AIBU to consider a date with a man who is sectioned under the MH act

Yes i know and it can be weeks at a time i used to be a mental health nurse
But i agree to leave it as friends for now.

Mental health board might be a better place for this post.

Leave can be for a weekend.

Having been sectioned and also a voluntary patient I’d say to leave this as friends for now.

I was sectioned in January 2025, released April 2025, and started dating my boyfriend in October 2025. On our first date I told him about my mental health issues briefly so he had a get out clause if he wanted it. I’m due to come off my last medication fluoxetine soon and that will be the last medication.

The MCA isn’t the relevant legislation here - it’s the Mental Health Act.

Nothing to do with the ops question but for those interested read the guidance on the mental capacity act lots of stigmatising views on mental health and capacity on this thread. On the question I would definitely focus on friendship not a relationship.If I was your mum or sister I would be concerned tread carefully.

Someone detained under the MHA is often granted leave as they start to get better
And leave is often increased
Obviously nobody on here knows what stage this man is in his recovery but its entirely possible to leave the ward whilst being on a section.

You can’t actually date him if he is currently under section, can you? How would that work when he can’t leave the ward? You could visit him as a friend, but it would be beyond grim to try to shag in his room or something (people do it but it is grim).

Visit him as a friend and if that goes well, start a relationship once he is out of hospital.

It doesn't, but you have to have a mental disorder so severe that your treatment must be given in hospital, and it must be necessary to detain you for your health, safety, or the protection of other people.

If this person could be converted to a voluntary admission, they would be. If the section could be ended, it would be. So they are still quite unwell.

Being sectioned does in fact

Excuse me, what?! Having a mental illness does not automatically make you mentally incompetent on non medical issues.
Probably not the best idea though OP

Have you got children?

Just be a friend first.

He needs a friend first.

OP ignoring some of the comments on here, I think at the moment it wouldn’t be a great idea for both of you. Those who are saying he can’t consent to a relationship right now - bunkum. You don’t know whether he can or can’t - capacity re relationships isn’t contingent on him being detained, it’s down to how his mental health impacts on his ability to make decisions which none of us on here can comment on.
as to why I wouldn’t recommend it right now - he’s going to need your friendship which is solid and grounded far more than a relationship which may or may not be. The assessment and particularly the moving on elements can be really difficult times for people and you may see some changes in him around those times. Adding a new relationship to that will only make things worse. You say he isn’t your usual type so there’s already something that might mean you decide not to continue the relationship and that could be a very tricky situation to navigate so for his sake I’d say stay friends for now.
for your benefit I’d have a good think about what the future might look like with him. Has he been detained before, why was he detained (someone detained due to a mental health breakdown after the loss of someone very close to them is likely to have a very different post-discharge life than someone who has been detained several times or doesn’t take their medication leading to deterioration - how does he not only plan to but actually manage his condition on release

I have been in a relationship for nearly a year with a man who spent a month in a MH facility 8 years ago. (Past trauma also, no mental illness.)
He is wonderful. His issues have not disappeared and he still has regular therapy but is extremely open and the most emotionally intelligent person I have ever met.
However, he spent a lot of time working on himself to get to where he is now. There is no way he would have been ready to start dating so fast. It’s the time scale that is a huge red flag in your situation. My advice would be to talk to him about this honestly. Tell him that you want to support him and be a friend but that it is way too soon to think about dating. His response will tell you a lot about how to proceed. Keep an emotional distance for now, enjoy the friendship but continue to live your own life and to prioritize your other friendships, family etc. See how it goes in time. But do be aware that ongoing therapy and a few years of being single is the best course of action for both of you.

I would be wary. You have to be in a pretty bad place to be sectioned. Generally you have to be a danger to yourself or to others but unwilling to have treatment. Due to under funding you have to well and truly over that threshold. I know a person who has been sectioned who would be fine to date but they are through that terrible patch in their lives (marital break up and very stressful job caused break down). My brother has been sectioned many times and he can be very violent. It would be dangerous to date him. That fact that you wrote 'Am I being delusional' in your OP makes me wonder if this isn't just a piss take thread but maybe it is genuine.

OP didn’t say she was in group therapy. She said it was a support group. Two very different things.

What support group did you meet him in? Do you have MH issues yourself?

Are you saying that having a MH problem makes you a lesser person somehow ?

Except in this case you weren’t taking the lead from the person with the MH condition, because that person is not here, you were applying an inappropriate and derogatory term. I was a disability outreach worker for over twenty years and didn’t tiptoe around anything. You wouldn’t disrespect someone with a physical disability in the same way (at least l hope you wouldn’t), so why should MH conditions be any different ?

What ?? @AmberTigerEyes this is a massive leap. People who are detained can make decisions you know!

So tell us. What was the support group that both you and someone who had been sectioned were attending?

What were you in group therapy for?

yabu he is unwell and needs to heal himself before being emotionally available.