What can I do to help?

Question

My friends brother has all of a sudden been acting weird.
She told me today that in the past 2 weeks he has been depressed and paranoid.
He believes that everyone is out to get him and has even said that the toilet paper is even wired.
He has never been violent and has now started pushing and swearing at his mum and sister.
He is 28 and has just had a baby with his partner.
He is not on drugs and my friend does not know what to do and I don't know what to say to her.
She has called every hotline but no-one will help her.
They say that he has to agree to get help.
How can someone in that state think there is anything wrong with themselves when they think others are the ones with problems.
I don't understand.
He is in a bad way,so what can I do to help my friend?
I feel helpless.

How can you take him to a Mental Hospital if he wont go.He thinks there is nothing wrong.
You cannot take a 28 man against his will.

Answer 1

this is my brother my freind wrote this question for me he is 34years old and stronger than an ox he wouldnt harm anyone else but himself we think he has depression but the voices he hears have made him so crazy there are times he will agree with us but mostly he tells us were the crazy ones.

if we dont get him to a hospital by the end of the week im afraid he will comit suicide he went to the doctors to be told get family support what sort of doctors tell someone this after he told them he was being chased and everyone is bugged with microchips. I visited his doctor to tell her she made a mistake now I am banned from contacting her.

Answer 2

Ok, here is the deal, generally if he dosen't harm himself or others then he cannot be admitted for care unless he voluntarily signs himself in. If he does any harm or behaves in a threatening manner then he can be involuntarily evaluated but the sad thing is that you have to have him picked up by the police. After his evaluation he can be released if he can prove that he is no longer a threat to himself or others. This is the only way so please consider doing this if he becomes too unstable. The only other thing that I can recommend is to purchase a taser for self defense, I know it sounds bad, but its better than having a gun around someone unstable. My ex-husband fell into drugs and became a heroin addict towards the end he was insisting he had been to the 4th dimension and that he worked for the FBI and kept pulling knives, when he remarried he took scissors to his wifes throat, and the mother of his other child had to beat him down with a lead pipe to stop him, so tasers are a good and more peaceful solution. My ex husband no longer has contact with our kids and I miss what he used to be but I think he really injured his brain with the drug abuse. Mental Illness is a nightmare and I am sorry but if he wont get help, then you gotta try to get him away from at least harming others.Good Luck, Take Care-Rachel.

Answer 3

I don't have the answer you need, but the safety of those involved must be taken care of immediately , remember all the newspaper articles about moms killing all thier kids because they snapped or father killing the whole family at this point just get the innocent out of there. Now, schizophrenia almost always starts to occur between the ages of about 18 and thru 20's, that is a general statement but it always amazed me that completely normal people just go on the blink,but that is exactly what happens and I think it is like 99% of the time in that age group. If you google schizophrenia diagnosis, you will probably find some symptoms etc. But let me also say from personal experience very heavy stress, lack of sleep and all kinds of things can make people act strange. Here's an idea I was given. Go to that person dr. and tell the dr. about what you see, then convince this person some mole on the leg or such is bad and they must go see the dr. Then the dr. will know what he is watching for in the incoming person. I have a sister with multiple personalities and this is what we had to do. She went in for her yearly physical, the female stuff and we told the dr ahead of time just what we say,no judgement. This is a way to get to it. Good luck

Answer 4

Breaks my heart every time I hear another story of mental illness and lack of help offered by the government and professionals...*sigh*

Unfortunately, noone will do anything to help unless he does something very serious to himself or others. Its a sad fact. I say this based on my experiences of losing my mum to suicide.

The worst anyone can do is get angry with him. His family have to understand that the things he sees and thinks are real to him. Getting mad and telling him that he is wrong will only aggrevate the situation even more.

As some others have said..if possible, take him to the emergency dept of the hospital and get a doctor to see him there. Dont trick him into going coz that will only confirm his delusions.

Is he working? Maybe someone from work can ask him to seek help?

I wish him and your friend the very best, and I will pray that things get sorted out. My heart goes out to every single person that is involved with the guy coz I know how much pain it is causing..i know how fustrating it is.

take care xxoo

Answer 5

From personal experience what I've been through is that no police or "legal" action can/will intervene unless something violent happens and as you mentioned he's of age and will not admit he has a problem. My suggestion is for the people in his life to seek councelling. It is not o.k. for a man to hit any woman nor should he be in closeness to his newborn child. I know that this may sound cruel,but there is something that needs to be addressed with this man's mental health and since he won't admit that he has a problem nor is willing to accept help.....my concern is for the people he might hurt. This is a situation where "tough love" is needed!!! GOOD LUCK to you and your friends that need help!!

Answer 6

Call your local mental health center. Every county has one. Make an appointment with a psychologist who will evaluate him to determine his course of treatment. He sounds as if he is having some sort of psychotic episode that can be treated by psychotherapy and medication if necessary. The psychologist and the psychiatrist will determine treatment methods. Hopefully, he will go. He will feel a lot better if he does.

If he refuses, go to your probate office and file a petition for commitment. Its a simple process that will force him to be evaluated by a psychiatrist who will recommend inpatient treatment or hospitalization.

Answer 7

It sounds like he might be having a psychotic episode. Contact the mental health agency in your area, and ask them to do a 72 hour assessment on him.
They will hold him under observation for that time and will find out whether or not he needs help - whether that be medications, therapy or even detention, for his own health.
Better to get this looked into now, than let it develop into something even worse.

Answer 8

Well, a judge has to declare him mentally incompetent in order to force him to get treatment. If it is a serious problem try speaking with a mental health department or a lawyer about what steps need to be taken to do this. I would only recommend doing this if he is seriously ill or if he is harming someone. Sometimes it is very hard to get a person to realize they need help like you said. It is also extremely hard to get a judge to take aways someones rights and force them into help for a mental problem. You have to prove that they pose a risk to themselves or someone else.

Answer 9

It's usually true that you can't help the people who don't want to be helped, but I don't think he's capable of making that decision on his own.

I'm not familiar with this kind of situation, but I can give you some advise anyhow. You have to have him admitted to a hospital. I'm not sure how you're going to get him there, but you have to find a way. You can admit people to hospitals if you are their family. They don't always have to sign themselves in. So make him go. However you do it, just get him there before something bad happens.

Answer 10

Take him to a crisis intervention center - of course he will not want to go...but they will help him. I know some RN's who are wonderful with this type of issue.... Bipolar and Schitzophrenia have an onset of middle adulthood for men.....this is a possibility....the ER is always an option if he is going to harm himself or others. With a new baby involved - someone should step in and take him to a hospital....seriously.