I have been IP six times, I think? Only because I was actively suicidal. My pdoc wants to keep me as healthy as possible but wouldn't discourage hospitalization if I was very sick and not responding to meds. He says sometimes the doctors may think of a med combo that may be better for me, I will get away from IRLstressors to stabilize, etc.

All that said...I don't ever want to go IP again. Psych hospitals vary and I went to one that was pretty good...and others not so good. I have a lot of anxiety so the lack of privacy and confined quarters with other patients make me nervous. I rarely can eat the food. My last stay was four days and I gave all my food away to the other patients. Nurses seem a bit snippy probably because they are busy, staff on the unit are nice and supportive, pdocs rarely meet with you for more than 10-15 minutes, therapy can be great or totally absent...it just depends on the hospital. And I'm referring to my experiences to private, for-profit hospitals.

Hope that doesn't scare you off, that's not my intent. My boyfriend and I both have bipolar disorder and are med-compliant, don't use drugs or drink, and do the best we can. If one of us is suicidal or extremely psychotic, as long as we can be taken care of by the other at home that's what we do. Also, my pdoc will see me on the same day if I am doing poorly. Sometimes even within the hour. So that's a major plus.

If you are lacking a support system and can't get to your pdoc ASAP...voluntarily checking into the hospital is NOT a bad thing. It's no picnic, but sometimes we just need it for stabilization.