Psychosis or paranoia

I also agree with above if he is upset get support, ask for support. So glad you were so honest and wrote this to the mayo clinic. I agree with the above get the diagnosis ( what I meant by find out what the illness is), get the right medication, have a place for him to contact ( crisis intervention), therapist, psychiatrist, family, friends,see if he can get into a group of dbt, see a psychiatrist, see if he has hobbies and allow them to distract him from his worries, distress tolerance helps, emotion regulation, interpersonal effectiveness, mindfulness, DBT Therapy ! Also remind him he is not alone, let him find the things he loves to do and enjoy them, encourage him to not avoid but to " ride the wave" face into it and realize he's a good person.

Hello @lolly906,

@gingerw has some great ideas about keeping detailed notes (like a journal) of his activities, ideas, and actions. These could help you get him into a mental health facility even if he is not willing. Please especially takes notes of anything threatening he says about harming himself or others and especially if he talks of hearing voices that give him commands or criticisms.

Also be on the look-out for any pills, substances that might not be familiar. As @gingerw said, he could have ingested something harmful. Do you know who his friends are? Is it possible to talk to any of them who might have been with him before his psychosis started? This is the time to be concerned about his well-being more than privacy.

Remember @lolly906, you can contact a psychiatrist to get some help for handling this problem even if your son is not willing. Contact your pastor if you need some referrals.

Agree with above as well that church, groups, dbt, psychiatrist, phd therapist, those are helpful as well! Be aware of what he is taking, get him to a group or clinic, journal and or do dbt handbook worksheets. Let him know he is cared about by you, tell him that you care and therefore doing something for himself would make you happy. See if this is something he is willing to do voluntarily or not then decide from there. Best wishes to you !

Hello,@lolly906....sounds like you may need some kind of leverage. My daughter was a harm to others in that she was paranoid, calling the police night and day about people stealing from her. Talking about the spirits in her house. Some were friendly. Others were not. She tried to get her young son to come and see the "glory of the Lord revealed." She wanted him to come to her house to play with the little dead boy who visited.

We worked with a Psychiatrist, Psychiatric Ward, counselors, physicians, attorneys. My daughter wanted to be able to see her child. One day she fell apart in our home. She was being treated for Bi Polar, but this was something we had never seen before. She readily accepted our help. She ended up in one of the best Psych wards in the tri county area.

Of course when they wouldn't let her smoke, her tune changed. She wanted out. But by this time we had a court date. We were going to have her committed so she could have treatment. We sought permant guardianship of our Grandson, because he was never safe with her. We won. It broke our hearts.

But she had to at least get to the place where she could safely manage on her own. Take her meds. Have friends. She will never work again. If she tries, she will get fired. She is on permanent disability.

Once again, his safety and yours are uppermost in importance. Without medication, he is going to hit rock bottom. Honestly, I would be afraid to call 911. Even if he does not have a weapon, if he gets to the point where he is totally delusional, if police officers arrive on the scene and he does not comply with instructions, they will attempt to constrict his movements. Gun or not, if they feel he is a threat to them, they will attack. Adult children gave been shot and killed time after time in my state. And we have great police officers. But they will protect themselves at any threat of harm.

He has a good job. Can that be enough of a motivator to propel him towards medical help? He has a loving family who support him. Is that going to be his motivator? Does he have siblings , nieces, nephews, a love interest ? Is that his motivator?

If he feels sick enough.....that could be his motivator. You must pick your battles here. You don't need to tell him he's only imagining this investigation by government agents. That every bit of technology is bugged. Hey....some of it may be bugged, for real, for all of us!!!!!

Watch for your opening with him. Let him know how much he is loved. Let him realize that a few things just aren't right and they are getting worse. That you can see that he is hurting. That other people have been through this experience very much like him. This may be your opportunity to go with him right then for medical help.

I do not have a medical degree. But I have been where you are. Someone has used the phrase Welcome to Holland. You had your trip all planned to Paris and somehow you ended up in Holland. It is what it is. Holland is different. It's not where you planned on being. But it's actually pretty nice.

You might not be a person of faith. And that's perfectly fine if you are not. But it feels real good, personally, and again, this is me...to believe that not only I have done all I could , to help my child....But I have to give my child up to my higher power. I cannot do life alone.

Blessings and prayers to you and your family. We will be waiting here for you. Check in at any time. With us all working together, there is power and strength.

Mamacita

Thank you so much for explaining that!

@gingerw we just found out after he was taken to ER I finally saw his discharge papers that had the drug " meth" in his system, he is having a meth pychosis, which I have never heard of but am learning a lot about, he is still showing signs of paranoia/ pychosis we did research online and found it can last for 6 to 10 days, sometimes longer he admitted to taking it now he has been referred to a psychiatric and looks like we will need to set up some form of treatment for substance abuse, yes I believe you have it right we wouldn't allow him to drink here so he took this awful drug, I'm still in shock and trying to figure it all out but at least we have some answers and I have had tremendous support here I thank each and everyone of you I am going to follow the addiction group also on here I think there is one

oh, I am so sorry. My prayers are with you.

@lolly906 Wow, so glad you found this out. Is your son understanding what has happened, and willing to go through the substance abuse work? When a person has an addictive personality, sometimes they will try anything, their addiction of choice can be wide ranging. Please do consider any support group that will help you and your family. In-person or online, you will find what works for you. And we are here for you, at the cyber table, too.
Ginger

I'm glad that you have some answers, @lolly906. Getting a handle on the root-problem is the most important thing. Yes, please take a look at the Addiction/Recovery group. Wishing your family well.
Will you keep in touch with Connect?

I have anxiety nothing else known and its important to clarify sometimes. So just find out his diagnosis etc wish you the best! - Lizzie