Maalaala Mo Kaya May 6: Schizophrenic Rosanna Roces Is Estrelita Calacala, ‘The Viral Mom’ On Facebook

In Maalaala Mo Kaya’s May 6 episode, “The Viral Mom,” Rosana Roces plays a schizophrenic mom who goes viral on Facebook for her uncanny sense of humor. Behind the smiles, though, is a woman trying to be the best mother she wants to be to her daughter Princess even when she struggles with mental illness.

The story sheds light into the growing concern on mental health in the society today. It brings its audience into the understanding of just how resilient love and unconditional understanding can keep a family together even with a family member having schizophrenia. Jana Agoncillo plays the daughter of Estrelita (Rosanna). Ronnie Lazaro, on the other hand, plays the role of Aurelio, Estrelita’s husband.

Estrelita Calacala’s Life is More than Just a Facebook Sensation

Hashtags, witty one-liners, and the natural ability to crack a joke – these are Estrelita Calacala’s one-of-a-kind traits. At first, she lives a normal life with her husband and daughter. On a regular day, she would update her Facebook page with the day’s musings and spend time practicing poetry with her daughter. Princess got so good at it that she would win poetry contests. As a gift, Estrelita would give her a bag of candies.

After some time, because of the family’s growing needs, Estrelita decides to work again. This concerns Aurelio because he does not want his wife to go through her schizophrenia attacks all over again. It has been ten years since her last attack. Lita assures Aurelio that she is fine and will take her medicine to prevent the recurrence of her condition. Although Aurelio is hesitant, he allows Lita to work but asks her to promise him to stop working if she feels stressed.

Estrelita’s Schizophrenia gets triggered. At first, Estrelita does well in work. The family has enough to go by, having all needs supplied. This didn’t last for along time, though. A day came when Estrelita felt a throbbing pain in her head. Her co-workers were telling her to go home and rest but she refused. Little did she know that the headache was the beginning of her attacks. She began to hallucinate, hear things only she could hear, and started getting frantic. She was immediately submitted to medical care. It was then that the family found out that the illness she feared most has returned and it began to really affect her family.

Princess grows up teased and distant from her mother. When Princess was in her primary years, her mother’s attacks worsened. One day she would be fine, being the caring mom she is. On other days, however, she would be the total opposite. An incident happened when she barged in Princess’ school, angrily looking for her because she thought Princess ran away. The teachers tried to console her saying she was in the classroom studying but Estrelita did not believe it. When she finally saw her daughter, she gave her a beating in front of the school.

The incident traumatized Princess. Atop that, her classmates called her the “daughter of a crazy woman.” She grew depressed, hurt and fearful because of her situation. She became distant from her mother. Since Estrelita felt that her daughter avoids her, she was more worried and emotionally stressed than ever. Because of this, her illness got the best of her.

Aurelio has tough love as a father and a husband to his schizophrenic wife. What is a father to do? Aurelio finds himself juggling with the two most important priorities in his life. Shall he, as the father, bring his daughter far away from her mother who poses a threat on her welfare? Or shall he, as the husband, leave his child under the care of his wife while he is at work, knowing that the time his wife has with her child brings her healing from emotional stress? No one wants to be in the shoes of Aurelio and he did the best he could.

To secure their daughter’s welfare, he brings Princess to another town without telling his wife. She entrusted Princess to a family in the hopes that they would bring her to school and take care of her. He had to do this to take care of his wife and work at the same time. His trust upon others left him frustrated. Princess wasn’t brought to school. Instead, she was treated like a house maid. She felt castrated and she longed to feel the love of a family. Princess was even more devastated and wanted nothing else but to go back home. When her father visited her, she told him every detail of her misfortune. Frustrated, the father and daughter left and tried to find their way back home.

Estrelita recovers painfully. Estrelita found it difficult to recover. Although she submitted herself to the mental rehabilitation center, knowing that her husband brought her daughter away from her caused her much pain. The only thing in her heart is to find where her daughter is and be with her again. When she was able to get back on her feet through her medication, she began to work again. She was more careful this time and every penny she earned, she saved to look for her husband and daughter.

She was able to find out where her husband and daughter were living and sent off to look for them. Estrelita finally finds her daughter and the two reunite. They are once again complete. Things between Estrelita and her husband, however, was gray. Aurelio apologized to Estrelita for taking their daughter away from her. He explained that he wanted to go back home sooner, but then he got sick and ran out of money. It even reached a point where he lost his job. He asks forgiveness and hopes she would take him back.

Princess is the heart of the family. Princess apologized to her mother for being angry at her. She also asked forgiveness for being distant because of her fear towards her. Instantly, Estrelita embraced her and she, too, asked forgiveness. She promised her daughter never to be that way again. Princess is more than happy to be with her family again. She then asks her mother to accept Aurelio wholeheartedly. She told her mother how she saw her dad cry at night. Her father loves Estrelita dearly and cannot live without her. She tells her mother that he loves her more than she knows, if not just as much. Estrelita’s heart softened. Love restores.

Love conquers all things. Even in the midst of Schizophrenia, a family was able to conquer all the struggles because of unconditional love, understanding and forgiveness. The real sense of family heals any pain and struggle – be it physical or emotional. Being able to love “in sickness and in health” is truly noble.

Maalaala Mo Kaya’s Title for this episode is “Candy.”