Posted by fallsfall on September 17, 2003, at 18:52:29
In reply to Re: Hey, Are You There?, posted by Emme on September 17, 2003, at 11:24:03
Hospitals really aren't so bad. Some are better than others. I've been in twice (8 years ago and 1 year ago), and have found it really helpful both times.
You might want to find out what hospital she would recommend and then ask the hospital for a short tour. That way you could *see* it, and see what kind of program they have. Sometimes that can reduce the apprehension. Know that Psych hospitals have some weird rules (but most of them make sense if you think about them) - like they will take anything that you could use to hurt yourself (razors, belts, poisonous (or harmful) shampoos, ...). My unit was locked. At first you had to stay on the unit. As you gained privileges because you were less suicidal etc, you could have certain limited freedoms (on the highest privilege you could go most anywhere on the grounds, but you had to come back every 30 minutes so they knew you were OK). We had different groups (Art therapy- my favorite, learning about cognitive distortions, coping mechanisms, talking about how to arrange your life so you don't get into the same problem, trying to see yourself more realistically, lots of really useful stuff.) I saw my psychiatrist almost every day. We talked about the meds, but he also did a little (10 minutes) therapy - and he was really good. There was a counselor who was assigned to me for every shift. I could ask to talk to them (up to 30 minutes per shift, depending on what else was going on on the unit) about my own personal stuff. One of the counselors my first hospitalization has been one of my favorite therapists of all time.
When you are feeling so, so bad and suicidal a hospital can give you a break from your life so that you can collect yourself and figure out how to make things better.
If you need it, it really can help.
poster:fallsfall
thread:260475
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20030913/msgs/261136.html