My best friend is suicidal, and might be skitsofrenic. How can I help him?

Question

I just recently found out that my best friend has tried to kill himself by slitting his arm, and even more recently, trying to choke himself with a towel in my bathroom. He has also told me that he has been hearing voices that are so loud, that he is afraid his head will explode if he doesn't listen to them. He talks to himself like he is having two conversations, and as such, I am afraid he might have Skitsofrenia.

Is there anything I can do to help him?

I have told a responsilbe adult, my mother knows that he is doing so as well. We want to help him out more, but his mother is not a very trustworthy or reliable person, and honestly, I'm not even sure that she cares. He has two younger brothers who are both gang members, and his mom always has a lack of money for some reason (but she doesn't spend it on crap, she just doesn't have it.)

Also, when he goes to see the psychiatrist, I don't think he tells him/her everything that he is experiencing. His parents split up when he was 5, and apparently his father was beating on his mom, so this could be some kind of trauma that's triggering the skitsofrenia, right?

Thank you for the correction.

He hasn't acctually shared any of this information with ME, but rather my mom. I just yesterday found him trying to choke himself, and that was only because of my concern when he went into my bathroom with the light off for about two minutes.

And as far as his mom helping him, I'm not sure if she even cares enough to do anything about it.

I don't believeso, all of his family seems pretty much involved with their own lives too much to care very much about him.

And for the record, him and I are both 16.

Answer 1

Obviously, you are of school age and have access to a school councilor. You will be doing your friend a great favor and actually being a friend if you go to the school councilor and talk to them. They should keep this in complete confidentiality. If your friend is schizophrenic, he may be a danger to himself, as exhibited by the attempted suicide, and his disclosure to you that he has a problem. The important thing is that he gets help and gets it rapidly. If you are truly his friend, you will stick by him through this and it will be a life long ordeal.

Answer 2

If he hears voices he definitely has a form of psychosis. Doctors usually prescribe seroquel, which is also prescribed at a low dose for sleeping problems, to get rid of the hallucinations. I would try to avoid being alone with him until he gets help. You should also make sure there are no substances involved, especially drugs like cocaine and meth.

Ive known a few people who heard voices and a freind of mine recently jumped off the bay bridge. The common factor that all these people had was that they had been in a serious accident which caused brain damage. However, having mental problems is no longer a hopeless cause. I hope you both the best.

Answer 3

It may be very severe, psychotic depression or bipolar, hard to tell if it is schizophrenia. Any one of those is terrible.

If you are young, the school counselor suggestion someone gave is really good. You can also contact your county social services, his mother is being negligent and may have her own serious mental health issues making her unable to deal with this. If he is an adult, you will also get some good advice from your county social services. You can call up and talk to his doctor. The doctor can't tell YOU anything without a release or information form, but there is nothing wrong with you giving his doctor information. Is there a responsible uncle or aunt or grandparent around that can be informed?

Answer 4

You will need to find information specific to your area. Laws for the detainment of people experiencing mental illness differ from place to place. Your local Mental Health organization should be able to help you with determining what specifically you can do to help. Generally speaking, though, the following applies:

If your friend is legally a minor and resides with his parents (or someone else who acts as legal guardian), then they have the authority to request that he be detained/hospitalized for observation, diagnosis and treatment.

However, if your friend is the age of majority, whether or not he lives with anyone, he has the right to refuse consent for services. The only way you can get him help in this case is if he is considered a danger to himself or others (which sounds accurate...), in which case you can call the police and request assistance. They will contact appropriate Mental Health professionals.

Other than that your friend needs to seek help on his own.

I strongly advise receiving as much education as possible on his specific mental illness once he is appropriately diagnosed, in order that you can do the best possible being his friend.

I have a friend who is diagnosed schizophrenic, adult living alone in a city 800 miles away from nearest friend/relative. She went through a VERY bad year last year, but seems to be doing better now. I worry about her a lot, but I know better than to say anything to her about her mental status, as this seems to set her off. It hurts to worry about her. It would hurt more to stop being her friend.

You are a special person to care this much. Don't stop caring. Your friend needs this.

Answer 5

Please have a scheduled appt. with a Dr for him-and you and your mother go with him!!!! He needs help and can't do it on his own!!! If his family won't help him then it's your responsibility as his friend to get him the help he deserves!!! Not everyone can be a friend like you-that's why you have to do this!!! If you don't take steps to help him now-it may be to late before anyone else will!!!! I applaud you for just being there for him-if more people would be like you then the world would be a better place!!! Thank you for trying to help him-but I guarantee-he will Thank you in the long run!!! You are one special person that can make a difference!!!!! He is very lucky to have you as a friend!!! Take care and you will both be in my prayers!!!

Answer 6

Since your only 16, get your mom involved in this. If he makes an attempt at your house call the police tell them your friend just attempted suicide and ask them to do a wellfare check (we use that here at a group home I work at when someones not doing well) if they take him into a mental health facility, they can assess him there. Also another option is since his family doesn't seem to care, talk to a school couseler and tell them that your friend discribed hearing voices to you, and has attempted suicide. also include that his family knows and hasn't done anything to help him.

Answer 7

You can take your friend to the local Community Mental Health for free psychological evaluation and treatment, since he is obviously crying out for help by sharing this information with you. Another good resource rather than dialing 911 (unless he is in the middle of a suicide attempt in front of you) is to dial 211, which is the number to dial for psychiatric emergencies.

It is the standard of care to provide treatment in the least restrictive setting possible, so please do not focus on getting your friend hospitalized. Focus instead on putting him in touch with the right resources, and what I identified above is the best place to start.

PS, I am not making fun of you at all, but for future reference, it is spelled "Schizophrenia."

EDIT - now that you have shared additional details, you need to tell your school counselor, who is legally obligated to report this incident to the authorities and who is also professionally trained to do something. It is nice that you told your mother but she probably has no clue what to do either.

Answer 8

2 things: 1) if he is acting out that way in your presence, you should call 911 2) talk with your parents about it or talk with his. You described someone who is beginning to find life incredibly unbearable and he should be seen my a psychiatrist for evaluation. Most mental illness is treatable, suicides prevented, when firm but caring support is made and often by friends more so than families at times. You can also call a mental health hotline in your community and get recommendations specifically for your community. I hope you can help him. His behavior in a way shows he is asking for help.

Answer 9

If your friend is a minor, you should talk to his parents. If not, and he is having hallucinations (voices), been self destructive (cutting), and shows signs of schizophrenia, you should take him to a local ER or mental health center for assessment.

The authorities can take a history and can decided to make what is called a 72-hour hold to assess if he is a danger to himself or others.

Those are your choices

Answer 10

i might easily enable somebody comprehend; her father and mom may be a sturdy selection, yet she might sense somewhat betrayed in the commencing up in case you pass to them. Are you and your pal nonetheless in intense college? if so, enable a school counselor or a instructor comprehend and enable them to ideas-set her interior the final way. particularly of telling them that shes suicidal, enable them to correctly known that shes somewhat depressed and youre nerve-racking approximately her (except shes actual instructed you shes suicidal). you additionally can ideas-set her telling her which you're there to assist her one hundred% and you may pass over her a lot in case you ever lost her. enable her comprehend which you're completely keen to discover her some help and can be chuffed to assist you for the period of the technique. tell her you get depressed now and back too and that she easily no longer on my own. there are various boards on line for individuals with melancholy which could actual help a lot- in simple terms understanding youre no longer on my own is so valuable. yet she does desire some professional help if she does point out or think of roughly ending her existence.