My 21 year old brother has been in the hospital for almost 4 months. He does sound better… better than he did before he went in. I have noticed he still says things out loud that make no sense. Does that mean his meds aren’t working or is that just something he will always do? I don’t know how to talk to him Anymore. All he wants to know is when he is going to be discharged. Who knows when… he doesnt have anywhere to discharge to. I feel bad for him. I hate he was dealt this life. When i answer his questions i dont think He hears me… he asks me the same questions over and over. Just feeling sad and wishing this was easier for us .
Knowledge is power.
Yes, he might need different meds, if he’s still saying irrational things and repeating himself as you describe. Four months is more than enough time for whatever he’s been on to have had an effect.
Hi: I feel for you and your brother for sure. Yes, it is extremely difficult to cope with this type of thing. Each individual is different, best to keep telling him you are there for him and love him and that the hospitalization and medication is the best thing right now for him to help him be himself. Talk to the doctors about it and they will know his status and what is right for him. Our son did not ever believe that he was actually ill and still says that to people, that ‘my parents say I am ill’. Maybe redirect when feeling that you do not know what to say, talk about anything else. Hope this helps in some way.
Is there a social worker at the hospital that you can talk to about his living arrangements?
My husband did a strange thing or two after he got on meds, but it was only once or twice. It sounds like your brother is in that state constantly, and in that case his meds need to be adjusted.
Dear @Allme2015
I hope you don’t mind me posting after so long. I also have a brother living with this illness. He was diagnosed when I was young. I didn’t always understand the gravity of what was happening to him when he was in hospital the first few times.
When my brother was in hospital there was a lot going on with him. He was trying to stabilize, he was trying to sort through the confusion of what just happened to him and he was trying to figure himself out. The meds in hospital did help, but it did take a while. After the initial shock, came the anger and distrust. Plus it took a while for him to admit he needed help at all.
There are a few reasons why my brother would say stuff that made no sense, the first being he was responding to the voices he heard the same time he was trying to talk to me. Imagine having two or three separate conversations at once?
The second reason was his word salad. His cognitive abilities took a hit during his earlier episodes and it would jumble his thinking and his ability to talk in a straight line.
I’m sure your brother does want to know when he’s going to be released; wards can be strict and not very private. I’m glad he’s getting help and if he’s sounding better then I hope this is the beginning of recovery for him.
He might be asking the same question over and over because he might have forgotten the answer or he might be working hard to talk to you, and since this illness can cause thought blocking, he might be latching on to the last question asked as a way to reach out. That is sort of what my brother did to me. He did ask the same thing over and over because he would forget what he was going to say as he was saying it.
It does sound like your brother is trying to reach out.
There was a time when my brother wasn’t able to reach out and he hardly acknowledged that my parents and I were even in the room. The other scenario was that, he knew we were there, but he didn’t quite understand that our parents were family and so he would address them like they were strangers. He didn’t do it on purpose; his mind had a traumatic event. His perceptions and even his memories were jumbled.
I just wanted to say, please know that people can get on the path of healing. The right medications, a good doc, a good therapist, and most of all, family support and patience has helped bring my brother back to me.
What helped me was to learn as much as you can about this illness so I could better understand what is happening with my brother when changes happened.
The book posted earlier in this thread has helped me a lot.
Other links that I wish were around when I was younger:
Schizophrenia Daily News Blog: Recommended First Aid for Schizophrenia and Psychosis - first aid for psychosis
Schizophrenia Symptoms - overview of symptoms
Schizophrenia Coping and Recovery - recovery tips
I hope things get better for your brother and your family
Thank you for letting me post