Hi Hanna, if you are worried that she may have bp then meds or therapy may be the best route for her, even if she doesn't have bp l would consider therapy maybe she would go if you went with her l know people do live in denial for years but she has to be in emotional pain to be doing this to herself.

I have her set up with a therapist, and she is on 2 different anti-depressants. The cutting is new, and I need to talk to her about it. I just don't know how to approach it. Should I be angry? Should I be worried? Should I just be concerned? I feel all of these things.

if you want her to open up to you don't be angry let her see and understand your concern for her, she really needs to talk things through. l would talk to her therapists too they need to know that she is not coping, her cutting is a call for help so could the stealing something is badly wrong and if you tell her off she could retreat further into herself continue to cut and show other symptoms.

Just treat her the way you would want to be treated.

Time for a mature converstaion with her. You need to find out whats behind it.

Don't think of all th epossible reasons, she needs to discover that herself. YOu can maybe empathise with her and talk about yourslef as to your reasons why. Maybe you can helkp eachother.

But you both have to be in the rigt frame of mind to have this talk...make sure when you talk to her that you are both in a good place.

Good luck.

Hanna -- I'm sorry that you are in this situation. I have no advice, but I wanted to offer sympathy and comfort. ((HUGS))

What a tough position you find yourself in.

Definitely let her know you are worried and concerned, especially about the cutting.

I have only cut a couple of times, but for me it transferred the overwhelmeing emotional pain that I couldn't cope with, into bearable physical pain. Show her loads and loads of understanding and care and support. Would you be happy to let her know that you have been there too? It might help her open up and trust you a bit more.

Maybe you can persuade her that if she MUST cut, she only does it lightly and in places that can be covered by clothing, and gives herself first aid so she doesn't get infected. Scars travel with you the whole of your life and people can be unkind.

The theft HAS to stop though. A police record will follow her everywhere and limit her life options.

I would try express my anger elsewhere and not show it to her. You want to reach out to her and not push her away.

I would treat the cutting and the thieving as two separate issues, even though they are obviously related.

Does she have a good relationship with her therapist? Does she have any understanding friends?

I don't cut myself anymore, because on the rare occasions I feel overwhelmed I know I have medication I can take that will zonk me out to sleep for 12 hours so I can escape the emotional pain and turmoil. I wonder if this option will work for her, might be something to see if she wants to talk to her doctor about.

Hang in there, you sound like a wonderful big sister. Best of luck.

I understand your frustration. I had hell with my little sister and drugs. Is she on any? The only thing you can do if she is is let her hit rock bottom. But, don't let her take you or your family with her. Offer help and if she don't accept let her go on her marry way. At least that's what I had to do. She's better now.

I would turn her in to her pdoc, maybe by letter would be better. Count her meds and see if she is taking any. Move out as soon as you can. See if she is getting Resperdal, that is used by children and she my be a bit too old.

First off I want to say that she is very lucky to have you as a sister and one that is willing to help her. I do sort of agree with SimonCross that it might be a good idea to talk to her pdoc. He or she may not be able to talk to you about your sister but they can listen to what you have to say and I think family input is important at times. Although, not sure how you should go about doing this.

Second, you said she was on 2 different AD's. Is it possible they could be worsening some of her symptoms and behavior? I know I am going to sound like a broken record to some but maybe antidepressants are not the right medication for her especially if she has a genetic predisposition to BP. That could even partly be responsible for this new behavior of cutting. I'm sure you know AD's can cause all sorts of problems for some people with BP even for some that are already on a mood stabilizer. People that don't even have BP can have increased agitation and such on an AD which could account partly for the desire to cut. I don't know but just wanted to throw that thought out there and might be something to bring up with her pdoc. If she is cutting I don't think anger is going to help but concern and what you are already doing by getting her a therapist is good. I wish you well and good luck with whatever you decide to do for your sister. Just don't forget to take care of yourself and stress level too.