My relative is a farmer with a disability and is having financial and family problems. He often gets angry and other times seems very depressed. I am worried he will hurt someone or himself. What can I do to help?
It is important to get him help soon, especially with the possibility of hurting someone or himself. If you think there is immediate danger, you should call 911 and explain the situation. There is hope when he receives treatment. Many new antidepressants work well, but take a few weeks to take effect. However, quick acting anti-anxiety medications can often help until the antidepressants are fully working. If there is no immediate danger, a general practitioner or urgent care doctor can usually see a patient soon to start medications if they are told it is somewhat of an emergency. In cases like this it is always recommended to ask the person if he has thought about suicide and take all guns out of the house if there is a risk. You could also suggest for him to call the United States National Suicide and Crisis Hotlines, 800-SUICIDE and 800-273-TALK, or other crisis hotlines in your local area.
It is important to get him help soon, especially with the possibility of hurting someone or himself. If you think there is immediate danger, you should call 911 and explain the situation. There is hope when he receives treatment. Many new antidepressants work well, but take a few weeks to take effect. However, quick acting anti-anxiety medications can often help until the antidepressants are fully working. If there is no immediate danger, a general practitioner or urgent care doctor can usually see a patient soon to start medications if they are told it is somewhat of an emergency. In cases like this it is always recommended to ask the person if he has thought about suicide and take all guns out of the house if there is a risk. You could also suggest for him to call the United States National Suicide and Crisis Hotlines, 800-SUICIDE and 800-273-TALK, or other crisis hotlines in your local area.
If there is no immediate danger, it would be best for him to make an appointment with his primary care doctor that he knows and trusts. You may need to follow up and keep reminding him to make an appointment or make it for him. Someone needs to participate with the doctor and your relative's discussion during his appointment to make sure that your relative tells the doctor his entire situation because it is often very difficult for a self reliant farmer to open up and talk about his problems. If no one can accompany your relative to the doctor, you need to make a list of things that he should visit the doctor about so the doctor can get the complete story needed to prescribe the best treatment. The list should include his stressors causing depression and anger, e.g., family and friend estrangement, caring for an elderly relative, farming with a disability, divorce, living alone, crop failure, financial instability, etc. Give that list to your relative to take to the doctor with him. Then make sure he takes the list to the doctor for discussion. Also if he goes alone, try to find out the doctor's name and call his office before the visit and explain the situation so the doctor will know to ask questions in case your relative can't bring himself to tell about his depression and anger. Then be sure to call your relative, ask him how the doctor visit went, and see if you can determine if he discussed all of the items on your list. The doctor hopefully would refer him to a counselor and possibly with a psychiatrist. If not, then you could pursue finding a counselor. Keep in mind if he has major depression, it can be very difficult if not impossible for him to do anything to help himself so he must have help from a caring relative or friend to begin recovery.
To find specialized treatment from psychiatrists who can prescribe drugs and from psychologists or therapists who use talk therapy to teach how to cope with adversity, you might want to check out the following Web sites.
• therapists.psychologytoday.com/ppc/prof_search.php?iorb=4764
• www.networktherapy.com/directory/find_therapist.asp
• therapists.americanmentalhealth.com/therapistlocator.pagel
Other good places to find general information and advice are the National Alliance on Mental Illness, NAMI (find your closest NAMI at www.nami.org), Mental Health America (at www.nmha.org), or the local Community Mental Health Center (every community in the U.S. has a center and you can find it by calling a local hospital social services department or a welfare office). The center can offer medical treatment on a sliding scale depending upon the financial status of the patient.