Caring for a person with mental illness.
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Planning for family members with mental health problems can be difficult. Knowing what the person can handle on his own and what he needs help with can be difficult to understand. It can also be a moving target, changing from year to year or even week to week in some cases.
Often the person has managed alone. Sometimes with the help of a parent or sibling. But what if that parent or sibling dies leaving them alone? More distant relatives may feel that something is not right, but they may not know what to do. And they may feel that they have no legal obligation to do anything. Fear of doing the wrong thing can drive people away.
There is also the issue of mental health to deal with, which many people may not understand, especially if the person has not been diagnosed. It is common for someone to show signs of mental illness but never receive a diagnosis or treatment. Family members are left on the sidelines guessing what the diagnosis is and how to help.
If you have someone in your family struggling with these issues, here are five ways you can provide support.
• Offer a “lifeline.” Don’t assume someone else is helping your friend or family member. Every person should be treated with dignity and respect and should receive help when needed. You can ask the person what help they need and if they have someone you can call. If they don’t have anyone, you can contact a family member you know or your local mental health department or council on aging, if applicable.
• Get the legal documents in order. If the person has capacity and someone has been identified to assist them, an attorney can draft the necessary documents to give the named person the necessary legal authority to make financial and health care decisions. Typically, this would include a durable power of attorney, a health care power of attorney, and a HIPAA waiver.
• Consider a guardianship. If the person lacks the capacity to sign those legal documents, a guardianship may be needed. There are two types of guardianships, a guardianship over the person’s assets (often called a guardianship) and a guardianship over the person himself. A guardian makes decisions about the person’s assets, such as bank and brokerage accounts and real estate, while the guardian makes decisions about where the person lives, choice of doctors, and medications.
• Find the right type of guardianship for the situation. Guardianships may be limited in nature. For example, the person may need help finding housing and choosing and directing caregivers, but most other things they can do on their own. In that case, a limited conservatorship may be recommended with the person who would otherwise go about her daily life on her behalf. The same would apply for a guardianship. Perhaps the conservator oversees her large brokerage account, but she has a small bank account and a debit card with $500 a month that he can use when he goes out for lunch and coffee.
• Create a circle of support. There is often safety in numbers. Unfortunately, without the proper “guardrails,” these scenarios can lead to abuse or financial exploitation of the individual. A circle of people around the person is often the best safety net, as it prevents any one person from having control over them. This group of people may include a family member or friend, one or more doctors, a lawyer, and someone from the community, such as a social worker. A group of caring people around the person can make them feel more supported and can ease some of the tensions in their lives.
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