A friend with psychosis.

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I have a psychotic disorder myself. I am recognising that a friend of mine, although not formally diagnosed, is having a psychotic episode. She is diagnosed BPD but in my opinion she has psychosis as well (her mental health team are useless).

This is probably due to her illness, but she's refusing to take her meds and doesn't want to help herself. She won't talk to her mental health team about her problems (she said "there's nothing wrong with me, it's everyone else that is the problem") and she refuses to have anyone try to help her. She often says she deserves to suffer.

How can I help someone who won't help themselves?

When I have been ill, and have been sectioned etc, I remember being resistant, but I cannot remember how people got through to me. I haven't had a severe psychotic episode since October last year. So evidently I cannot apply my experiences to my friend.

Advice?

I didn't talked for a year about my trauma.
I first had to collapse until I could talk about it and I first had nearly to collapse a second time until my situation changed and I could leave the environment that remindet me on my trauma so much.

Sometimes people first have to collapse, to be aware of their situation.

If she is in complete denial you can't do much, but maybe there is a way that she takes her medication at least.
But for you as a friend, you just can be suportive, everything else is up to the medical health team.

It took me a couple of years after my bipolar symptoms started, including a couple of psychotic episodes, before I sought help. Even then, I only went to the hospital because I thought someone had poisoned me.

I'm OK now (five years later).

I have a friend who will never agree to his diagnosis of schizophrenia. He is OK. They are looking after him.

I would advise not to stress too much over your friend's current status, because then you will get burned out. As a good friend you have a long term commitment to supporting this person how you can, and if you burn out, you won't be much good to your friend. Look after yourself first.

What you can do is be a supportive friend, and gently encourage your friend to accept her situation. You cannot force someone out of denial.

Her mental health team may indeed be useless, but it is probably the only one she has access to, so try to work with them as best you can.

Best of luck.

Thank you all for the advice.

I find it hard to "put myself in someone else's shoes", even though I have experienced multiple severe psychotic episodes (several of which involved the police sectioning me), I cannot seem to understand her properly.