hospital?

sparkle. · 19-01-2009, 02:07 AM

Hey,

I was just wondering about anyone's experiences of going into hospital voluntarily to get help with feeling suicidal/depression/mental health issues.

Like, is it possible to go in and get therapy, help, without having to have meds (i.e. they can't force you?)

Thanks very much for any replies xxx

Edit: also, any experiences of going into a private hospital/place? thanks x

Horizon · 19-01-2009, 02:12 AM

I have gone in voluntarily 4 times. Involuntary once. Medication is a big part of what they do, at least in my experiences.

At the places I've gone, the group therapies are lacking in the helpfulness department, and really they don't even seem to care if you go.

That said, hospital can be a good place to stay safe and gain some stability, and my experiences (some good, some bad) have never been horrible.

If you have any questions, feel free to pm me.
-Megan

sherlock holmes · 19-01-2009, 09:43 AM

I've had lots of informal admissions and one section. I've only been in one private hospital (that was when I was sectioned) and in my experience it was no better than the NHS, in fact it was worse, but these things differ greatly from hosptial to hospital.

If you are informal, they cannot make you take medication, however they will probably prescribe you something as they are more medication focused in hospital. You will have a ward round with your psychiatrist where you can talk about medication and explain your views.

There will also be occupational therapy groups and group therapy meetings during the day which are optional but it is highly recommended you go, otherwise there is nothing to do all day and you get bored very quickly.

If you go into an acute ward, some of the other patients will be very unwell and some can get violent at times and may need to be restrained by other nurses. This is not uncommon and can be distressing to witness. My advice is to keep your distance initially from other patients until you have sussed out if they are violent or not. If you suspect a patient is about to kick off, sit in the vicinity of a nurse!

Most of my admissions have been fine and most go without other patients kicking off, however when I was sectioned patients kicked off every day and it was horrible.

*..life in pain..* · 19-01-2009, 10:43 AM

i went voluntarily once. i was taking meds, so they made me take them i dont know what they will do there. also i went to a private clinic once and it was worse than the other hospital. it was clean at all and the nurses weren't very helpful, neither the doctors. the doctors were saying bad words to me, so it wasn't good. but i live in greece, so there it will be different.

dubagirl · 19-01-2009, 06:54 PM

I've been voluntary three times. There's another similar thread with some more info about hospital here: http://www.recoveryourlife.com/forum...ad.php?t=81679
should be helpful :)
Also, about the meds question, although most people are on medication I have seen a couple of patients come in who weren't taking anything (though that was on an adolescent ward- in adult wards pretty much everyone is on something I think).