Ok this isn't my family member but my
mothers friend's wife just divorced her
husband and you can tell she has bipolar
disorder, and absolutely refuses to get
help for it, shes not only ruining her
ex-husbands life but my familys too by
threatening to physically hurt my family
when she is on one off her highs or
calling the cops and making up stories
about the things we've "done to her".So
far she's got her ex-husband put in jail
for sexual assault, domestic violence,
something else, as soon as she starts
crying the cops believe her! I don't have
the heart to call the cops on her she has
4 children and many people have tried to
get her help several times but she just
won't do it. How can you get a person to
talk or think rationally if they are so
aggressive on their high?
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antigone
Moderator
Joined: 27 Jan 2008 Posts: 847 Location: IL
Thanks: 40
Thanked:15
Posted: 02-22-08 23:45pm
Unfortunately, that is not possible. If
you want her to get treatment and she is
unwilling, calling the police when she is
threatening your family may be the only
thing you can do. Talk to the police ahead
of time. Many police dept. have dealt with
this situation before. They may be able to
give you some advice. You mention she has
4 children. These children deserve to have
a mother that is stable and healthy. She
needs treatment. Only a doctor can provide
that. If she is unwilling then perhaps
having her forced to see a psychiatrist is
her salvation from herself.
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bakin_april
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 28 Jan 2008 Posts: 210 Location: state of confusion, usa
Posted: 02-22-08 23:59pm
You CAN'T get someone to think or talk or
act rationally if they are unwilling to
seek treatment and she has the right not
to be treated. You can't force treatment
anymore than you can force a heart patient
to follow their diet and take their meds.
Possible resources:
Local mental health center. Tell them you
need help with a family friend who refuses
treatment and how to deal with them.
Someone with mental illness: They could
answer lots of questions.
Detective from your friend's case: He'd
benefit by telling him the story in a
nonemotional way. They appreciate
he-said/she-said and are usually pretty
good at sorting out who's who. She must
be a pretty good actress to get the cops
on her side. They're usually not so quick
to throw exes into jail on the word of the
other party.
A 72-hour hold is available if she's a
danger to herself or others. You'd have
to call the cops when she starts making
threats and give them a reason why you
thought she's a danger. i.e. a specific
threat
Your friend has an attorney to navigate
his way through the chaos the ex is
creating. He needs to work with the
attorney, be open & honest, and get
him to go to work on the problem. That's
what he's paying them for. If not a
criminal attorney, then his divorce
attorney or whoever handles child custody.
If your family wants to feel safer,
they're going to have to call the
authorities if she threatens them.
Not much happy news, but hopefully news
you can use.
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This page was last updated on June 11, 2008
