This sounds like a schizophrenic episode.

It’s interesting - I work in a hospital where we routinely get admissions who were escorted in by police - people who were found on the street with “altered mental status” - i.e. going from house to house ringing doorbells, etc. They are evaluated by Psychiatry and they do get testing to rule out medical causes. If two doctors determine that they lack capacity to make their own health care decisions, involuntary placement is pursued.

If PPs cousin has no prior signs of psychosis, I would strongly suspect a medical cause. If they can get him to the ER for testing, scans, etc. that would be ideal, but it sounds like he won’t be compliant. He will likely end up in the hospital or in jail first.

Anonymous wrote:So much ignorance on this thread. No, you can’t just get people locked up in a psych ward. And even if they are, it’s a 72 hour hold, which would not even be long enough for antipsychotic medication to work most likely. Additionally, they wouldn’t rule out medical causes.

See if there is a mobile crisis unit. Do not get the police or a lawyer involved.

You say that with derision, PP, as if “ignorance,” in the form of questions about the process, is something to be scorned. There’s no need for that.

What do you mean by edging closer? Thoughts of harming others and especially auditory hallucinations relating to harming others are taken very very seriously.

If he has a psychiatrist that person should be informed (even with no permission to talk to them they can listen) and there are usually civil procedures to get someone taken to the hospital for evaluation and possible commitment-in Maryland it’s called an emergency petition. A family member can do it or the police can if things are so bad that they are called.

I would also inform his pcp. You should use the words “50 year old with no psych history now with new onset psychosis” or similar (if that’s the case.) it’s unusual and needs a full work up in addition to keeping him and others safe. Good luck!

Anonymous wrote:Psychosis can also get him involuntarily committed, yes? Even in the absence of intention to harm?

No. My son has that diagnosis and that alone won’t be enough. Even being actively paranoid isn’t enough.

So much ignorance on this thread. No, you can’t just get people locked up in a psych ward. And even if they are, it’s a 72 hour hold, which would not even be long enough for antipsychotic medication to work most likely. Additionally, they wouldn’t rule out medical causes.

See if there is a mobile crisis unit. Do not get the police or a lawyer involved.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Psychosis can also get him involuntarily committed, yes? Even in the absence of intention to harm?

Lol, no. It's not easy to get someone involuntarily committed.

Even if it’s causing erratic behavior when driving, etc? What about voluntary commitment? Not to derail OP’s thread…

PP whose son has been committed both voluntarily and involuntarily more times than I can count at this point.

For voluntary, the patient has to consent, the doctor has to agree it’s necessary, there has to be a bed and the insurance has to agree to pay. Those are a lot of stars to get aligned. Usually it requires a danger to self or others, a plan and a means to carry it out. Extreme unsafe behavior while psychotic might get you an ER eval and a day or so in a bed. But discharge condition isn’t likely to be much better than at admission.

Erratic behavior while driving might get a person some jail time. But not likely hospitalization.

Also hospitalization is really short and for stabilization purposes only. It’s a few days at most unless the patient does something while hospitalized to turn the admission to involuntary.

The long and short of it is this. Mental health services are sparse and hard to access when you find them. And to access them you have to be able to pay except in the most extreme conditions.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Psychosis can also get him involuntarily committed, yes? Even in the absence of intention to harm?

Lol, no. It's not easy to get someone involuntarily committed.

Even if it’s causing erratic behavior when driving, etc? What about voluntary commitment? Not to derail OP’s thread…

NP. He would have to be stopped and detained by the police. My BIL had a manic episode that went on for nearly an entire year where he completely blew up his entire life. He had multiple encounters with police before the final one in which he was arrested and then finally involuntarily committed. Family was trying to get him help this whole time.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Psychosis can also get him involuntarily committed, yes? Even in the absence of intention to harm?

Lol, no. It's not easy to get someone involuntarily committed.

Even if it’s causing erratic behavior when driving, etc? What about voluntary commitment? Not to derail OP’s thread…

What good is going to a lawyer going to do? Not sure why that’s going to be your focus.

Based on what you’re saying, it’s possible he could be found incompetent and decision making can be transferred to next of kin or a guardian if doctors sign off on such a finding. Doesn’t get you an involuntary hold unless he’s found to be a danger to himself or others. But if you find a facility and insurance will pay, your cousin can be forced to go if the guardian decides - I make this sound easier than it is, but it might be the best alternative for securing treatment of you can make it happen.

Anonymous wrote:OP here.

I think my first call tomorrow is going to be to a lawyer. My cousin has been avoiding going to his therapist. Avoiding his doctor appointments this week.

Was pulled over by a sheriff for driving erratically yesterday and told the sheriff he was upset because his neighbor is running a canabalizing Nazi cult and keeps invading his property at night. The sheriff asked him if he wanted medical help and my cousin said no.

He also went to the Columbus FBI about this yesterday and reported this story. He’s hallucinating seeing people and hearing them. He’s growing agitated.

No guns in the house.

I wonder if there could be a medical cause but he is refusing medical care. Mental illness doesn’t run in our family and my cousin has never exhibited these symptoms before.

Incredibly frightening and frustrating.

I would try to get him into a neurologist because if he has never exhibited any mental health symptoms and there is no family history there is a really god chance it is something medical. Can anyone convince your cousin that he needs a brain scan to make sure no one implanted anything? Or make up some other reason?

Could be encephalitis (like the book Brain on Fire) or a brain tumor. I am sorry you are dealing with this. Getting guardianship might work but it's not a quick process. Honestly getting arrested (in a way that doesn't hurt him or anyone else) may be the pathway to figuring out what is going on but I hope it doesn't come to that.

Anonymous wrote:OP here.

I think my first call tomorrow is going to be to a lawyer. My cousin has been avoiding going to his therapist. Avoiding his doctor appointments this week.

Was pulled over by a sheriff for driving erratically yesterday and told the sheriff he was upset because his neighbor is running a canabalizing Nazi cult and keeps invading his property at night. The sheriff asked him if he wanted medical help and my cousin said no.

He also went to the Columbus FBI about this yesterday and reported this story. He’s hallucinating seeing people and hearing them. He’s growing agitated.

No guns in the house.

I wonder if there could be a medical cause but he is refusing medical care. Mental illness doesn’t run in our family and my cousin has never exhibited these symptoms before.

Incredibly frightening and frustrating.

Drugs induced psychosis?

Anonymous wrote:Why not just call the police and ask for a 5150 hold?

You think people can just call the police and ask for someone to be held in a psych facility and the policy will do it? The threshold is high for involuntary commitment.

Anonymous wrote:Psychosis can also get him involuntarily committed, yes? Even in the absence of intention to harm?

Lol, no. It's not easy to get someone involuntarily committed.