Barbara Theodosiou’s beloved son Daniel Francis Montalbano was mentally ill and struggled with drug addiction for years before he died and now in the wake of his death, while his mother awaits the toxicology report on her son’s death, she’s speaking out against the system.
The boy who, according to his mother, just wanted to be normal, was left with a no definitive diagnosis for his mental illness after having been taken to a psychiatrist at the age of 12. Later, he began abusing drugs which left in an inebriated state so often that his mother claims he was never sober long enough to get the root of whatever ailed him psychologically.
According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), mentally ill people who abuse substances are less apt to achieve lasting sobriety and are at an “increased risk of impulsive and potentially violent acts.”
Between his mental ailment and his drug abuse, the late Daniel was no stranger to mental health system nor the judicial system — systems which his mother Barbara claims to be broken systems which failed her son.
In regards to the mental health system, Barbara was quoted by CNN‘s Kelly Wallace as having said that the mental health system is a “broken system” which her son was a part of “since he was a little boy, and that system failed him.”
(…) broken system, a broken mental health system since he was a little boy, and that system failed him.
Before his death, his mother claims he was stuck in a “horrific cycle” which included being released from jail, overdosing, going to the emergency room, then on to the psychiatric wing, treatment, drug relapse and then arrests for petty crimes followed by incarceration. And such was the cycle until last fall when he was arrested charged with a felony for allegedly assaulting a security guard while in the psychiatric wing of the St. Lucie Medical Center.
In regards to the incident, his mother wonders how a mentally ill patient being treated in the psychiatric wing of a hospital could be arrested and subsequently incarcerated.
As a result of the incident, Theodosiou indicated that the cops came and arrested her son, charged him with a felony and he “ended up in jail with violent, violent felons.”
My son was in a psychiatric unit. He was psychotic. He could have easily been given a shot (…) The police came and arrested him. He was given a felony. He ended up in jail with violent, violent felons.
Daniel died at the age of 23 as a result of having drowned in Florida’s Intracoastal Waterway.
Drug overdoses resulting in death are on the rise in the U.S. and nearly 52 percent of them have been linked to prescription drugs, according to a study conducted by the nonprofit Trust for America’s Health.
In tribute to her lost son, Barbara founded a Facebook community known as The Addict’s Mom back in 2008 to support families battling the disease of addiction. In regards to the loss of her own son, she said, “It shocks me. It crushes me. It steals my soul,” FOX 8 reported.
Do you agree with Daniel Montalbano’s mother Barbara Theodosiou, is the system broken?
