How can I get this person to get treatment for Mental Illness?

Question

She refused to get any treatments for mental illness. She's around 50 yrs old. I believed she had this problem ever since she gave birth to her 2nd child. She is constantly frustrated and religious. Any suggestions or help?

Answer 1

Listen for signs and symptoms that a family member or someone else needs help you can't provide (i.e., legal advice, financial advice, personal counseling). You can link the individual with resources that can help.

Be aware of agencies and resources available in your community. Get to know the professionals and volunteers in your community who can help. Find out what services they offer and what their limitations are. Assess what agency or community resource would be most appropriate to address the person's, (or family's) problem. If you have questions about whether a given organization could be of help, call and ask.

Discuss the referral with the person or family. You might say, "I sense that you need help with [name an issue]. I think [name of organization] organization can help you." It's even more useful if you can say, "I know of a family that went to [name of organization] organization, and they found it to be very helpful." In short, if you know of people who have been helped, share their experiences, but keep their names confidential.

Explore the individual's or family's willingness to make contact with the community resource. You might say, "Does it make sense to you to contact [name of community resource]?" Or, "How do you feel about seeking help from this agency?" If the person or family feels comfortable making the contact, simply urge them to do so.

If the person or family is unwilling to make the contact, or if there is some danger if action is not taken, you should take the initiative.

Call the agency and ask to speak with the intake worker, (if there is one).
Identify yourself and your relationship with the person or family.
State what you think the person's or family's needs are.
Ask the agency what follow-up action they will take and what, (if anything) you can do.
Try to find out whether the person or family contacted the resource and whether they were helped. Don't be nosy or pry for details - just make sure they know that you are care and that you want them to get the help they need.

Answer 2

Being religious or frustrated doesn't mean she has a mental illness. But you didn't explain much, so I'll just go on assuming she does have one...

Getting a person to get treatment who doesn't want it, is nearly impossible. You can get her to get meds, fine, but meds only go so far. To get proper therapy and treatment, it is ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL the patient WANTS treatment. Someone who denies their problems, and doesn't want therapy, is not going to receive it. Receiving and getting help is a conscious effort for both the doctor AND the patient.

The key is being able to show the person in need the results and evidence of their illness. What are the products? What has happened as result of their illness? Why is it a problem that they are like this? Who is it hurting? you have to make them realize that there IS a problem, and they NEED help.

Answer 3

What make you think that she needs help for mental illness? There are a lot of religious people in the world and people with low frustration tolerance. Why would that make her need mental health? Neither of these traits would indicate to me that she needed mental health help. I have been treated for mental health issues for the last 40 years so I have some knowledge of what it means to need help and none of the issues that you raise would indicate that she needs the help that you say that she does. It may be a medical issue relating to her starting menopause or a similar hormonal problem that would better explain why at this time of her life she's experiencing changes.

Answer 4

There is a very wide range or type of Mental Illness that effects people in many different ways.I suggest you take the lead role by going to a psychologist and explain her problem. Maybe the doctor can give you some solid advice about how to address the situation, and find her the help it sounds like she really needs.

Answer 5

You can't really force her into it - unless she becomes acutely suicidal, in which case the local hospital will section her.

All you can really do is advise her that, for the sake of her health, she should go and see a psychiatrist/doctor, just to be on the safe side. It really depends on the severity of the mental illness - if it's severe dementia, for example, then yes you do need to get her there ASAP. If it isn't really affecting anyone, just leave her be.

However, seeing as you say it's since she had her 2nd child, it could be postnatal depression - in which case you should go to a psychiatrist and ask him/her for advice.

Good luck.

Answer 6

You can call your local psychiatric emergency services and give them all the details and see whether she qualifies for a home assessment. If she does not, you can tell her you're concerned about her and would like her to get some help. If she does not, you've pretty much done all you can unless she is in some way a danger to herself or others.
Frustration can be, and usually is, a response to life stressors. Religion can be, and usually is, a way of coping with life stressors. Maybe she is overwhelmed rather than mentally ill.

Answer 7

There is nothing you can do to MAKE her get treatment. You could try talking to her about it. Maybe convince her it would be good for her. It is sorta like an addiction. The afflicted person has to have the desire for change or there is nothing you can do.

Answer 8

aww your sweet for worrying i recomend caling a mental ilness place before it gets out of hand