Homicidal First

Well a first happened today. A patient came in wanting to kill their parent and the parent sat in on the session. Well there goes my Tarasoff warning - they heard it all. In fact they knew it very well. Often a parent will be the target of rage - mostly to those with a learning disability. The average person can suppress these feelings and I am sure they often happen to even the best of us. When the brain is altered with Schizophrenia, hasn't matured, is under the influence of a substance, the gate that stops our rage can be damaged and violence can ensue. In this case it was a question of hospitalizing this person or not.

I hate making these decisions when it can go either way. The client didn't have the harmful thoughts currently, but it had become a daily affair. The parent was aware of this and trusted their child. So I needed to get the client to sign a contract for safety - something that doesn't hold much weight in court, but makes me feel better. The client and I then devised tools and strategies in case rage occurred.

What was interesting was the focus on the color of the wall. Certain colors made this client get angrier during a fit. The antidote - paint. First of all painting soothed this client, and secondly taking action may be the best medicine. And referring to medication - it was changed of course. The psychiatrist and I felt confident that this person would do much better on his elixor.

I couldn't imagine being this person's parent. Parents try so hard to provide, nurture, and mold their children. How frustrating it must be to hear the younger version of yourself confess desires to terminate your life. But the parent was given resources to contact, the client was given a bottle of meds in one hand and a paint brush in another, and now it is up to them. Will I worry about them? Hopefully not - I got a signature on a worthless piece of paper to protect my license.

Peace to all.