I figured it was time to explain a little about the delusional place where Korbin likes to hang out inside his head. It started out as a place he called Scorpion Nation. He referred to himself as Empire, leader of the Scorpion Army. His mission was to protect the Scorpion Nation from any invaders, which are mostly paranoid delusions. Some of these things have come to him through TV, video games, books, or just things he's heard and internalized. He knows Yuri is a character in the Command and Conquer video game, but that doesn't stop his mind from making him a real threat that could be stalking him and trying to take his Angry Bird eggs as we walk through the grocery store.
A while back Korbin was scared to come out of a short stay in the behavioral hospital because he feared the Scorpion Nation. They had turned on him and were out to kill him, in his delusion. He was truly scared. I typically don't play into his delusions or hallucinations, but this time the momma bear in me took over and I told him that while he was inpatient I fought them and destroyed Scorpion Nation. He was so relieved and happy that he started crying. Seriously. He felt safe and knew that I was there to protect him from his own mind.
A few months went by where he was still Empire and still leader of the Scorpion Army, who had come with him after the fall of Scorpion Nation. Then came Pig Nation. Yep, based loosely off of the Angry Birds and Bad Piggies games. Korbin is now King Pig. He wants to recruit other kids to be part of the Pig Army, along with the other members who are only in his mind. Thankfully the Pig Nation is not as aggressive as Scorpion Nation, but they are far more paranoid. OK, Korbin is far more paranoid. He says that people are video taping him, trying to take his things or read his mind. and occasionally people are trying to steal his eggs.
I have been doing a little video recording of his behaviors, but I let him know when I'm doing it and he can always see my phone or camera. He's typically not bothered by it, but now and then he gets so angry that he attacks me and the phone. Then again he attacks the phone when he's angry and I'm calling for help.
We're hoping to move soon to be closer to my husband's friend who he works with repairing vehicles. It will also place us closer to the school our oldest son, Aidan, plans to attend after high school. Korbin is excited about being out of this apartment and having land again. He wants to call our land Pig Nation and build his base. We'll build him a lookout tower which will basically be a raised platform with a slide coming off the side. He's also wanting a small yurt where he can plan and stockpile his weapons. Thankfully he still believes that Nerf will defend him to the end, but I can't help but wonder where this is leading. I'm starting to think that he's one psychotic break away from turning into Darth Vader himself. I am a very peaceful person. All of this talk of weapons and aggression pains me to my core. We use peace talks, treaties, and any other form of de-escalation to help him work through his rough times. It doesn't seem to help him feel that he can walk through a store without carrying a tiny Lego gun in his pocket for protection against the unexpected.
He's a work in progress and so is his fantasy land. I won't totally play into this world, but I'll use his way of thinking to help him back into ours. While we were in therapy this last week his therapist had him sign a peace treaty that says he will not harm himself, his therapist, or me. He understands that we will also not hurt him.We all signed it. So far it's been helpful. Who knows how long it will last. Today Pig Nation is peaceful. King Pig is relaxing with a video game before we work on cleaning up the Lego battle that he left all over the living room floor. Tomorrow he has an EEG to see if he's having any seizure activity. We're calling it spaghetti head, like I did with Aidan when he was little and had epilepsy. Korbin says that pigs like spaghetti, so we might make it through without incident. We'll keep our piggy fingers crossed.
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