now… lets say i have a roommate. this roommate is seeming to get crazy… he hides in his room all the time, and decided to talk to some women about ripping women open and eating thier baby then continued to talk about this while he left to himself. He also recently left me a note stating " I need to be alone and have no friends to hurt. sence I can`t kill my self cause I do not have the nerve." (his mispellings not mine) he’s been on paxil but it seems to be not doing whatever it is its supposed to do, we’re at the point that we’re afraid to confront him and ask him to leave for the fear he might go off the deep end on us… but we’re also afraid to keep him around for the same reasons. Is there any kind of intervention we can get to get rid of him without having to confront him, ideally with someone in mental health? His only relatives are at the point where they dont want anything to do with him.
as for behavioral examples if ya want more i’ll be glad to provide.
you can call the police and inform them he is threatening harm to others show them his crazy stuff and they can get him an involantary emergency 24 hr hospital evaluation, at least you can in my state…
That is right. You need to get someone, preferably in his family, to pursue the legal channels to get him involuntarily commited and evaluated in a psychiatric ward. They came keep him there until the psychiatrists and the judicial system believe that he is no longer a threat to himself or others. I hope you kept that note because that could make things much easier. You really, really need to get someone to pursue this. I doubt he is faking anything. It sounds like he has some real issues and delusions and nobody wants to say after the massacre “You know, I saw this coming and I could have done something to prevent it”.
big probel is the note was digital. he left it on my screen for when i got home i saved it but digital is easily faked sad
Perhaps you should contact one of the physicians (or mental health professionals) who are already treating him and tell them what you’ve experienced. Since they are already familiar with the situation, they may understand better.
If you don’t know any of their names, can you snoop a little and get a look at one of the prescription bottles? They usually print the doctor’s name and telephone number on the label.
That is a good idea but he may have gotten his Paxil prescription from A General Practitioner. They prescribe the common SSRI’s a lot these days. A GP may be of limited use in this case. However, if he does have a psychiatrist, by all means, let them know and don’t spare any details.
I agree that you should not confront him directly. Bad Bad idea and it won’t get you anywhere.
Similar to what others have said, I, in your situation, would try to find the name of his doctor, ANY doctor of his, but prefrebly whomever is the psychiatrist. Explain that you understand doctor/patient confidentiality etc etc etc. Let them know what’s been going on, the note he left, and that your scared both for his, your friends and your own personal saftey. I would then ask the doctor to contact the local police and have him put under 24 hour suicide watch. Chances are that will work. If it didn’t I would probably try to contact parents, or just ask the police myself to have him put under suicide watch. For some reason, I get the feeling your in a dorm. If that’s the case I’d probably let the my R.A. know, as well as the director of student life. Oh, and if none of this works the easy way, (or things get worse) I would go dirctly to the police and explain that he been threatening to take his life as and possibly others. (Even if you have to lie, you may save his life and your own by getting him arrested). Well I’m rambling now. But what it comes down to IMHO is you getting a hold of his doctor and explaining the problem. Be sure to talk directly to the doctor, not the receptiontist or one of the nurses though.
actually its 3 guys renting a house. all on the lease.
In that case I would just get a hold of his doctor. Otherwise you could maybe even call the psych ward at your local hospital, or the police.
Is there a way they can get the roommate hospitalized, and then have his caseworkers move him out into a better (for him) home? This would be best for all involved. What do the people with knowledge of such things say? Is it possible to have the guy moved out while he’s in the hospital, for his own good, as well as the roommate’s safety?
That’s certainly better than nothing. You don’t have to present evidence that can withstand cross-examination by Johnny Cochran in a jury trial. All you have to do is give it to the police if they get involved or show it to the psychiatrist that will actually be making the decision to do an involuntary committment.
Also, you don’t really need to worry that he is on the lease at this point.
Just make sure he gets all of his stuff, don’t want him to have an excuse to come back, or a grudge to harbor. :eek:
Without in any way meaning to contradict the suggestions that you call authorities, relatives, doctors, police etc.–those are all good ideas–I wonder if it would it be possible for you to talk to the roommate directly? Obviously if he’s on psychiatric medication he knows he’s got problems, and obviously if he’s leaving weird notes around he’s trying to communicate. And if the three of you are living together you were probably friends, before this at least if not now. Without being confrontational, could you ask him things like “have you felt like this before?” and “what did you do then?” and “has your doctor suggested what you should do if you feel that way again?” etc. You could tell him that you’re afraid for him, and yourselves, and say something like “we know you don’t want to hurt anyone, who could we call to help you?” Whatever his problem is, it would probably be better all around if you could, say, drive him to his doctor’s office or even the emergency room instead of having the cops drag him away.
Unfortunately, police won’t usually interfere unless the person is actively doing something. Also unfortunately, unless you are a relative, you probably can’t have him involuntarily committed. If he is actively “doing something” (i.e., threatening suicide; brandishing a weapon), calling 911 might get him admitted for observation.
Contacting his doctor is a start, but the best his doctor can do is try to get him to come in for an appointment. If he hides his symptoms well, the doctor may well conclude there is nothing urgent about the situation and decline to admit him to a hospital.
The next time he is acting strangely, call 911 and get police and ambulance there, even if you have to make stuff up (i.e., he’s threatening suicide; strange noises (screaming, crying) coming from his locked room). Then, you have to talk to the police and find out how to get him permanently out of the house. It’s not easy to just throw someone out, even if they’re not on the lease.
The police will respond if a person is reported as having threatened suicide. They will take steps to have the person hospitalized.
Cops, cops, cops.
When it gets this bad, go to the cops.
You don’t need us.
Before acting on assumptions, call the police, human services or whoever in your city and/or state. I’d guess that within a few phone calls you will know who you need to talk to and may already be talking to them. We can make good guesses about who you need to contact, but you need more than correct answers, you need to talk to the authorities.
Oddly enough, I agree even though that is exactly what my family did to me when I was first showing signs of a major mental illness. I am now glad that they did because I am fully treated and stable whereas I probably wouldn’t be a alive today if they didn’t do it.
If you have the nerve, wait until he says something vaugely suicidical and call 911. They will come and take him to the hospital and he won’t be able to talk his way out of it (who is going to believe a suicidal person?). You could let the emergency room doctors know they whole story while he is there.