I'm so sorry to hear about your mom. My mom definitely has psychological problems, but she is not psychotic.

The doctors should be able to give you some ideas about how to handle her, especially if she is committed to an institution. I think this situation is a bit similar to putting a parent in a nursing home. My mother-in-law brings up that she wants to go home, so finally my husband had the social worker come to talk to her. The social worker told her that the doctor believed that she wouldn't be safe at home, so he doesn't want something bad to happen if she goes home, and that he would be liable. Actually, my husband is her power of attorney and technically could take her out, but at least the social worker got my mother-in-law to think that it was the doctor who was keeping her in....

You'll need to just go with the flow. It's hard to predict how she will react, but take comfort that the doctors and nurses will have dealt with that kind of problem with other patients--and there will be social workers or other types of mental-health professionals who will work with the familes of patients.

Best wishes. I know we wish this hadn't happened, but take comfort in the fact that you'll be doing your best to help your mother--even if she sometimes might not be able to realize that.