Hello,
There are medicine.like
haloperidol which would help her a lot..it is cheap and very effective. When given at night or late evening hours patient sleeps but not sleep in day time.
If she refuses for meds - drugs like above can b added in food items and given to her.
There are also injectables which are given in.such patients (
flupentixol etc). They are given once a week for two or three weeks and then once in two weeks and then once a month. They are also good and cheap.
So, please donot worry, she can still get better with low cost drugs and not sleep much..however, you will have to meet a
psychiatrist, may be take her once..or just discuss her case and also that you have financial constraints.
regarding her repeated washing..once her voices and abnomal thinking and suspiciousness gets better..there can be improvement in hand washing or repetitive acts and it might reduce to a significant extent . Then we can proceed with some mild drug for it if needed.
P.S. The cheap/ old molecules in psychiatry are good but have some side effects ( increased salivation, reduced blinking or irregular menstrual cycles). However, not everyone develops them and more over usually, the patient gets better with low dosage.
Good luck.
Dr. Manisha Gopal
MD Psychiatry