what to do when someone refuses to seek help

moe_sizlak

hello , my brother suffered a brain injury when he was 12 after being hit by a car , he is now almost 30 , my parents never bothered to bring him for post injury check ups and as the years went by , his behaviour became more and more eratic , he has a propensity for violence , says inapproriate things all the time and is also a religous fanatic who is convinced the world is about to end and that while he will be happy in heaven , most people will burn in hell , he tells my family theese things on a daily basis and it is obviously extremly distressing to have to listen to such ramblings, he has been violent to members of his family on several occasions and talks about commiting acts of violence against neighbours on a regular basis , trying to explain to him that he cannot behave like that is futile as he is incredibly arrogant and self righteous , anything he does is excusable yet if someone so much as criticises him , they are hellbound , this is litterally the language he uses when berating someone

my mum has appraoched the local gp but the gp told her that unless he is willing to see a psychiatrict , thier is nothing can be done unless he hurts someone and the gardai are called

is this true

electrofilth

not to take my words as gospel, but i dont think you can force anyone into getting help, like to see a therapist or psychiatrist. it has to be wanted by the person themselves...

legally i dont think anyone is obliged to force your brother to get help either, although he definitely sounds like he needs some form of help, from the gravity of your post.

suppose what the gp said is true, no one can legally force your brother into help unless he commits an act that is a danger to himself or others and this is reported to the cops, then they will take things seriously, and legally be in a position to take action to prevent further danger.

sorry but thats the best i can offer at the moment hopefully others here will be more qualified to advise you...good luck

moe_sizlak

electrofilth wrote: »

not to take my words as gospel, but i dont think you can force anyone into getting help, like to see a therapist or psychiatrist. it has to be wanted by the person themselves...

legally i dont think anyone is obliged to force your brother to get help either, although he definitely sounds like he needs some form of help, from the gravity of your post.

suppose what the gp said is true, no one can legally force your brother into help unless he commits an act that is a danger to himself or others and this is reported to the cops, then they will take things seriously, and legally be in a position to take action to prevent further danger.

sorry but thats the best i can offer at the moment hopefully others here will be more qualified to advise you...good luck

thank you very much for your reply , thats what i thought myself , i saw a psychiatrict myself several years ago without my parents knowledge for the purpose of asking what could be done for my brother along with the fact that i was suffering from a boubt of depression myself stemming from a seperate issue entirely and which cleared up relativly quickly

she told me that all the rights were with the problem person and that no one is ever incarcerated in this country against thier will unless they inflict at the very least , grevious bodily harm on another person
she went on to say that it used not to be like this but that the pendelum had completly swung the other way now and that it was liberalism gone mad
while taken aback , i found her honesty and frankness refreshing

thanks again

hotspur

I believe there does exist the legal mechanism for committing someone involuntarily to a psychiatric facility who has a mental disorder. You may read the legislation of the Mental Health Act 2001 here:
http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/2001/en/act/pub/0025/index.html

Here is from the citizen's information board on the issue:
http://www.citizensinformation.ie/categories/health/mental-health/admission_to_a_psychiatric_hospital

Unfortunately your brother sounds like he needs help, I hope something can be done for him.

eth0_

A psychiatrist? Shouldn't he be referred to a neurologist, given his brain injury?

His behaviour could be caused by the injury itself or complications as a result of it.