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Help for my son

Scary1990New Contributor17 Sept 2025, 11:12 pm AEST

Help for my son

Hi i am on here to see what people think and what to do im at my wits end.

I have explored every avenue and got things in place but what else can I do to help my 15year old son. He has not attended school for well over 12months, has not showered for close onto 2years, will not come out of his room, has brown blotches on his skin from not showering and now has a rash on his back and not sure what it is. He will not leave the room to go to gp or any doctor please help I am so depressed because I am getting no where really

2 replies

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In response to: Help for my son

NightHedgehogModerator18 Sept 2025, 12:06 am AEST

Re: Help for my son

Hello @Scary1990 , and welcome to the forums. 🌟

Gosh it sounds like you and your son are working through an incredibly difficult time! This is a long time for you to be concerned and caring for your son as they go through this, and its understandable for this to have an impact on your own wellbeing and mental health. It can sound and feel counterintuitive to prioritise your own wellbeing and mental health when caring for someone else, but having your own supports in place is so important to have somewhere to have your thoughts and feelings heard.

I'm very glad that you have found this forum and that you've felt able to post and I do hope that you will feel the support of the community during this time.

While the community here will no doubt also share some encouragement and advice, I did also just want to share a couple resource just in case you haven't heard of them and they could be of use to you:
Healthdirect - they can answer any questions you might have about your sons rash or hopefully suggest telehealth providers (https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/)
Parentline - there are Parentline helplines for all states in Australia to offer you a space to ask questions but also to get the support you are deserving of through this.
Reachout - information for teens and parents on a wide range of mental health issues (https://parents.au.reachout.com/)
Kids Helpline - if you are looking for a space where you son might be able to connect with a counsellor to talk one on one, they offer phone and web chat counselling (https://kidshelpline.com.au/)

In response to: Help for my son

chibamSenior Contributor18 Sept 2025, 3:23 am AEST

Re: Help for my son

Hi, @Scary1990 . Welcome to the forums! 🙂

I'm sorry to hear about your predicament.

Perhaps it might be helpful to ask if your son is happy living this way? And if not, perhaps try to ask (ask non-judgementally as possible) to describe the most ideal life he hopes for; even if he believes what he hopes for most may not be possible.

Knowing what he wants would be the first step towards building a map towards reaching that outcome (if possible).

It's possible that the reason he stays shut-up in his room is because he doesn't see any way in which leaving his room would ultimately benefit him. i.e. If the game of life is rigged such that it's incapable of generating any desirable outcomes, then why bother to play it at all?

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