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gwheezie

(3,580 posts)
8. When he's stable
Wed Mar 8, 2017, 09:04 AM
Mar 2017

And as an outpatient get him a thorough work up including neuropsych testing. I've been a psych nurse for decades, I've met your son 1000's of times. When people come to an acute psych unit in crisis, we make the best diagnosis we can & start meds asap. We rarely do a thorough work up & don't have time to fine tune meds. Finding a competent outpatient provider will be essential. The work is done when the person is discharged from the hospital.
My brother is bipolar. Initially he did not believe it, it took several hospitalizations to get him stabilized some of that was due to his non-compliance & other times it was due to the nature of the illness & fine tuning his meds. My brother is 64 years old, he was initially diagnosed as schizophrenic in his early 20's. Once we got an accurate diagnosis & effective treatment, his life got much better. He has been married, raised children, still working & looking forward to retirement. He's had long stretches of stability & knows when his meds aren't working early enough he's been able to avoid crisis. It took a while to get there.
As far as what you can do, take care of yourself so you have the energy to be his advocate & support.

I have bipolar disorder myself. TexasTowelie Mar 2017 #1
thank you! nt steve2470 Mar 2017 #4
I want to thank you for this: TexasProgresive Mar 2017 #5
You're welcome. TexasTowelie Mar 2017 #6
:hug: Towelie elleng Mar 2017 #11
Thank you. TexasTowelie Mar 2017 #12
You might want to start with Patty Duke's "Brilliant Madness" no_hypocrisy Mar 2017 #2
good idea, thank you! nt steve2470 Mar 2017 #3
Make sure he takes prescribed medication. Throck Mar 2017 #7
thank you so much, God bless you nt steve2470 Mar 2017 #9
When he's stable gwheezie Mar 2017 #8
thanks for your valuable input! nt steve2470 Mar 2017 #10
My son had early onset Bi polar proud patriot Mar 2017 #13
thank you, and best wishes to you and your son! nt steve2470 Mar 2017 #14
My son gets out of the hospital tonight steve2470 Mar 2017 #15
Latest Discussions»Support Forums»Mental Health Support»My son has now been diagn...»Reply #8