘Rabbit’ persona) admires carrot prepared by almost co-delusional Mother. Loaves and fish referencing miracle. (3rd of 3 image mini-narrative) 5. Son lying on sofa, Mother at his head. 4th of 4 image mini narrative - referencing exorcism / resurrection.
At 16, my son was diagnosed with a condition called Temporal Lobe Epilepsy, a psychotic disorder. He was prone to partial seizures, his upper body twitching and his face contorting. He was pre-occupied with God and religion; delusional, and unable to differentiate between the real world and the horrific hallucinations that beset him. Consequently he exhibited bizarre behaviour. Occasionally, he thought he was a rabbit, not a human. Sometimes he was unable to speak, at other times he engaged in long diatribes, aggressive rants aimed at whatever object or individual was disturbing him. He manifested self-loathing and self-neglect, guilt and paranoia, but most distressing of all was his belief that he was evil, and his obvious terror of the ‘demons’ he believed were hunting him. It required years of care and medication to restore him to health.
Mental illness is still almost a taboo subject, and sufferers (and their families) are often shunned or marginalized. Social isolation increases the stress, anxiety and suffering. Mentally ill people are often intelligent, hard-working individuals from normal happy families until their lives are destroyed by a biochemical imbalance in the brain.
Mother and Son a series of about 20 photographs, offers an intimate and personal statement, an exploration of my relationship with my son during the acute phase of his illness. He is an intelligent, talented, deeply compassionate young man, with a bright future. Proud to be his mother, I am grateful for his collaboration in presenting our story.