9-year old girl hearing voices of the Devil.

[Jehanne]

Can you make an anon call to Children and Youth or Child Protective Services? If she's suicidal, they can remove her from her parents care and get her the help she needs.

No, I can't.  I heard about them from a very close contact who knows them directly, and I certainly do not want to compromise my relationship with my friend.  Besides, there could be fallout for me; I know that this sounds selfish, but there are sometimes consequences for those who get involved in other peoples' business.

[Jehanne]

Can you make an anon call to Children and Youth or Child Protective Services? If she's suicidal, they can remove her from her parents care and get her the help she needs.

Yes, OP, you need to do this. Command hallucinations are a medical emergency.

I hope that she is getting treatment, but, once again, I am not going to get involved, as I do not have any direct relationship with the family in question.  However, I have absolutely no doubt that the information that was shared with me is absolutely correct.  Hopefully, this little girl's circle of family and friends is sufficient that someone will intervene.  I may never know how things turn out, and I am not going to make any further inquiries of my friend.  His remarks to me were made in the confidence of our relationship and I am not going to break that confidence.

[Alex K]

Meh, seems as good an opportunity to lose a friend as any...

[Jehanne]

Meh, seems as good an opportunity to lose a friend as any...

I should have mentioned the fact that my friend is a practicing lawyer, a good man; I trust his judgment.

[Joods]

Well then ethically, he should be bound to report this. If not, I'd question the friendship. Clearly he told you about the situation. Perhaps it was his subtle way of asking you to help. CYS can always be called anonymously. When that occurs, they are not allowed to reveal the source.

As a victim of abuse, I can tell you that by staying silent, that is not helping this little girl. In fact, it only aids oppression and the abuser more. Hoping that "someone" in her circle of friends and family will intervene makes my heart hurt for that child.

I'm going to step out of this thread now because if I don't, I might say things that I won't be sorry for saying.

[Jehanne]

Well then ethically, he should be bound to report this. If not, I'd question the friendship. Clearly he told you about the situation. Perhaps it was his subtle way of asking you to help. CYS can always be called anonymously. When that occurs, they are not allowed to reveal the source.

As a victim of abuse, I can tell you that by staying silent, that is not helping this little girl. In fact, it only aids oppression and the abuser more. Hoping that "someone" in her circle of friends and family will intervene makes my heart hurt for that child.

I'm going to step out of this thread now because if I don't, I might say things that I won't be sorry for saying.

I see things nearly everyday in my life which cause me concern.  For instance, several years ago I saw a man, some friends of his, and especially, a little two to three year old toddler, who sere standing a few feet from a large river that was passed flood stage.  The whole situation caused me great concern, but calling the police could have put me in an even worse situation, and would have disrupted my schedule, as I was on the way to an appointment.

My OP, by the way, does not just apply to this little girl, which is why I posted it in the religion -- christian section.  You can google these types of situations; I haven't but I am sure that they are all over the place and are happening all the time.  As others have said, it can become a very dangerous situation, mixing a meme and a mental illness.

By the way, if I hear anything more about this little girl, I'll pass it on the board, absent any personally identifiable information, of course.  Confidentially laws do still apply, even in the situation of child abuse reports, which means that if I do report it, I will probably be obligated to stop talking about it here.  If the opportunity arises, I will suggest to my friend that he consider reporting it.

[Chad32]

Sounds like the kid has depression, interprets the thoughts of suicide as the devil talking to her, and the parents aren't smart enough to put her on meds, and get counseling.

[The Grand Nudger]

It's stigmatized, and a certain amount of moody moping (combined with an inability to accurately communicate) is expected from a child.  It's more difficult to navigate in person than it is to think about here at the roundtable.

[Athene]

A few years ago, my son told me his best buddy said that God speaks to him.

Didn't think much of it at first; the family belonged to a particularly nutty church. But, my son just stood there as if he wanted to say something else, so I asked him "Wait a minute...God speaks to him in an audible voice?". 

He said yes, and I told him it was most likely that his buddy was suffering from schizophrenia; I would speak with his mother about the voices that evening.

She looked like hell; I could tell she already knew about it. She was an educated woman, and told me, yes she understood schizophrenia. She informed me that her church was in deep, deep prayer over the matter, and that was all that needed to be done. Then she thanked me for my concern, and sent me on my way.

I told my son to continue the friendship as usual; just to keep his eyes and ears open. I figured it wouldn't be long before his mother got actual help, and it wasn't. She was a divorced single mother, and her son towered over her; Barely fourteen, and built like a farmhand.

I don't know the specific details as to what actually caused her to change her mind, but it was must have the scared the shit out of her, for her to go against her precious church "elders".

[brewer]

Well then ethically, he should be bound to report this. If not, I'd question the friendship. Clearly he told you about the situation. Perhaps it was his subtle way of asking you to help. CYS can always be called anonymously. When that occurs, they are not allowed to reveal the source.

As a victim of abuse, I can tell you that by staying silent, that is not helping this little girl. In fact, it only aids oppression and the abuser more. Hoping that "someone" in her circle of friends and family will intervene makes my heart hurt for that child.

I'm going to step out of this thread now because if I don't, I might say things that I won't be sorry for saying.

I see things nearly everyday in my life which cause me concern.  For instance, several years ago I saw a man, some friends of his, and especially, a little two to three year old toddler, who sere standing a few feet from a large river that was passed flood stage.  The whole situation caused me great concern, but calling the police could have put me in an even worse situation, and would have disrupted my schedule, as I was on the way to an appointment.

My OP, by the way, does not just apply to this little girl, which is why I posted it in the religion -- christian section.  You can google these types of situations; I haven't but I am sure that they are all over the place and are happening all the time.  As others have said, it can become a very dangerous situation, mixing a meme and a mental illness.

By the way, if I hear anything more about this little girl, I'll pass it on the board, absent any personally identifiable information, of course.  Confidentially laws do still apply, even in the situation of child abuse reports, which means that if I do report it, I will probably be obligated to stop talking about it here.  If the opportunity arises, I will suggest to my friend that he consider reporting it.

Don't bother.