It started
on a Saturday. We decided to wait till tuesday so we could see the GP we knew. Monday was a
bank holiday.Things got worse over the
weekend and I had no idea where
it would end. Although I was familiar
with psychosis it was like getting hit by an avalanche in mid summer. We only
just met a year and a half earlier.
On tuesday the GP referred us to an office for mental health that same day. We were welcomed very friendly by a CPN who knew I was a colleague
from another hospital. He took us to an office. A few minutes later he introduced
us to the psychiatrist who seemed unpleasantly surprised . His words: “ It is not usual that family comes along unannounced” . Then he shook my hand reluctantly.
That is not the best way to introduce
yourself to a highly stressed person
with an adrenaline level way beyond that of the average marathon runner. I can’t
imagine a doctor of an emergency room would have said the same if my partner would have had a heart problem or an accident. This was an emergency as well. A psychiatric one.
During the visit my partner only told about 40 % of what had happened - being distracted and
paranoid. After some time I added a few things to the conversation but I was
being ignored by the psychiatrist. And when he finally asked me: “Do you have any idea what
psychosis is?“ I was so mad that I answered very calm : “ I have read some about it a while ago”
He wrote a prescription for an
anti-psychotic and handed us the piece
of paper. I asked him to add Biperiden in
case of side effects. I guess he had not
expected that because he looked a bit confused. He wrote it down and wanted to
say something but I felt too reared for further conversations. I felt like yelling , throwing things around or burst into tears and I didn’t want to do either one of them. If
you come for help the last thing you need
is people who make you feel worse. A few
minutes after we got home the phone rang: the
psychiatrist. He asked me if I could
come long next time. I asked
him if he would have called if I had not
been a CPN. Later on we talked and things went better. He learned from the
experience.
And so did I. Although I
always had a focus on family support : really knowing the despair, fear and
frustration helps to keep it on top of the “to do”- list and encourage others to
do so. This was just a bad experience, educational though. Many psychiatrists do an excellent job.
Family support is an important thing in
mental health care. Ifcourse there are very dysfunctional families and some people have caused problems our
clients are facing now. No need to deny that and very important to take that into
account. But most of them have good intentions and are willing to learn and help.And they usually know their ill family member better than we health professionals do. We shouldn't consider ourselves too important but see family members as team members.
Psycho-educational family interventions
and family support can reduce relapses, readmissions and suicide risk. An
important part of our work because it
benefits to the welbeing of our patients and a better future for them.
Many family members have felt left alone by
mental health care in the past on more than one occasion.Imagine yourself in
their shoes and do the best you can to make their next experience a better one.
If family is visiting a hospital ward make them feel
welcome and comfortable. That will make it easier for them to visit more often.
For mental health workers a mental hospital ward might be an everyday thing but
for visitors it’s often a very unusual scary
place to go , especially the inpredictable crisis wards. If possible give them a quiet place to talk and relax. Encourage
family and friends to stay in touch.
Loneliness is a huge problem for people
with mental illness. And it is important to prevent that as much as we can.Giving good information and support to friends and family can make an important difference here.
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