[Just a footnote I like in the UK]. My younger brother has just turned 16 years old. For the last year he has started a serious sort of ‘rebellion’. He has started binge drinking, he’s stolen £500 from my mother and has stolen alcohol from a shop (not sure if he’s stolen anything else), going missing, going to parties where there are alcohol and drugs, having sex (yes I know 16 is legal), staying out until really late, got drunk and cut his hand open on glass, been in trouble with the police a couple of times and being generally really disrespectful. He is incredibly intelligent and does a lot of sport so I don’t know why he’s started acting like this. He is incredibly spoiled even though most of the time my family cannot support his standards in clothing, gadgets, etc, so my mother is getting into more debt trying to make him happy.
Tonight he went missing again. My parents and the police were out looking for him and found him on his way home drunk from a party that no one knew he was at.
My parents have been so easy on him but I think this is it. They don’t know what to do with him. I’m not sure what can be done to change his behavior. We have a strong history of mental illness in my family but he isn’t showing signs of typical mental illness as far as I’m aware. I myself have bipolar disorder, complex PTSD and have been hospitalized several times over the last seven years for severe self harm, psychosis and suicidal/unstable behavior. I’ve been living with my fiance for almost a year and a half so I’m sure I’m not a factor in his behavior.
I think he needs help (especially due to the family mental health history) but I’m not sure what type and how to go about getting him help. My parents cannot keep going on and acting as if this is normal teenage rebellion or him just being a teenage boy. If he wasn’t so disrespectful, arrogant and the binge drinking I would offer him to have a short break from my parents and family in my house because I have a spare room.
Can anyone give me any advice as to how to approach this situation and what if any help that he may need?
Thanks x
