What is inpatient like? My inpatient experiences have been very good. I have only used one hospital which has a reputation for being the best one in the area according to other patients who have experienced others in the area and now refuse to go anywhere else but the one I use. I have been hospitalized at this hospital 13 times over the past 7 years.

Does it vary according to the individual hospital? From what I have gathered from other patients, hospitals vary widely in quality of care, staff, and facilities.

Can you take your computer? Your cell phone? Not in the one I use, and not in any of the ones in the area from what other patients tell me. They want you to focus on your recovery and to interact in the groups and with other patients. Cell phones and computers tend to isolate you and give you direct access to people in your life you are probably better off not interacting with regularly when you are in the hospital since so much of the time, much of the problem is directly related to family or work issues.

Do they really ban things like sneakers because of the strings? Absolutely. No strings on clothing, no shoelaces, no glass containers including make up containers, mirrors, etc., no wire-bound notebooks or anything that could be dismantled to self-harm. Hair dryers and curling irons are kept behind the desk and checked out to you for your use but you must return them in a timely manner. No razors except electric, again checked out from desk as needed. They are very, very careful about safety measures as desparate people can find incredibly bizarre ways to harm themselves that you cannot even imagine. All that said, none of the above is really a big deal (except the hairy legs and pits).

What do you do all day while you're there? Constant therapy? Group? Time to rest and deal? Pdocs start arriving very early in the morning. Meals are served on a schedule. Continuous groups during the day: some educational, some process groups, some skills groups, some goals/closure groups. You stay very busy during the week; weekends are a bit less structured. You don't have to attend groups if you don't want to; no one makes you. But not interacting with others or attending groups is a sign that you may not be ready to go home because you are isolating, so it is in your best interest to attend as much as you can. I tend to spend the first few days doing a lot of sleeping, then work into the groups one or two at a time until by the time I leave I'm generally attending them all except the ones I just find useless to me personally.

Evening hours are pretty unstructured. There are common televisions in the common rooms if you wish.

Do they let you have visitors? Visiting hours are one hour in the evening; a bit longer on the weekends. Honestly, that's all you need. I tended to find visiting hours exhausting. In my hospital, children must be at least 12 to come in. Only two guests per patient are allowed in at a time (otherwise it just gets too crowded and overwhelming). NO ONE gets in without knowing your code which you personally have given them, so no one can just show up without your permission to come in.

What if the one person who triggers you more than anyone else in the world wants to come and cry and tell you to just snap out of it, as she has done for years? Will they keep people like this away? NO ONE gets in without knowing your code which you personally have given them, so no one can just show up without your permission to come in. If you want no visitors, you can request no visitors.

Do you interact much with other patients? I tend to ease my way into interacting with other patients; most people do this just because when you first go in you are generally so bad off and isolating that it takes awhile to ease into it. By the end, you know everyone's name. You've done a great deal of laughing together, some crying together, lots and lots of talking. You realize these other people in there with you are pretty interesting individuals. You may not like all of them, but then again, do you ever really like everyone you meet?