How much is too much?

[Parents! Get help here!]

Hi,

my Granddaughter has been diagnosed with mild BPD, anxiety disorder. She is 20 years old. She has taken a bottle of pills twice that I know of, then asked for help and was taken to hospital, she also spent 2 weeks in mental health hospital. She also spent 6 weeks as an outpatient in therapy. She is on three medications. She also said she has two voices talking to her, telling her she will burn in hell, and/or someone is going to hurt her.

GD moved away, and is living in a rooming house. Also going online and meeting up with undeserable people.  How much can I say to her without having her have what she calls an "episode"?  This has taken over all attempts of happiness for her family.

[natasha99]

Hi,

my Granddaughter has been diagnosed with mild BPD, anxiety disorder. She is 20 years old. She has taken a bottle of pills twice that I know of, then asked for help and was taken to hospital, she also spent 2 weeks in mental health hospital. She also spent 6 weeks as an outpatient in therapy. She is on three medications. She also said she has two voices talking to her, telling her she will burn in hell, and/or someone is going to hurt her.

GD moved away, and is living in a rooming house. Also going online and meeting up with undeserable people.  How much can I say to her without having her have what she calls an "episode"?  This has taken over all attempts of happiness for her family.

Our objective is to better understand the struggles our child faces and to learn the skills to improve our relationship and provide a supportive environment and also improve on our own emotional responses, attitudes and effectiveness as a family leaders

[NorthernGirl]

Hello natasha99 and 

I'm sorry you are dealing with such challenges with your granddaughter, it must be very concerning. It is nice to know she has you in her corner, even if she may not be taking advantage of that at the moment. 

Can you tell us a bit more about the situation. Are you in contact with your granddaughter? Are her parents in the picture? When you say she has moved away -- is it still close enough you can see her?

You may want to read this article to learn a bit more TOOLS: Dealing with threats of Suicide and Suicide Attempts. Let us know what you think.

We are glad you've joined us. You are among friends here.

[Ziggiddy]

Hi natasha. i would also like to welcome you here. Sounds like a painful situation - I can imagine it must have been very hard to deal with - both for her and for you. It seems like you are in a support position? DO you also have some support available for you? Dealing with someone who has BPD can be very taxing emotionally as well as physically so it is important you have someone to talk to whom you can trust.

As far as talking to her without provoking an episode, well there are some communication tools here that can help you engage with reduced stress. You might want to look over these:

https://bpdfamily.com/content/communication-skills-dont-be-invalidating

I hope you have success with those. Also, the link that NorthernGirl posted is very worth your while to check.

Best wishes

Ziggiddy

[Theo41]

If she's hearing voices it's likely to be something more serious than "mild BPD."

She needs the medical/ professional help of a psychiatrist.

Best advise for you and her parents is to get professional counseling as well

What we can do is limited unless they agree to therapy.

The family should work together to get the help she needs.

I once attended NAMI family support meetings. Most of the people there had children similar to the description of your granddaughter. They are helpful with support and know the ropes as far as treatment options, living arrangements, government support progams, etc.

We feel your pain and share your experience. Keep coming back to post and all best to you and ur granddaughter. Theo