Starting with a disclaimer--I'm in the U.S. and it may be slightly different in the UK.

As others have said, if you are an immediate danger to yourself or others inpatient can be very helpful and necessary. I've been inpatient twice, and while it's not a great or happy experience it can be life-saving and life-changing.

If you are not a danger to yourself or others, hospitals in the U.S. at least won't take you even if you want to be admitted. In this case you probably don't want to be admitted anyway. Psych hospitals are not fun places and I think they could make you feel worse if you are not in a certain state of mind.

Fizzyo mentioned the possibility of a crisis house--I think that is a great idea.

In the U.S. we have things called Partial Hospitalization and Intensive Outpatient. These programs are often held at psych hospitals but you go home at night. They are a great option when you are struggling but are not needing to be admitted inpatient. I have done two of these and they can be very helpful. I wonder if they have something similar in the UK.

You mentioned an eating disorder. In the U.S. there are some (not a lot) of hospitals specifically for people struggling with eating disorders. My sister went to one many years ago. I wonder if they have these in the UK and if that would be helpful.

Hope you start to feel better soon. Let us know how it goes.

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