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Suggest Treatment For Schizophrenia
Question: my mother 70 years ols is a schizophrenia patient for last 5 years. doesn't take medicines. She thinks all food prepared by my wife and sister are mixed with poison. Neither she is able to cook. Now she has shut the doors and not allowing any one including son,daughter ,brothers to enter the house. Pls suggest what to do .
Brief Answer:
try to councel her to come out or call police
Detailed Answer:
Hello
This is a commonly seen presentation in case of schizophrenia when treatment is not sought in time and patient deteriorates.
The only options left now is either-
1. Try to counsel her to open the door by taking help of a neighbourer and any other friend whom she listens..and then take her to doctor forcefully ...doctor will most likely give her injectable antipsychotics...
some part will definitely need force..patient will not go willingly.
2. Or
if the patient dosent listen and dosent come out even by repeated pursuation- call police and take their help.
I have had similar patients where family member had taken help of women help line and brought the patient to clinic for treatment. Here, patient usually agrees as she is most likely against family members and would listen to outsiders.
Dont worry, with proper injectables and dissolvable medicine she will surely get better.
and get her routine blood tests done as soon as possible.
Good luck.
Dr. Manisha Gopal
MD Neuropsychiatry
try to councel her to come out or call police
Detailed Answer:
Hello
This is a commonly seen presentation in case of schizophrenia when treatment is not sought in time and patient deteriorates.
The only options left now is either-
1. Try to counsel her to open the door by taking help of a neighbourer and any other friend whom she listens..and then take her to doctor forcefully ...doctor will most likely give her injectable antipsychotics...
some part will definitely need force..patient will not go willingly.
2. Or
if the patient dosent listen and dosent come out even by repeated pursuation- call police and take their help.
I have had similar patients where family member had taken help of women help line and brought the patient to clinic for treatment. Here, patient usually agrees as she is most likely against family members and would listen to outsiders.
Dont worry, with proper injectables and dissolvable medicine she will surely get better.
and get her routine blood tests done as soon as possible.
Good luck.
Dr. Manisha Gopal
MD Neuropsychiatry
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
We are unable to convince her to come out of the house neither she is opening any door or window for communication. 15 days back she was responding. If we leave her like this then is it expected that after a month shecwill be restore to normalcy means she will start to communicate and then she can be taken to doctor. Is this process of becoming violent and isolating from outside world a cyclic phenomenon. Should we wait for her to restore back
Regards
Regards
Brief Answer:
please dont waste time in waiting..she needs help
Detailed Answer:
Hello
I could not understand the reply..if you mean to say that this isolation and then getting back to comunication happens with your patient again and again and she gets better on her own..then I dont think you can rely on such a thing...
It is very unlikely that such thing would help the patient in getting any better...if you continue to let her do all this, then most likely this behaviour will became more frequent.
Had she been a case of dissociative diorder, then we could have followed the ignoring technique but not in psychotic patients like schizophrenia.
you must try to bring her out and take her for treatment once and for all. She will never accept treatment on her own, her illness is such. She dosent know she is ill..so, its not good to leave her on her own..she needs help..she might even harm herself in one of her isolation periods.
I hope the reply is helpful.
Dr. Manisha Gopal
please dont waste time in waiting..she needs help
Detailed Answer:
Hello
I could not understand the reply..if you mean to say that this isolation and then getting back to comunication happens with your patient again and again and she gets better on her own..then I dont think you can rely on such a thing...
It is very unlikely that such thing would help the patient in getting any better...if you continue to let her do all this, then most likely this behaviour will became more frequent.
Had she been a case of dissociative diorder, then we could have followed the ignoring technique but not in psychotic patients like schizophrenia.
you must try to bring her out and take her for treatment once and for all. She will never accept treatment on her own, her illness is such. She dosent know she is ill..so, its not good to leave her on her own..she needs help..she might even harm herself in one of her isolation periods.
I hope the reply is helpful.
Dr. Manisha Gopal
Note: For further guidance on mental health, Click here.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
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