Feeling overwhelmed caring for a parent with schizophrenia (inpatient setting)

Hi everyone, I really need some support or perspective because I’m feeling completely overwhelmed. My parent, who has a schizophrenia diagnosis, is currently in an inpatient mental health facility. I’ve been struggling a lot with how the staff are managing the situation - both in how they interact with me and, more importantly, how they speak to my parent.

As many of you probably know, schizophrenia often involves very fixed beliefs that aren’t based in reality. My parent doesn’t believe there’s anything wrong and is convinced they’ve been told they can be discharged and leave with me. So every time I visit, they’re expecting to come home with me. I try to gently delay or distract, but eventually they go up to the staff and say they’re ready to leave. The staff then deny it ever happened, speak to them in quite a blunt and dismissive way, and expect me to back them up.

It puts me in a horrible position. If I agree with the staff, my parent feels betrayed and confused. They turn to me, asking why I didn’t defend them. They’re often in tears, begging me to come back the next day and ask the doctors to discharge them. They’re miserable and not sleeping, and I just feel completely helpless.

I understand that my parent needs treatment and can’t leave yet. But I’m finding it really hard to cope, especially when the professionals who are meant to support them seem to lack compassion or a trauma-informed approach. I’m doing my best, but I feel like I’m drowning emotionally and I’m not sure how much longer I can keep holding it together.

Has anyone else been in a similar situation? How do you deal with the guilt, the helplessness, and the emotional toll of being in the middle of it all?

Thanks for reading. I really appreciate any thoughts or support 💜