I received this by email the other day - perhaps people can provide some suggestions for this sibling of a person with schizophrenia:
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My younger sister lives in California (Irvine ).
From childhood she was involved with various types of mental issues such as ADHD ADD and other unknown mental illnesses that grows with her at every stage of her life , she is 23 and she doesn’t believe that she is ill , its been 5 years she has been stock to the specific mentall problem that she feels being sexualy abused and attacedk by specific people she know but she doesn’t see or hear any thing she could feel.
And she suffer alot from pain . She gaind huge amount of weight in short time she feels she is under control of some metaphysical things .
Because she is an adult nobody can force her or take her or ask for help as we experienced. So what we have to do?
She is getting worse and we called police 2 times the doctors checked her and they released her .
She is still so smart and easily play roles to resist against her real emotions to pretend that she is alright.
They gave her medicine but she doesn’t use . Or if she does its not properly. She says they makes her like a dead person so those who attack her more easier can do their job.
Please give me advice in this matter before its getting too late how we can help her?
What do you do? My son, also in his 20’s, believed he was fine although being in psychosis for the last six months. He also refused medication and although Mental Health have been called a number of times, they will not admit him because he is not a danger to others or himself. I don’t know what to say. It’s a hard one. I would keep being straight with her about her illness, maybe give her the email to read. Crying (which isn’t hard) helped my son understand that I loved him and cared about him, while I talked to him about his illness (it still didn’t change his mind but he wasn’t aggressive. I’m in Australia and don’t know how California works but someone mentioned to me about an intervention. When your hands are tied, you have to try everything. We never give up on them!
Does she have any friends? Sometimes people will listen to a friend before they will listen to a family member. A friend be able to talk her into getting help. Or sometimes mental health workers will make home visits. Your sister might be receptive to listening to someone in her own home who tells her she needs help. Talking to someone in her own home might make her feel safer and more in control. Maybe you can talk her into coming on this site and checking out our stories and she might relate to us and recognize that she has the same problems and that might make her realize that something is wrong and she needs help.
I recommend you call the Orange County National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI) to discuss your options. They know the environment and legal issues and hospitals, etc. there:
Some of these links may help you to get a better understanding of what is happening to your sister. http://www.leapinstitute.org/ - under resources are free videos on using LEAP
LEAP is a way of communicating to build trust. Listen-Empathize-Agree-Partner.
http://dramador.com/ - Dr. Xavier Amador is a clinical psychologist whose brother had schizophrenia. He is the founder of the LEAP Institute. Wrote the book: I’m Not Sick I Don’t Need Help! Can buy from his website.
Search Xavier Amador and LEAP on youtube.com and you should find some long videos Treatment Advocacy Center - under problems you will see anosognosia
He does need treatment and without it things are probably not going to get any better and may get worse. I recommend contacting NAMI and some early intervention teams.
The psych dept. at Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach can put her onto some first-rate people there, but if there’s no responsible adult in the area, and no chance of a private conservatorship, this may have to go to court and then to the Public Guardian in OC. I wonder if the pt speaks English well. Somehow, some way. she needs to get in front of an OC DPSS psychiatric social worker.
She needs different meds, in my opinion. Something that makes her feel like a zombie is bad. Something that makes her feel like a zombie but doesn’t reduce the psychosis enough that she stops thinking that people are going to attack her is pointless or even harmful because they are reducing her ability to put trust in medicine.
Maybe you could get the doctor to offer to talk to her about her delusions? I never really had any delusions (maybe you can help me out if I’m wrong on how this works @SurprisedJ I remember you said something about delusions). If someone allows her to give open vent to her delusions and is able to talk her around afterwards (which to my understanding would be very difficult so please let a professional do it) and have them help her realize it might all stop if she takes the pills would be best.
I know this might be a very dangerous route to go down, I don’t know any of her claims, but is it possible that someone actually abused her? That’s one of the things I’m hoping the dr can rule out. I had a friend who went through some very traumatic abuse and no one believed her at the time. They even sent her back over to the girl’s house because her parents wanted them to be friends.
Finally (and this is a big one) can you get her put on an inject able form of medication? From what I hear even though they are a little more expensive they work for a month. That way she won’t just take two sets of pills and then decide that this isn’t for her. She’ll have a month to stabilize. I think that shots are better for some people who have problems either being motivated to take their meds or forget to take them.
I’m working with an advocacy group to get HR2646, Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act passed. It includes measures for AOT which is crucial for those with SMI and anosognosia who refuse treatment. I’m recruiting people who would be interested in volunteering from home to help us get this legislation passed (intact). If you would be interested, or know of others interested, please let me know.
HI , Thanks to all for all your sympathy and assistance. I am so surprised to see this much help and support . I can’t believe still there are people who care about others.
Yes unfortunately i am out of state and yet not able to get visa . But she is not alone she lives with my parents . They have tried many ways . Before her situation getting worse , we used to believe her by mistake . Also she used to have friends who puts her more deeply trough this metaphysically wrong path. So it seems there is no way to convinced her that she is wrong and she is ill. She lost all her hopes and she just trying various spiritual and weird metaphysical ways to get rid of it.
Unfortunately i am more worry about my mother rather than her , my mother had lymphatic cancer twice . She needs to be relax but in that case …how come?!
She called police once , she knew how to survive she act so wise and sober any time in such conditions and not telling the truth because she knows nobody believe her and they take it as mentall issues . They have supposed to check her monthly and see how the process is going because they gave her some medicine . She doesn’t take any plus most of the time she postpone her interview, My mother asked them to inject her , but of course they obey what my sister says.
Thats why we are looking for any other possible ways to help her . She is in the worst condition now.
Thanks for your guidance. My parent are living with her . I am so worry right now . She is becoming dangerous. She is curious about my mother and father’s phone also home phone . She is afraid that they call the police or doctor. My mother tried to call her doctor to ask injection this time but it goes on answering machine and when they call back my sister is there all the time. She trust nobody. She treat them by knife and collecting their phones so they don’t do any thing against her . She asked them to get a flight ticket to our hometown. To infact escape! !! And as she says she may find some one to geal her there or she better die. We are so frustrated
This is really becoming a problem with hospitals not accepting people. Even when you get them in, if the patient refuses medication, they will not enforce it.
I would keep calling the police. sooner or later, they are going to have to take her in. Someone needs to go to the hospital with her and inform the doctors what has been going on.
Good luck!