My friend may be mentally unstable

[Lady_Whitetree]

Uhm... I'm not sure how to say this, but I need severe help with an issue I'm experiencing with a friend. Where do I start...

I found out, early on in my friendship with my friend Michael that he has paranoid schitzophrania. I didn't really mind until a while ago, when he said that he was afraid to go onto his computer because 'He thought it was being hacked and he heard what sounded like an AI say it would kill him.' He's always been pretty stable, it seems, at least until now, when I think his meds aren't working well.

I don't think he knows that I know that he has PS (I'm just putting it like that because I can't spell it.) He lives with his mother, his father divorced his mother when he was very small. Do you think I should find some way to email his mother or something? To tell her what I think? Do you think she already knows? I'm very worried about both him and his mother.  

[Stormgem]

Bloorigard2

If you know a drastic change in his behaviour, I personally would tell either his mother or if he's a student, a teacher or the school guidance councillor. Just be careful about how you go about it.

If he has PS, the worst thing is he might suspect you for something you're not doing, if he catches you emailing his mother about him or talking to her about what you've noticed - that could put a strain on your friendship with him and make him feel isolated. It wouldn't be your fault, nor would it be his, it's the fault of his condition.

So perhaps you should discretely talk to a teach you trust, and ask them to approach his mother. Ask this teacher or adult to not mention your name, or you at all, just to say that there has been a change in your friends behaviour. His mother might have already noticed, and be acting on it, but in cases like this, it doesn't hurt for people to express concern, because sometimes the people you live with don't notice the subtle and not-so-subtle changes in behaviour.

That said, if you do feel a direct approach could help ease your worries, go for it. You are concerned for your friend - and there is nothing wrong with that.

It's quite a tricky thing if he doesn't know he's got PS. But surely, if he's on medication, he would have some suspicion that there is something not quite right. That could possibly be part of the problem. Maybe he's just recently realised that he's a wee bit different? Perhaps he's feeling unsettled because of that. Who knows, just do your best to be a good friend. Anybody with any form of mental illness from depression to PS needs a friend or two - you have no idea how much it helps.
 

[Lady_Whitetree]

Stormgem

What I was trying to say was this- He knows he has PS, and I know, and my mom and his mom knows...

I'm just not sure if he knows that I know of his mental illness. I know he also has bipolar disorder, and some form of autism, but I'm not sure how that would affect it.

Also, he's 3 years older than I am, and I'm 16 so... he's 19 this year. He moved away, but we still talk on Skype. I'm sorry for any confusion the prior post may have caused.  

[the mage-girl]

If you are concerned for your friend's safety, you would not be a good friend if you did not tell someone. His mom is a good bet.

Bring it up casually. Say something like, "I know so-and-so has some mental health problems, and I can work with that, but he's been a lot worse lately. I wanted you to know because I was worried about him."

Sorry this is so late; I don't check the guild forums nearly as often as I should.

Good luck to you!