Family member won't let us help

humptydumptybits

dori2o wrote: »

It was a Dr who suggested Schizophrenia based on the Hallucinations, Voices, Delusions, etc. Where the patient is unable to recognise reality from the fiction of their own thoughts and hallucinations.

I've recently discovered myself that despitemany people believe (including me until recently) schizophrenia doesn't manifest as violent outbursts unless the individual is under the influence of drink/drugs.

Her memory is fine. She can remember exactly what she has done or said now and years ago, she recognises faces and people, she has no difficulty remembering lists, doing maths, etc. Her mobility is fine as is her daily routines erc

He memory is far better than mine, and certainly better than my Mum's who does have early onset dementia.

She remembers the hallucinations and voices, the conversations with the man in the loft word for word.

We are having a family meeting later to discuss next steps. I think we should phone social servuc s and get them there, then get whatever assessments that are needed done. If she has to be sectioned then that's what needs to be done.

My aunt was very similar, little men living in the loft, dead people visiting her (eg her mother and father) I had to really fight to get her referred to the service for old age mental health, probably something similar where you are. The psychiatrist described her condition as an antypical presentation of Alzheimers. It took me about two years to get help, she was constantly bothering the police with calls about the people in the attic so I asked them to contact her doctor, same with the ambulance service and when neighbours contacted me with their concerns I got them to contact the local social services. Eventually with the weight of evidence and her increasingly bizarre behaviour we were taken seriously but in all honesty got little help. I had to find a home that would take her and trick her into going there and then arrange for a deprivation of liberties assessment. The social worker's only offer of help was if I didn't get there they would send an ambulance and she would be taken by force.



Personally I would never agree to have power of attorney for anyone, it just meant social services wouldn't support us as she had me and they had to concentrate on people without support.


Good luck, I sympathise as it isn't easy and people don't understand the stress.

elsien

humptydumptybits wrote: »

My aunt was very similar, little men living in the loft, dead people visiting her (eg her mother and father) I had to really fight to get her referred to the service for old age mental health, probably something similar where you are. The psychiatrist described her condition as an antypical presentation of Alzheimers. It took me about two years to get help, she was constantly bothering the police with calls about the people in the attic so I asked them to contact her doctor, same with the ambulance service and when neighbours contacted me with their concerns I got them to contact the local social services. Eventually with the weight of evidence and her increasingly bizarre behaviour we were taken seriously but in all honesty got little help. I had to find a home that would take her and trick her into going there and then arrange for a deprivation of liberties assessment. The social worker's only offer of help was if I didn't get there they would send an ambulance and she would be taken by force.


Personally I would never agree to have power of attorney for anyone, it just meant social services wouldn't support us as she had me and they had to concentrate on people without support.


Good luck, I sympathise as it isn't easy and people don't understand the stress.

I'd be interested to see their explanation as to how they planned to do that lawfully and I strongly suspect the ambulance service would have had an alternative point of view. They are not there to strongarm people into being detained against their will. If someone's objections are so strong that you can only move them by force and they lack capacity then there should be an application to the court of protection, or sectioning under the MHA whichever is most appropriate. That social worker was well out of order and should have known better.

That's not to detract in any way from the stress you were under. But having to resort to those means because of lack of support is an indictment on where our system currently stands. Also worth noting that someone with a DOLS has the right to challenge through the Court of Protection and their representative is obliged to help them with that, regardless of their own views as to where the person should live. Sadly, many family representatives ignore this obligation.

humptydumptybits

For her own safety they would have got her sectioned, the psychiatrist agreed for her own safety she needed to be in a place of safety. I didn't want it done like that as I felt it would be too traumatic for her, I hated tricking her but decided it was the lesser of two evils. What would you suggest when someone is a danger to themselves and others but won't agree to going into care? Social services were pretty useless but the social worker was right if we couldn't talk her into it or trick her into it then she would be forced into it.



She had an advocate appointed, it was paid from her assets and arranged by me, she wasn't actually able to challenge it even with support, not possible to keep her on track.


This brings back memories, so many people telling me how easy it is to deal with, "Just put her in a home" How do you do that if they refuse? No one ever gave me a reasonable explanation of how it would just happen.