No Letting Go

I am reviewing from the perspective of someone who was a child with chronic anxiety and bouts of depression. I do not have bipolar disorder, but I am what is considered "Neurodivergent" with adult ADHD and Autism. This hit home for me watching the parents turn their nose up at special education and treatment and trying to force "normalcy". I grew up with a family who didn't believe in any of this and didn't want to be viewed as having a "disabled child" so ignored all the signs and labeled me a "bad kid with behavioral problems". I had a really rough life as a result and at age 40 am finally getting the support I need. Although I feel the child was misdiagnosed in the film and treatment outdated, I do appreciate how the film turned out and hope it teaches parents to let go of their misguided views and stop stigmatizing treatment for those with neurological differences who have trouble fitting into a one-size-fits-all world.

I see myself in this play as Nick unfortunately.

True he suffers from emotional imbalance but in today's age,l labeling with psychiatric disorders is a crime.

Talk therapy would work with a better therapist and no need for dangerous meds.

I was also prescribed meds and saw the light when I realized issues were not dealt with...

I do see common character of a mother being so lost and so not in tune to emotional issues and kudos to you, that is common and classic.

If mother would be educated about REAL mental challenges, a better psychoanalytic approach would save the kid.

I'm not an activist but if you want to show a movie without caring for a positive or negative position, it's well played. However, when I see Mental Health Awareness comments and a seemingly eye opening intention, I cannot ignore my comment.

I'm a former depressive and anxiety sufferer doing better with less meds (going off completely after 23 years, with god's help) so I have a voice.

Sorry guys but it's a hell of an intriguing story with bad message.

Thanks for listening.

A really great movie highlighting challenges faced both by the family and the person suffering with a mental health condition.

What is disappointing is the reality of how costly it can be to get the kind of great help as is shown in this movie. I hope this is something that more people can access without the price tag.

Mental health can be a life long struggle, but with the right support one can learn to manage it far better and live a life of quality.

This film does a tremendous job showing what raising a child with mental illness really is like. It is a film I recommend to ALL families and its hopeful message needs to be shared by everyone. It is based on a true story, but anyone can identify with some role in the film, whether it is the child, the parents, the siblings, the therapists, the friends, the doctors, the teachers or the neighbors. Since 50 percent of all lifetime cases of mental illness appears before the age of 14, not enough is being done to identify, diagnose and help these children and their families. I love when actress Kathy Najimy (as the therapist) says, "Y'all can"t do this alone, it is a family effort". Hopefully the film can help open the door to early intervention, so that mental health becomes regarded as important as physical health! All the actor performances were incredibly realistic, and a special mention to Cheryl Allison as the mom, Noah Silverman as Timothy 14 and David Schallipp as Timothy at 10.

I thought this film as a powerful story of the struggle many people go through with having a family member suffer from Mental Illness. They are people we see every day. I am so happy to see it's success as this subject can never get enough attention. There is still stigma and not enough services and change is needed. The acting was so well done I thought I was watching like a fly on the wall their struggles. Seeing the recovery of this young man was very hopeful as there are enough stories that don't end as well. The reason I believe is again due to stigma and lack of properly funded services. When will we see that Mental Illness are Addiction need to be properly funded and quality professionals need to be appropriately compensated for the hard and often heartbreaking work they do??