My husband has gone manic, his family wants me to have him committed for my own safety
I'm going to try to make a really long story short so please bare with me.
My husband is 39 yrs old and has a history of drug abuse although he's been living clean and sober (for the most part) for the past 12 yrs (he had 4 months clean when we first met).
He was diagnosed with Depression and put on venlafaxine (sp?) after his last manic episode two years ago which I thought was just a drug relapse. His mom tried to open my eyes at that time that it was more serious than that but I didn't believe her.
Two days ago he went manic again. He went missing Friday - not checking in with me, anyway - and I found he took out a personal loan from a company we have borrowed money from in the past. He wouldn't talk to me on the phone (I was still clueless and being very confrontational - wanting him to explain why he's acting this way), he wouldn't meet me to talk - if you're not on his side, if you make any objection to how he's acting or what he's doing he tunes you out. This goes for me, his mom, his sister, anyone.
He was insisting I travel to Portland (about 250 miles away) where I have family and it will give me a chance to "heal". I wasn't broken, only upset at his change in behavior and not understanding why and swamped with memories of his actions during that episode two years ago that almost ended our marriage. I still thought he was rational and actually intended to leave it to fate and go ahead with the trip, planning to leave early Saturday (yesterday) morning. I was awoken at 11:30 that night by a call from a local city's police officer who had been called to my husband's motel room for the complaint of marijuana smoke coming from his room. He had on him two handguns (I knew he owned them, did not know he had taken them from our home), a knit ski mask, a pair of black leather gloves and $9,000 cash. I verified that he lived at the address he gave and they took his guns away and sighted him with a Felon in Possession of a Firearm charge and let him go. I decided I wasn't going anywhere, I needed to be here to protect what's mine (the house, our dogs, my stuff, etc).
Fast forward to today. The loan he got on Friday was for a whopping $15,000 and there is barely $2,000 of it left. His sister called to check in with me and reminded me there is a history of psychotic behavior on both sides of his family and when his father tried to kill his mother by stabbing her repeatedly he wasn't angry with her - it was the voices in his head that were telling him he needed to do this to release her to be with God. To her, he sounded just like he did on other occasions and was sure he was hearing voices. That shook me up pretty good and I finally put a stop on his debit card so I know he's going to be coming home. I have left voicemails with his mental health counselor at the VA where he has been treated previously. She is out until Monday morning.
We live in a very remote area, we don't have a police force and the next town two miles away has maybe one person on patrol on the weekend. I'm nervous, scared and do not want to be held financially responsible for that $15,000. I will be talking to an attorney Monday to begin divorce proceedings. Until then he continues to be a danger to himself and others. Also, if he's awake he's probably drunk or loaded, and driving a car.
So, that's my story. His mom and sis are saying have him committed and it sounds like a pretty good idea to me. Besides contacting his mental health counselor and an attorney, what can I do to protect myself?
Thank you in advance for your advice.
