A Common Struggle by Patrick J. Kennedy

Patrick Kennedy talks about a time when he was taken out of rehab because his family thought they had a better recovery plan. They set him up in an apartment with a concierge recovery guide (life coach) to make sure he finished high school, did homework, and whatever else he was supposed to do.  Patrick remembers feeling comforted that there was someone there to talk to and keep him on target.  That makes me think isn’t that what parents are for?  His family thought it better for him to live with an outside person instead of mom and dad assuming their role as a parent. Hmm.

A Common Struggle is about the struggle people have with drug and substance addiction and mental health problems.  It is also about the struggle in health disparities that prevent help and the struggle to combat stigmatization.  No matter what your background is, the dilemmas are the same.  Individuals feel ashamed, embarrassed and stigmatized which is one reason why they won’t seek treatment. Then there is the problem that medical insurance is not helpful in covering certain treatments.  A person with a substance abuse problem should be given the same chance of care and treatment as a person who is having seizures.  Patrick Kennedy struggles through red tape to get these types of illnesses to be covered by the same medical coverage that would treat the common cold.  In his telling of this struggle it seems that mostly Republicans were the ones to veto these bills.

I won’t go into detail about the personal family issues (the stories we didn’t see in the news) surrounding the Kennedy family (read the book), just know that you really don’t know what goes on behind closed doors of other people’s household.

He admits that his father tried to sugar coat his son’s illness and also his own problem with alcohol.  His father Ted admits that he grew up in a family where they didn’t like to hear whining and complaining.  Patrick was also shunned by the family for talking openly and I am not surprised that this book was not published before his father died.

I found it interesting that the Kennedy's were very private about their lives, but it was okay to see psychiatrists where you were supposed to be truthful and open.

What I take away from this book is that people with power have the ability to get things done with the right motivation – a situation that is actually happening within their home.