w00t w00t booyah

Well, that's what I mean. She might have had a relative look after the kids while playing down just how bad things had gotten. I can see that happening with an adoptive parent, since I've known bio-parents who do that because they fear how they're going to be judged by others, including their own families, and I would think an adoptive parent can be even more sensitive about this sort of thing (not being able to do what they had thought themselves capable of doing,i.e. providing for the kids).

As for resources, I don't know about California, but I know that in Texas you don't get access to most mental health resources without either good health insurance or an income so low that it's not fit for a person to survive on. Heck, to receive social assistance in Texas (i.e., food stamps, medicaid) you have to be well below the national poverty line. When I found out the actual amount (as part of a school project on poverty in Austin, TX), I was shocked. As a single individual, you'd have to live on an amount of money my husband and I spent in two months out of a year. We're talking no more than 4-6 K a year.

To give you an idea: I am underemployed right now and was in college for 3 years, and my husband is just finishing his PhD. We were living off of fellowship money and student loans for a long time. We could pay the bills, feed the cats and ourselves, and keep a very tiny roof over our heads, and very little more throughout. I can't begin to imagine or understand how horrible the life of people who can qualify for social services are, let alone that of people who do get mental services in Texas.

I don't think things are much better there right now. There might be more of a social net (Texas is one of the worst states to live in when it comes to that kind of thing), but how strained might it be at this time? I'd hazard enough for plenty of people to fall through the cracks.