Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Question about severe emotional distburbance/mentalillness in cohousing

[melanie griffin (melgrif]

and just in case you need support while you attempt to get the person or
family engaged, look up your local NAMI (National Alliance on Mental
Illness-- a family support group) chapter, which will be able and willing to
help (and check out the info on their website, www.nami.org); also the state
or local Mental Health Association (find your local at
http://www.nmha.org/go/searchMHA) might have resources.  There might also be
a mental health court or a jail diversion program that could get the kid
into treatment if you press charges; but beware that, particularly if there
is no mental health court, pressing charges should be a last resort and only
used if he's truly hurt someone or property, because an arrest may have
lifelong consequences for him and most jails don't do well with people with
serious mental illness..  Finally, there is the option of having him civilly
committed, and if he's truly dangerous and you think it's because of a
mental illness you should consider calling the police or the local emergency
mental health service to find out the process before the behavior escalates.
At  best, he's asking for help; at worst, he's responding to delusions. In
any case, call in the professionals--there's a reason they go through all
that schooling.

On Sat, Dec 13, 2008 at 10:48 AM, Rob Sandelin <floriferous [at] msn.com> wrote:

>
> Everybody affected needs counseling help.  I recommend retaining and using
> an experienced local family counselor to get all the parties together to
> work through a solution.  It will take several sessions, there is unlikely
> to be a quick fix here, even if the person at the root of all this leaves
> or
> dies,  but a gradual evolution of understanding can come from those willing
> to invest in their relationships. The boy and his parents can benefit
> enormously, especially the boy, it may very well save his life.
>
> Rob Sandelin
> Sharingwood
> Snohomish County, WA
>
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