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Stress prompted man to run away, wife says Mail Tribune / Drew Fleming Julie Wisdom says her daughter, Jill, is coping well in the aftermath of the commotion surrounding the disappearance of Jill and her father, Jeff. "One of the reasons she�s a great kid is because she�s got a great dad," Julie Wisdom says. Daughter �tired but OK� after odyssey to Bellingham, Wash. By Jill Briskey Kicking her small feet toward the branches of a nearby tree, 4-year-old Jill Wisdom shrieked with laughter as the playground swing brought her back to her uncle for another push. Ponytail flying, cheeks rosy in the autumn chill, the Ashland girl remained oblivious to the recent media attention spawned by her disappearance. "She�s tired. She missed her nap to be here today," Julie Wisdom said as her daughter scampered from the swings to a merry-go-round at Phoenix Park Friday. "She�s OK, tired but OK." Julie Wisdom, herself exhausted after driving back from Bellingham, Wash., Thursday after picking up her daughter, is nevertheless relieved that last week�s ordeal is over. Finally. Her husband, Jeff Wisdom, vanished Nov. 8 while driving back from Cottage Grove with Jill. A note in their Chevrolet Suburban, found abandoned near Drain, indicated that the vehicle wasn�t running and the two were going for help. Wisdom was located Wednesday after filling out a job application in Bellingham with incomplete and false information, raising suspicions and prompting business employees to contact the authorities. After speaking with her husband, Julie Wisdom feels his behavior was motivated by what she calls "life stresses." "He was, in his words, overwhelmed," she said. "He didn�t know what to do." Bellingham police Sgt. Dave Richards said Thursday that Wisdom indicated marital problems may have been the motivation behind the disappearance. Julie Wisdom said her husband was having difficulty coping with both their marriage and his job as a manager at the Box R Ranch. A miscarriage of their second child in May might have contributed to the problem, she added. "Life just got too overwhelming for him," Wisdom said. With a rough-and-tumble yet sweet personality, Jill Wisdom has not changed during the ordeal, her mother says. The only question Jill has asked since their reunion, Wisdom said, was where her "Papa" is. Jeff Wisdom told authorities and Julie that he planned to return to Oregon soon. His family and police don�t know where he is now. Wisdom said Jill received excellent care from her father during their disappearance. "One of the reasons she�s a great kid is because she�s got a great dad," Wisdom said. "It�s sad that my husband could be so low and then be so great with her." Jim Harper, a licensed psychologist in Jacksonville, said this type of behavior usually is not motivated by stress. Although he has no personal knowledge of the Wisdom case, Harper said the symptoms of a severely stressed individual seldom result in a disappearance of this kind. Symptoms of stress usually include anxiety, panic attacks, depression, withdrawal or physical manifestations such as ulcers or headaches, he said. Throughout the ordeal, Julie Wisdom said she felt in her heart that she would find her family again. Even though there were suspicions that the disappearance was not an act of foul play, Wisdom felt it was important to actively search for the pair. "I always believe we would find them," she said. "I was worried that we would find them safe." She hopes to help her husband cope with his problems now that the ordeal is over. "I love them both equally," she said. "Now I have to help my husband. I made a vow. I�m in it for the long run." Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.