Hi there
I'm a newbie here and unsure where my post fits best so will rely on moderators to decide.
I'm a 72 year old dad with a 32 year old son who was diagnosed as Bipolar 1 in 2022. He spent two periods as an involuntary patient in a Mental Health hospital following mania episodes. He took a mood stabilizer for some months and decided they were unnecessary. He and his partner recently had a beautiful baby and they spent five weeks with us during Xmas. During this time, he often became agitated and there were two serious but short episodes of mania in which he was aggressive, threatening and abusive.They have now returned home and not conncted to any mental health support services. We are supporting his accommodation costs as he has been too unsettled to find work.
To the point: my wife and I are unsure of how best to help him and don't know whom to ask. I would like to ask him does he recall what happened during his recent mania and does he realise how frightened we were for our physical safety. If he does not know, then he will not see the need for medication. Is there a safe way to do this?
He plans to take his child and partner overseas in a few months and this terrifies us a he will not have access to quality care if he exhibits unusual behaviour and deemed dangerous. We cannot raise the issue of medication or any treatment without aggravating him. In short, we dont know who to turn to for guidance.
Any thoughts here?
