WILLIE THE PARROT: THE ULTIMATE DANGER ALARM Willie the Quaker parrot was a pretty remarkable bird. Like many parrots, he had a knack for mimicking certain sounds and words, including barking dog noises, human kissing noises, and a fair share of swear words. However, what made Willie a hero one day was not just what he said, but also when he said it. Meagan Howard, Willie’s owner, brought him over to her friend Samantha Kuusk’s house while she babysat Kuusk’s little daughter, Hannah. Hannah and Willie were both in the kitchen while Meagan prepared a Pop-Tart for Hannah’s breakfast. After placing the Pop-Tart on the table, Meagan stepped away to use the bathroom. While she was away, however, Hannah got her hands on the Pop-Tart and began to scarf it down, lodging a piece in her windpipe. She started choking and was unable to signal to Meagan that something was wrong. Luckily, Willie came to the rescue.
She rushed to the kitchen to find a very frantic Willie and a very blue Hannah. Meagan jumped into action. She grabbed Hannah and performed the Heimlich maneuver until the Pop-Tart piece dislodged itself and shot out of her mouth. Meagan may have been the one to stop Hannah from choking, but she insists that Willie was the real hero of the story. If he hadn’t used his unique mimicking skills to get Meagan’s attention, she doesn’t know what would have happened. It’s worth noting that before that incident, Willie had never used the phrase “Mama! Baby!” before. He knew something was wrong, and he knew how to get help.
Willie began squawking and shrieking, saying the words “Mama! Baby!” over and over again. In a matter of moments, Meagan knew something was wrong.
Shortly after the incident, Willie received the local Red Cross chapter’s Animal Lifesaver Award for his heroic actions.
POTENTIAL CHALLENGES (AND ACTION STEPS)
W hen M arrying S omeone W ith M ental I llness in T heir F amily H istory
Set boundaries with the family. Your spouse’s family’s mental illnesses might make spending time with them exhausting, so it’s okay to talk to your spouse about limiting the amount of time you spend with them. Plus, if they refuse to get help, and they’re rude or disrespectful because of it, you shouldn’t feel bad for telling them enough is enough. Let your spouse know that even though you love and accept their family, you have to keep your own mental health in mind as well. Learn about their illness. Instead of worrying about dealing with a new family member’s mental illness, try to understand it instead. It’s likely they don’t want it to affect your relationship any more than you do. So, it’s worth learning where they’re coming from and what causes their actions so you don’t have to feel out of the loop as you get to know more about them. Get help from others, too. Your spouse has lived with their family and their illness all their lives, so they’ll be a resource for both comfort and reassurance. They’ll help you learn and adapt to getting along with their family. It won’t be easy, but it will be possible. You don’t have to struggle alone with your spouse’s family.
Did you know that more than 50% of the world population will at some point in their lives be diagnosed with a mental illness of some sort? What’s more is that because mental
illness tends to be passed down through families, which means if you’re marrying someone who has family members who have
struggled with mental illness in the past, it could also eventually affect your spouse and your life together.
As scary as that might seem, it’s nothing you and your spouse can’t prepare for. Here are a few action steps you can take.
Find out the nature of their mental illness (if any). Your spouse may suffer from the same mental illness as their family members, or they may suffer from a different one — but they might not have any at all. In order to best prepare, talk about what grappling with a mental illness might look like, and maybe encourage your spouse to seek a mental health professional before things potentially get worse.
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