From the desk of Mental Health Officer Morgan:
If you have a family member who suffers from schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, you’ve almost certainly experienced the difficulty in helping them deal with their illness.
Below you’ll find an interesting, and hopefully useful, link to an article about “anosognosia”. The article goes into more detail but anosognosia is a condition that approximately 50% of sufferers of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder (though not mentioned in the article) suffer from.
This condition leaves them unable to recognize that they are sick which leads to non-compliance with treatment and frustration on the parts of all involved. It’s not the same as denial; it’s a complete lack of insight to their condition. Sometimes this leads to families cutting children, spouses, or otherwise out of their lives because of the frustration and tensions that build.
This article mentions contacting NAMI for help. NAMI is a great resource. If I might suggest another, pick up the book, “I’m Not Sick. I Don’t Need Help” by Dr. Xavier Amador. This book has a lot of information about not only the condition, but how to help your family member or loved one help themselves, get treatment, and stay compliant . This book can be found at all major retailers websites and there are electronic versions for e-readers such as the Kindle and Nook.
Article:
How Caregivers Can Cope With Anosognosia
Inside NRHPD 