Going to the hospital tomorrow

LegacyUser

I am a 16 year old male and yesterday I attempted to overdose on paracetamol. Luckily I was rather ignorant about how much you need to take in order to die but I still took too much and I could still potentially suffer from liver damage/failure so I need to go to the hospital.

My question is, will the hospital tell my parents? I am planning on getting the bus to the hospital instead of going to school and then hopefully presuming I haven't done anything too bad I'll be finished and discharged by 5 o clock.

I am suffering from depression and suicidal thoughts and I know I have to get help with these but I cannot tell my parents that I did this. You can imagine how my mother would react if she heard I tried to kill myself. So will the hospital insist on informing my parents(ie. not treat me unless I give the contact info for my parents)?

Thanks.

As far as I know, 16 is the age whereby you no longer need consent and have your own doctor patient confidentiality. Maybe you should throw a post up on health sciences to check this, I could be wrong.

I think you know though, that you need to talk to someone about this. I did something very similar when I was struggling with depression and looking back, I think deep down I knew it wouldn't kill me, I was just acting out of hate and desperation. I think that really you want help. That you don't want to hurt yourself. Tell the doctor when you see him/her. Talk about it. If you don't like the advice you get you can always not take it. It never hurts to ask.

I hope you find what you're looking for.

cantdecide

+1. You shouldn't be feeling this way. There are lots of things you can do to get the help you need and you must do something.

Try asking your doctor first. Also think about talking to a trusted cousin/ aunt/ grandparent/ teacher etc. There are a lot of people who would want to help you if they knew what you've told us.

Novella

I am almost 100% positive that yes, they will contact your parents. Even if you were older, I think they'd contact your next of kin as they will be worried that you are a danger to yourself etc.

Having suicidal thoughts isn't okay, so don't try and deal with this yourself. I know the thought of your parents finding out is scary, but they will want to help you and you need and deserve that.

Maple

Novella wrote: »

Even if you were older, I think they'd contact your next of kin as they will be worried that you are a danger to yourself etc.

Not true. You are given a pysch consult, they will urge you to admit yourself to hospital/seek professional help but they will not contact anyone unless you give them permission to.

However OP, as you are 16 I do not know what the protocol is here.

Novella wrote: »

Having suicidal thoughts isn't okay, so don't try and deal with this yourself. I know the thought of your parents finding out is scary, but they will want to help you and you need and deserve that.

QFT.

OP, this is too big for you to handle by yourself.

Novella

maple wrote: »

Not true. You are given a pysch consult, they will urge you to admit yourself to hospital/seek professional help but they will not contact anyone unless you give them permission to.

However OP, as you are 16 I do not know what the protocol is here.

Well, I was just speaking from my own experience having had my parents contacted numerous times due to my psych issues, without my permission, both as a minor and an adult as my mum is listed as my next of kin.

Maybe this was wrong on behalf of the hospitals though, I never questioned it really.

Wisco

Presumably you can just avoid giving them your parents contact details and list your next of kin as someone who you can confide in. But you really do need to talk to someone- a close friend, another family member, someone you can trust. And even though your parents will be upset when they find out, I'm sure they would do whatever they can to help you through your difficult situation.
Good luck.

Overheal

Assuming for now that your parents will be kept in the dark, why do you want them to be? your parents love you. Your parents care about you much more than you realize, even the grumpy ones which I am endowed with. They want to know when you are in trouble. They want to help you. They don't want to punish you. Every action they take is protective, even if that isn't readily apparent.

LegacyUser

Hi OP. I'm very sorry to hear about your issues and I really hope you can find a way to deal with it all. Being 16 is hard. Being a Mum myself I know I'd whant to know and maybe in a way I feel I'd have a right to know. I can appreciate that you may not want to tell them myself. Maybe you could ask a doctor or some other person who would be good at explaing your attempt and depression. If you ask a doctor this will also insure your parents get the right advise in supporting you and not becoming too scared and suffocating.(if that makes any sense). Again I wish you all the best and I hope you will soon feel better.

LegacyUser

they won't contact anyone without your consent. tbh you probably won't even see a counsellor. I slashed my wrists a few years ago and had to go to the hospital to be stitched up. The general attitude of the staff was 'stupid b1tch wasting our time when we have real sick people to see to'...horrible but they were obviously terribly overworked

at the time I had the same horror of telling my parents, but in the end a friend confronted me and forced me to tell them or they would. it was the last thing I wanted to do but when I actually told them I felt a huge weight lift from me, it was a real turning point in me getting better. the pressure that was making me feel like such sh1t was compounded by hiding it from my family and added layers of guilt.

i know you don't want to hurt them but they are your flesh and blood and more resiliant than you give them credit for. ultimately what you need now is support and unconditional love and your family are the best people to give this to you. hope the sun will start shining for you soon.