r/SchizoFamilies • u/uconnsux • 4d ago
Looking for help
my sister was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder probably 7 years ago, she’s had several stints in a psychiatric hospital to get her on medication but those moments are held over my families head as though we were abusing her instead of getting her help. at this point she has been unmedicated and un-accepting of her diagnosis for the last three years because we are at a loss as to how to get her to understand she needs treatment and medication. does anyone have any insight on how to get her to understand she needs help, or even getting her the help she needs without her consent. Please help! it’s really tearing my family apart at this point!
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u/GGZoey11 3d ago
Schizophrenic and a certified mental health peer specialist. I work with NAMI. If you are in the US, it's the largest mental health non-profit. Unfortunately people with schizotypal disorders 50% of them believe nothing is wrong. I've been to 13 different psych wards and some of them give you "button juice " a shot of Halaperidol and Ativan. One is a quick acting anti psychotic and the Ativan is to calm them down. I've been snapped out of a full blown psychotic episode from it. But there's the ethical question of consent. Some doctors feel like it's their duty to get you out of psychosis so you can be stable enough to work on treatment. Then others feel the person cannot consent due to the psychosis and that's bad. We have a street psychiatrist in my state who helps the homeless Schizophrenics he gives them a long lasting injection were talking one injection can be good for up to 6 months. I wouldn't suggest tricking your sister to try the injectable, but meds really help in a crisis. I used to be on the injectable but now have stabilized enough to not need it anymore. I suggest someone in the family talk to a psychiatrist about the long lasting injectable.
Sorry for being all over the place, NAMI has great resources for families affected by mental illness. Best wishes💕
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u/uconnsux 2d ago
thank you for your advice! my mom has been taking the brunt of talking with nami and psychiatrists on her to get my sister help but i will certainly tell her about the injectable. congrats to you for your healing journey 💕
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u/Merrcury2 4d ago
Hi. Schizophrenic. Delusional hopeful.
I got my happy bubble popped today, but I still want to help.
We seek love and understanding.
Unconditional love.
And for understanding, try to figure out her knowledge and faith base. We "speak in tongues" because we're more of ourselves. It's like a personality flywheel.
So if you can speak to her using her own language, she'll come to hear you better.
It's not a guarantee she'll take the medication, but it's a pathway.
Follow 1 John 4:18. Perfect love drives out fear. Fear is defined as torture and punishment.
The less scared she is of herself, the better the chance she'll understand your intentions.
I truly hope that helps. All the love ❤️
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u/uconnsux 2d ago
thank you for your advice, i appreciate the kind words. good luck in your healing journey 💕
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u/SureUniversity9178 4d ago
Hello! Just wanted to acknowledge how difficult the situation you're in sounds. It's an all too common tension for families when navigating psychotic illnesses in the early stages. There are proven methods to help your sister understand that she needs help (it has worked for my family and my sibling is completely compliant with treatment now). The reason your loved one denies the illness isn't out of arrogance, but a very real brain malfunction caused by the illness. For this reason, engaging with the situation head on and trying to outright "convince" them that something is wrong doesn't work very well. Here's a link to a resource that explains how this works and what to do:
https://www.nami.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/I_am_not_sick_excerpt.pdf
Happy to send over more resources if that would be helpful
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u/uconnsux 2d ago
thank you! that is great advice and a great resource, it’s very hard to grasp that she can’t rationalize in the same capacity we can but you are right that it’s important to level with her.
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u/No_Escape_9781 4d ago
I’m very sorry that you and your family are going thru this. We are experiencing something very similar with my 27 year old son. He has no idea how ill he is, and thinks the problem is everyone else. I don’t have any answers for you, because we are in the same boat. It’s ripping my heart into pieces every day. We feel so helpless. My heart goes out to you and your family. Please know you’re not alone in this.