Child 16 in mental health hospital. Someone help

[motheru]

Hello. My son 16 has been doing so well, as a very ambitious person he got good GCSEs, got accepted into a very good A level school and had a side 'business' going on a side as he always had good entrepreneurial skills. Week into his school he started talking strange, and week later he got hospitalised under Section 2 and now Section 3. It's now been 2 months and he is still in hospital, they manage to stabilise him and then he goes back to not being himself... I am in absolute pieces, I cry every day and my only escape is when I go to sleep. There is a possibility he is developing Schizophrenia :( I am struggling so much right now and would really like to connect to other parents or others who had been though similar situations as I do not know what else can help me through this. Can someone please help

No advice but I'm sorry to hear what's happened. Just bumping for you.

I have no experience to share I'm afraid but just wanted to give a hand hold. This must be so so difficult for you - and such a shock.

Thank you so much for your kind worlds and thoughts 🙏

Bump and handhold

I’m so sorry. My 16 year old daughter spent 4 days in a psychiatric ward about 6 weeks ago. It’s so hard.

This lockdown has had such a detrimental impact on teenagers mental health.

I’m sorry About your son OP. Hopefully he will be able to leave soon and will feel much better.

That sounds awful, your poor son and you. I dont have experience of that situation but some mental health such as depression with family. Could it be that stress has played a part any thing even minor can trigger emotional/psychological elements to appear that had previously not shown. I really hope that he gets the care he needs and with your love he will come out of this.

I'm so sorry for you and your son. It's a shock and a huge adjustment for you all, there are some very good treatments but it can take time to find the right combination of medicine. Many, many people have had and continue to have times when they are very unwell with MH issues and manage to live reasonably normal lives. It's hard to offer any real facts without a proper diagnosis and that can also take time. Try not to imagine the worst.

Thank you all so much for your responses, it really means a lot to me! I am kind of new to this forum and not sure how to reference people but to a lady who had her daughter in the hospital I am very happy she is back with you and I so understand just how traumatic this experience can be, especially at the start and when things change within one week (that's how long it took my son to go from just being him to someone who is still him but being so unwell)... I just think sometimes I wish I spent more time with him may be he wouldn't have ended up this way... but I wanted to give him space to be a teen and they just want space... that's how I thought. He told me just before he gone unwell that he smoked weed, and that he stopped just before he started school because he wanted to be at his best, to achieve his fool potential and he felt it was holding him back... I feel terrible because I knew he smoked but I never stopped him, instead I allowed it to happen in our garden because i felt if I stopped him he would have done it with his friends who may have had 'worse' drugs .... I just know there were so many things happening in his life, new school, new people, he got interested in girls (apparently they never really paid attention to him untill he got to new school), he was very self conscious about his looks, he got a new exciting opportunity with his business and was probably thinking about how to juggle it all at once... plus quitting smoking affected him as well ... insomnia... just so many things coming at once when you only 16 years of age... I hope it's just stress but it's been 2 months and he is up and down and I really don't know what's it like for people with MH, I never had any experience and that's why I am like a fish out of water, gasping for any piece of information... I just want to say thank you all for your messages, honestly as I don't sometimes want to even talk to family about it as it gets all of us upset ...

I don't know if you have come across the charity Young Minds?
It would be worth looking at their website and they have help lines for Parents too.

I dont have experienced of specifically what you are going through but do have a teen with mental health issues - eating disorders, body dysmorphia and severe anxiety.

I know how worrying and completely helpless you will be feeling I imagine it would be consuming most people in that situation. I'm sorry I cant give any advice but I am thinking of you and hope things improve for your son soon and they can stabilise him with medication.

Hello. Yes I have come across them. At first , I didn't think I will need to speak to anyone as I was under this impression everything going to be ok.... but it's now been 2 months ... but it does feel like 2 years ... and I am finding myself crying every day and finding it difficult to even smile... I have 2 more little girls, 2.5 and 4... I feel so bad that I find it difficult sometimes to engage with them and none of it is their fault ... so I have been researching Young Minds as I feel like if I don't get better it may now reflect on my family which is so unfair on them...

I am so sorry, I have always find it hard to empathise, what I mean is you see those posts about mental health awareness but unless it happens to you.... I can now relate so much to this issue and whatever it is your child is going though .... it's hard, we as parents just feel is so bad... I hope your daughter is ok...does she have to be on any medication?

I feel for you OP, I really do. My daughter is 19 and in January she smoked some weed for the first time and experienced a panic attack after hallucinating as a result of the weed. A complete mental breakdown followed when she developed severe anxiety, panic attacks and dissociation episodes. No history of mental health issues before this, happy, bright, outgoing.....

Anyway, the long and short of it is that she started therapy (privately - we were told it was a 2 year waiting list for NHS help) and medication and she is now so much better and back at uni. Not 'cured' but she's getting there.

During the darkest days I never imagined we'd be where we are now. You and your son will get there - he's getting the right help by the sounds of it and it will be ok. It might take time, but it will be ok.

So so sorry you are going through this.
This time last year my son went from happy to wanting to kill himself. And making some serious steps towards it. Almost over night. It was a dreadful time.
I decided to seek therapy myself as it was just such an overwhelming time. If you can do this OP i really urge you to do so. I went to a family dynamics therapist and it was helpful. A lot of my initial sessions was spent crying. But that’s ok. It was a safe hour just to let it all out.
What I can say is that my son has come out the otherside and although he isn’t the boy he was before he is on a better path. Who knows what the future holds but as of now he is doing good.
I sincerely hope that’s the future for your son too. It’s so so hard being a teen in our world.

Also i found this. Maybe it will help www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/09/170912134809.htm

What is section 2 and 3? I've no idea.
My DD age 15 has been mentally unwell for a year. Took her to A & E as having suicidal thoughts.
Referred us to counselling, now she is self harming.
I worry about her everyday. She has insomnia too, has bad dreams I think which stem from anxiety. She functions on very little sleep, her body clock is all over the place.
I was thinking about where to go from here.

@Bagpuss77

I feel for you OP, I really do. My daughter is 19 and in January she smoked some weed for the first time and experienced a panic attack after hallucinating as a result of the weed. A complete mental breakdown followed when she developed severe anxiety, panic attacks and dissociation episodes. No history of mental health issues before this, happy, bright, outgoing.....

Anyway, the long and short of it is that she started therapy (privately - we were told it was a 2 year waiting list for NHS help) and medication and she is now so much better and back at uni. Not 'cured' but she's getting there.

During the darkest days I never imagined we'd be where we are now. You and your son will get there - he's getting the right help by the sounds of it and it will be ok. It might take time, but it will be ok.

Thank you for sharing this, you are right, I am feeling like there is no way out ... I try so hard to stay positive but as you can probably very much understand it's not easy at times .... but honestly hearing positive stories really does give me hope and thank you so much for sharing yours. Has your daughter ever spent time in hospital? Did they ever say she experienced psychosis? You mentioned private help? Could you please let me know where you went? Was it a private psychiatrist? Sorry for all the questions, I am only trying to find the best path forward for my boy

@Serenschintte

So so sorry you are going through this. This time last year my son went from happy to wanting to kill himself. And making some serious steps towards it. Almost over night. It was a dreadful time. I decided to seek therapy myself as it was just such an overwhelming time. If you can do this OP i really urge you to do so. I went to a family dynamics therapist and it was helpful. A lot of my initial sessions was spent crying. But that’s ok. It was a safe hour just to let it all out. What I can say is that my son has come out the otherside and although he isn’t the boy he was before he is on a better path. Who knows what the future holds but as of now he is doing good. I sincerely hope that’s the future for your son too. It’s so so hard being a teen in our world.

I am so sorry to hear that, it must have been so scary for you as a mother :( my son, when the whole thing started grabbed a knife and pointed it to himself ... my legs went ... my partner had to figure out the way to stop him... I was trying to protect the little ones.... one of the worst days of my life ... to see someone you know to behave so not like himself :( thank you for your story, I am glad he is doing better and that also gives me hope. Have they ever figured out what went wrong? Thank you for the advice on the therapy, I think I will need it as it sounds like it will most likely be a long journey for all of us and my family needs me just as much as I need them so your advise is very much appreciated 🙏

@MondeoFan

What is section 2 and 3? I've no idea. My DD age 15 has been mentally unwell for a year. Took her to A & E as having suicidal thoughts. Referred us to counselling, now she is self harming. I worry about her everyday. She has insomnia too, has bad dreams I think which stem from anxiety. She functions on very little sleep, her body clock is all over the place. I was thinking about where to go from here.

Thank you for reaching out and so sorry to hear about your pain... it's so hard to worry about your child every single day, especially if you think they will harm themselves ... must be hard for you to sleep too as for me when it was all developing I would not really sleep and listen out for any sound coming from my sons room just in case I had to protect him from him or us from him... to answer your question, Section 2 of mental act is what they hold people under in hospital without them being able to leave if they suspect the person may harm themselves or others. My son jumped out of the window on several occasions instead of using the front door (luckily we have a small extension just under his bedroom so it wasn't that high). And the behaved very aggressively towards others and could harm himself seriously so police had to get involved and they sectioned him and ambulance took him into hospital. They keep you under section 2 for up to one month, after that they assess the patient and decide if he is well enough to be discharged or not and if not they hold them under Section 3 (for up to 6 months, which can be terminated earlier if the doctor feels there has been a significant improvement). I hope your daughter will get better but please don't procrastinate if you feel she is in danger, speak to GP or anyone you can, as sharing your problem often can lead to ways forward you didn't think you had

Not the same age but a relative of mine (in their 20's) was sectioned on a 2 by the police then a 3 with psychosis and had an 8 week stay initially in order to get a diagnosis and for the drs to be happy with the medication and dosages. What you have to remember is that your son is in the safest place right now (he will be monitored a lot) and he's in the ideal place to get treatment. My advice would be to listen to everything the psychiatrists say and to take all the help and advice you are offered, on discharge my relative was moved on to a team that dealt with psychosis and was given specific counselling to help manage things alongside the medication. A few years down the line now and things look so more positive. It's a long long road and there are relapses sometimes (my relative was back in hospital a few times needing a medication change) but things are much better and my relative leads a normal everyday life with a job and a family.

I feel lucky that my dd didn't need hospital. She got an assessment appointment via the adult mental health services (as she was over 18) quite quickly and was prescribed 2 types of medication. We were told that she also needed therapy but that the waiting list was a year.

We opted for private therapy from a psychologist specialising in teens and mental health. She had therapy twice a week for a month, then weekly, now fortnightly. It's not cheap, and we've struggled, but I'm just grateful it was even an option for us.

When my brother was in his early 20s he was sectioned for a couple of months due to severe psychosis. He already had a tentative diagnosis of bipolar disorder, and at one stage they were considering a diagnosis of schizoaffective disorder. It was a very dark time, and even once he was discharged from hospital it took him a good couple of years to regain what most people would perceive as true normality.

That was 7 years ago. He is now off all medication and doing brilliantly - lives independently and has a great job that he enjoys, lovely friends and - covid restrictions aside - an active and fulfilling life. He has also used his experiences for good - last year he noticed someone preparing to jump off a bridge. Everyone else was just bustling on by, but he noticed and talked them down and then sat with them until professional help arrived. I am so proud of him.

It was shit. It was so hard. There were times when we had no hope at all. But slowly things improved, there was light at the end of the tunnel after all, and I hope the same for you don't despair, don't give up, people can and do come back from these things.

I hope you are as well as can be OP.

I am a social worker working for FCAMHS. Please do not hesitate to message or ask me any questions.

I think it's important to understand that psychosis and schizophrenia are not the worst illnesses. Properly managed with a good medication regime, support from community teams, family, friends and a psychiatrist means that many people thrive and have very successful lives.