sil was sectioned yesturday

[DiscoFever]

after a few very bad weeks where she attempted suicide. sectioned yesturday after telling health visitor she just wants to die (in front of her dd 10 ). Dont know what to do and feel helpless. what happens to people when they are sectioned? am scared for her.

i am not entirely sure
i think MIND (a mental health charity) have a helpline
i will try to find the number for you

what a worrying time for you all

number here

looks like a monday to friday only

hopefully someone else will be able to help more

www.mind.org.uk

Aw DF . So sorry to hear that you and yur family are going through this. I am sure that someone else comes along with more info as I am no expert, but didn't want your post to go unanswered.

I did have a friend sectioned years ago, when she had a breakdown. I believe that it meant was that she was taken into (secure) psychiatric care for her own safety, and that she could be given drugs and treatment without the need for patient consent to be given. Other than that the treatment was, I believe, as it would have been, had she been referred to hospital care by her GP. She eventually made a good recovery, although it was a long time in coming.

Thinking of you and your sil.

poor you - i dont really have any experience of this. But i would imagine that now your sister will get the help she needs. she is clearly crying out for it to have said this to HV, its her way of saying help me please. Hopefully they will get your sister onto some sort of medication to help her out or review any current meds. Set her up with a support mechanism of people trained to help. You should try and maintain as much contact as poss, keep her informed re her children etc. Let her know you are there for her, its all you can do. She may well not respond well but deep down it will mean so much.

Thinking of you

thank you so much for links and kind messages. it is a horrible scary situation. we think she has had a mental breakdown but to be honest i am getting more and more concerned how this is going to effect my niece.

I'm sorry you're SIL is going through this discofever. Couldn't ignore your post as my own sister was in a similar position a couple of years ago (my posts are on here somewhere - I was in pieces myself over it). She made an attempt on her own life and ended up in hospital. She wasn't sectioned, but would have been for her own safety if she hadn't agreed to come in voluntarily. It took them three days to persuade her to agree to medication (she was afraid of side effects). She eventually decided to give it a go (under duress of the threat of sectioning) and to cut a long story and journey short, she is well recovered now.
At the time though, it was just horrible. She was in no way grateful that her suicide attempt had failed and had they just left her to her own devices, she'd have just gone and tried again. Her mind was sick, very sick and she just didn't want to live any more and no amount of love from her family and boyfriend was going to change that.
The medication slowly started to work and she was well enough to leave hospital and be seen as an out-patient with on-going care after a few weeks. Two years down the line, and she's well and happy (as far as we can tell), and at the moment, showing no signs of depression for now. She accepts the the depression is caused by her mind not working properly, but obviously, when she's ill, it's hard to see it that way and admit that you're not coping. It's hard for us too as we always feel we need to be on the lookout for signs of the illness returning, but the good news is that this is something your SIL can recover from. It won't happen overnight, but hopefully, in the not too distant future, she will see that her life is worth living and her dd is worth living for. HTH

DF - Mind might be able to advise you on how to help your neice. There may be a local group which your dn can join to see that she is not alone. Or her GP/a HV in her area might be able to help. It is brilliant that you are around for her and will be valuable to let her talk about what is feeling and would be good for her to know that she can talk to you/call you at any time. Don't try to console her, or to cheer her up. Just be there for her to tell you how she feels. (You could try getting some training as a counsellor, in order to help her. Our local f e college does courses - or read "How to talk so that kids will listen and how to listen so that kids will talk" in the meantime.)

Poor you, at least shes getting help.

If you have any questions, you can call the hospital and they will be able to answer them for you.

They can't give out confidential info unless its to next of kin.

I've dealt with mental health issues for over 13 years since my partner became ill, he was diagnosed with schizophrenia.

Hes in hospital now and has been for almost 2 weeks now.
Hes a voluntary patient though.

Your SIL will be given medication to help control her thoughts.

If you visit, you may find her not how you know her, as medication can take 10 days to work, sometimes the patient will seem to get worse before they get better if you know what i mean!

When a patient is sectioned they will be in a secure unit for a minimum of 28 days.

If you need to know more i'll be around for a while but will be back on later.

Hope some of this helps?

fussymummy thank you and i will contact you later.

Hi discofever,

I am an ASW - it is part of my job to section people .

People are usually sectioned when they are a risk to themselves or others, and it's always a last resort.

SIL will possibly have a period of assessment before starting on meds. Alternatively, if her doctor already has a good idea of what the issues are, she might start on meds sooner. Hospitals avoid forcibly medicating people unless really, really, really necessary.

SIL may or may be allowed some leave from the ward, probably for brief periods with another person, once they feel she is not an immediate risk.

She will probably be on a section 2. This lasts for UP TO 28 days, but she can be discharged sooner if well. Alternativly if she unwell she can assessed for another section.

Most importantly, she has rights to appeal for her release, as does her nearest relative (husband if she has one). The ward can tell you more.

I can try and answer specific questions if you have any.

all the best for SIL's recovery.

we found out today that she has been telling the counsellors that she wants to "go in to the woods and hang herself". I am really scared for her because to actually say these things to health professionals is dangerous surely? would she have her dd taken off her and put in to care? We also found out she is in till at least friday.

Hi disco,

sorry things are tough for you all.

One (tiny) good thing is that SIL is talking about her thoughts, even though they are immensely distressing. this really will help her therapists and doctors to help her. Lots of people hit these lows and are able to recover.

lots of people with mental health problems continue to be successful parents (my DH's auntie has been sectioned countless times but has brought up two beautiful girls with help from her extended family). children's social services might want to check things out, as occasionally depressed parents can't offer their children emotional warmth, or find it difficult to care for them. But many, many depressed parents parent well, so there are no hard and fast rules. SIL should get offered support, rather than face her kids being removed. To be honest if she has a big, supportive family then children's services may not even be concerned.