BOOK SIFTS THROUGH 'MAZE' OF MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES
Clifton JournalJul 28, 2017
A new book chronicles a
Their new book, "Maze Crawler," tells the story of Conaway's struggles to get help for her son, who suffers neurological disorders, developmental disabilities, as well as attention deficit hyperactive disorder and a learning disability. Mark (name changed for the book) has struggled with mental illness his entire life.
"This story, although unique to one family, is universal," Christopher said. "We want to reach as many people as we can, so they know they are not alone."
Mark was described as "very active and fearless" when Conaway and her previous husband adopted him at 3 in the early 1970s. He had a hearing problem, and his speech and gait were "off," she said.
"I thought at the time, 'Love conquers all,'" Conaway said, but it was only the beginning of the challenges. "We faced one situation after another, to the point I don't know how we slept, let alone worked," she said.
"You don't turnaround mental illness," Christopher added.
As a toddler, Mark had nightmares and sleeping problems. Issues also arose with children in their
He was eventually placed in an out-of-district, special education school.
When Conaway and her current husband Doug moved to
He then went to the
He eventually landed in the criminal justice system, she said.
Mark continued to go in and out of facilities, where he either ran away or aged out of their services, hurting his chances to get help, Conaway said.
As he became an adult, sustainability was further impounded by his inability to learn, read and write, she said.
The book ends in 1995 when Mark was 24, at the birth of his son. Today, despite his illness, he is "extremely forgiving, open-hearted and generous," Christopher said.
The Conaway family's struggles led Corraine to advocacy for the mentally ill and their families. She started the support group Children in Crisis in the mid-1980s.
She also was a longtime member of the Passaic County Mental Health Board.
The self-published book is available at amazon.com.
Email: proctor@northjersey.com