General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: My family is not "shielding" a dangerous person and I will not tolerate those who imply otherwise [View all]Skidmore
(37,364 posts)was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia back in the day before there were effective treatments. I had a dear friend who suffered greatly with bipolar disorder. I have a brother, two cousins, a sister in law who all suffer with various mental illnesses. One of those individuals attempted suicide and two of them attempted and succeeded. I remember a couple of them becoming extremely violent during psychotic breaks and acting out. My father would become extremely violent and abusive when he was experiencing a psychotic break. My friend, who weighed all of 105 lbs. soaking wet, heaved a waiting room chair through a window when she had decompensated. I've watched these people go through cycles of decompensation and recovery over the years with great pain for them and us. And each decompensation made recovery all that much more difficult.
I understand the pain you and your family are dealing with but I also understand that if the law would have allowed us to intervene to get help for my family members earlier, we may not have had to attend funerals. I have very mixed feelings in this area. It is not easy nor are there an quick fixes. I just know that there are individuals who would benefit from intervention so that they do not spiral out of control. This is just my opinion and based on my experiences with various individuals in my own life.