Concerned for my depressed adult son

[Reen964]

My son is 31 yrs old and has suffered from depression for about 20 yrs. He is currently alcoholic and homeless. I need to get him help ASAP. He's in Florida and I live in New York. He went to the emergency room on 12/23/18 because he was feeling suicidal. They kept him for 1 day and gave him Zoloft. How do I get him inpatient counseling and assistance with housing? I'm so afraid that he's going to give up and I will lose him. Please help me!!

[laurenmed21]

Try getting him into an impatient care facility. They will keep him for a while and find a perfect medicine to help him throughout life.

[foxglove_pnw]

Reen964, I am so sorry you are going through this ! I will call a few places and see what you can find out ! Are you able to travel to Florida ?

[AuntBee]

I think you should go to florida and help him find the assistance he needs. He may not be able to do all of it himself. He may need an advocate to be with him. Perhaps you could start getting info from a social worker at the hospital where he went to the ER. And everyone is different when they start zoloft. Going to florida would allow you to assess how he really is.

[Cathy63]

I think it's a good sign that your son recognized his suicidal thoughts and got himself help. I was not far from his age when I had suicidal thoughts and got help for myself (35). I started Zoloft at that time. If I'm remembering correctly, it took about two weeks for it to kick in. He probably knows about the waiting time since he started on December 23rd. I hope he's feeling better. Counseling is a great help too. Have you been able to find counseling and assistance with housing? Maybe contacting social services in the town he lives in might help.