help for mum

[freddie]

we lost our father 2 years ago and he was the person that was in control of this situation, our mum is i don't know what way to describe, severely depressed, doesnt want to leave the house, please bear with me as i may not use the right words here, wants to sleep all day, constantly has a different health issue every day, heavy smoker, heavy drinker, seeks attention cannot cope with the basic of day to day tasks, we have seen a doctor but everything she is advised to do she refuses to do once she gets home after telling the doctor she will,

she has absolutely no motivation, has severe difficulty eating has convinced herself that eating makes her sick, it's almost like she makes these excuses not to eat but has no trouble keeping alcohol down or smoking 60 a day

we really don't know what to do, it's affecting our kids,

today's ailment is a sore back lower that gives her a dizzy head

seriously any advice short of having her sectioned will be gratefully recieved

 

[SimonB]

People are only sectioned if they pose a danger to themselves or others.

Your fathers death has clearly triggered something, possibly depression, only a psychiatrist can diagnose completely.

Your GP has clearly given simple measures she can take at home, but, if she is severely depressed these won't work! Severe depression means you loose the ability to function day to day, you have no interest in things you used to enjoy. Housework becomes overwhelming and so on.

It will impact on the family, but only because she has changed and this can be difficult to accept and certain behaviours can be difficult to deal with, so it becomes stressful for you, but don't forget its probably as stressful if not more for your mum.

Getting her to accept she has a problem is the first step to help, and also the most difficult. There aren't many options, but you can go privately and see if counselling or a psychologist helps, or if you can get her to go back to the GP with a view to referral to a psychiatrist.

There are lots of people on here with many experiences, and some with greater insight and experience than me.

Don't despair, you know something isn't right and that's a step in the right direction.