Relative suffering from delusion

[Tom the fool]

Hi all,

 

It seems that my dad is suffering from a delusion. He believes that he has been infected with a parasite, and points to things as evidence that are not really uncommon (ie, certain hairs coming out of his skin, or split, dry skin, etc).

 

His doctors are aware of the situation and are in the process of diagnosing him. They have begun a biopsy of an area of skin where he believes one of the parasites was. However, he knows that they do not believe him and has begun to doubt that he picked the right place on his skin, and is afraid that the results will come back negative. I am sure they will, and he won't believe them.

 

I am very concerned and do not know how to respond to this situation. I have tried not to allow myself to be used as evidence in favor of there being a parasite (I don't want to say, "oh, yes, I see the antenna," for instance), but I have also tried to give him as much support as possible. I have tried to be objective & loving at the same time.

 

I do not know what he will do when the results come back negative. I am sure he will feel like he has no support at all. That's how he feels now. He knows that my mom stands by him but doesn't think she believes him. I'm sure she's trying to walk the same kind of tightrope I am, but I'm not sure how well she's doing it.

 

Can someone who has some expertise on this stuff please give me some advice?

[doyathink]

I'm no expert, but it sounds like Schizophrenia. Is he on any medication?

[browneyedgirl36]

When I read your post, the first thing I thought of was this:

 

link removed

 

Apparently, there are tens of thousands of people all over the world who believe they are infected with a disease (which has been named Morgellon's Disease) characterized by skin lesions out of which they claim to see "hairs" or "fibers" or sometimes even "worms" growing. Many of these people are convinced they are infested with parasites. Many doctors believe that this is not an actual physical disorder, but a form of a mental disorder -- i.e. an abnormal fear of germs, parasites, etc. that causes people to believe that they are infested with parasites, thus causing them to scratch and dig at their skin, which then causes lesions that won't heal. Many doctors also believe that whole families or communities that claim to suffer from this ailment are experiencing shared delusions.

 

I won't give my opinion on whether or not I think it's a *real* physical ailment, other than to say that the evidence that it isn't seems pretty overwhelming, and I am a skeptic by nature anyway, but this is definitely something you might talk to your dad's doctor about. Also: Has he seen a psychiatrist? It might be something to consider.

[Tom the fool]

He has a number of doctors, including a psychiatrist, for things prior to this condition. Because the psychiatrist prescribed some medication changes for him after their last meeting, I assume that these prescription changes were intended to address his present "delusional parasitosis." Whether this necessarily falls within the sphere of schizophrenia I do not know.

[doyathink]

Some medication can cause this feeling. I wonder if it has anything to do with that.

[Tom the fool]

One of the things that I've seen a couple of times on the internet is the idea of family treatment or of the family being aided in knowing how to assist the patient. I don't want to create any kind of appearance that we aren't supporting him or that we are seeking confidential information from the doctor.

 

doyathink, read link removed. Those case studies seem very similar to what my dad has gone through so far, but, of course, he hasn't got his test results back yet, and he's already starting to form beliefs designed to interpret them as unreliable. A couple of websites have indicated that, with treatment, "up to" 50% of people suffering from delusional disorder can have their disorder go into a recession. That's a little discouraging.

[doyathink]

So what happens to the other 50%? They're just stuck with it?

Sounds a lot like what browneyedgirl36 is talking about.

How long has he been like this?

[Seraphim]

That is sort of what it sounds like.

[Tom the fool]

One of the things that's bothering me is that I want to make sure I'm responding appropriately. I'm having trouble finding information about what relatives ought to be doing in this situation. Given that the doctors usually advise their patients to continue non-harmful treatment (in my dad's case, he's putting bandages with ointment over the parasites), it seems appropriate to continue to help him with that. It's obvious that I shouldn't feed his delusions and that I shouldn't tell him he's crazy as a loon. I'm trying to think of some things that might give him other things to think about. Maybe watching some funny movies with him and so on.

 

But for what isn't obvious, I don't know what to do, and I'm having trouble finding this sort of information online.