I've been in 4 different psych wards, but never really encountered any problems. I felt pretty safe there - aside from my own suicide obsessions, and much safer in there with them than out. Most other patients seemed to complain a lot, but I found little to complain about. Sometimes the food was crappy... though sometimes it was really good! Sometimes the pdocs discounted what I had to say - as seems to be a problem with lots of doctors. The only really bad experience was when I went to one farther away and was really unhappy about it, and started out with a bad attitude - any negatives are really magnified and positives wiped out when you have a bad attitude. I ended up going there once again, and that time it was a good stay, even though I was dreading it as soon as I overheard the ER nurses say that's where I was going.

Don't try to up your Ativan scripts - they'll be checked, and you might get labeled "med-seeking" for it. And careful of complaining about pain and asking for stronger pain relievers - you may get dubbed "med-seeking" for that too, especially if you have/had a substance abuse problem and/or BPD. If you need it, try to be as calm and patient as possible when asking for it.