I’ve been watching two interesting documentaries on amazon prime video. They are of the same ilk. The first one was called U.D.P, or “unit for difficult patients”. It’s a forensic psychiatric facility in France. It’s so interesting because though I’ve been in many a short term care facilities, even a long term state hospital for a bit, I’ve never been considered “dangerous” and been committed for a crime. All the men in the UDP have been found guilty of crimes they committed when they were severely ill. Often very violent crimes. Some will spend their entire jail sentence in this facility. Others will be able to “step down” to a regular psychiatric hospital.

The other is the same idea but set in Canada. It is called out of mind, out of sight.

It moves me because though I have never become violent, I do feel for these people. I have been severely ill before, but my brain tells me to harm myself, not others. How different my life could be if the opposite were true! I see the side effects of heavy antipsychotics that I have experienced myself in these people too.

It could definitely be triggering for some, but it is interesting and emotional for me.