I'm sorry I haven't read the others' responses. I need to rush out. Here's my personal answer.

Hospitals do vary in terms of comfort level, staff behavior, and strictness (a term that has a wide range of meanings). You also sometimes get a good/OK roommate and sometimes not. Or other patients in the ward are nice or not. I've had pretty good luck, for the most part. I've stayed in private hospitals that weren't that crowded, and never really had that bad of an experience with other patients. They weren't exactly resorts, though. That's for sure! But mine weren't out of a scary movie, either.

The nurses and other staff at the hospitals I went to ranged from very nice, to annoying/bossy, but there was nothing scary about them when I was there. Nevertheless, you are in a place with other patients in crisis and staff that are sometimes stressed. Occasionally, that can be disturbing. Sometimes I think my behavior was disturbing to others. When it was, I was taken (or dragged, if I was out of control) to an isolation room and given a sedative or antipsychotic injection. That wasn't the norm in the ward, though. Many patients are not in that type of mental state. I only recall two other patients like that over the course of my 10 hospitalizations. I don't want to go into any scary details about it, but will say that it was necessary they did that to me because I was a threat to others and myself. I could write that "the hospital was horrible for doing that", but what were they supposed to do? Let me scare everybody?

I have heard horror stories about staff and other things at some hospitals, including one at a hospital I went to. Once I saw a very old woman with TD. I mean REALLY bad TD. It was a bit disturbing. That's not something people get much anymore, or at least not to that degree. Hopefully no staff will act towards a patient in an uncalled for way. I really think those cases are uncommon.

There are people who are severely depressed or manic (or mixed) that just want to be home in their safe/desired place, or not restricted. The hospital could potentially seem uncomfortable in those cases. In other cases, being in the hospital can seem like an escape from the pain and stress of life outside. If your job or family situation is hurting you mentally, the hospital can give you a break from them.

I don't remember some of my hospitalizations. I had manic blackouts quite often. Or when I got ECT, I had memory blackouts. The time I do remember was sometimes boring. Sometimes I hid in my room. Sometimes I paced all over the ward, danced in the hallways, sat in a corner with my mind racing, had some level of pleasure talking to another patient I liked, or was kept sufficiently or almost sufficiently occupied in process groups or doing other things. I often ate a lot. Though some may lose weight in the hospital, I think gaining weight is common, too. In the hospital, I didn't care. Macaroni and cheese, ice cream, burger and fries. Whatever!