Hospitalization.

What's it like? Is it beneficial? Has anyone found it ever beneficial?

It was explained to me (by someone I know who has been admitted to the place in my city I'd likely wind up going into) that in the hospital it's exactly LIKE a hospital, just that you see a pdoc every day about med stuff and get woken up in the morning for pills and breakfast.

And then you do absolutely nothing all freaking day...

So yes. Anyone actually have positive experiences for hospitalization for a 2-3 day period? I am trying to think about it as a fallback when I get back to see my pdoc in January.

If it's like a regular boring hospital stay, I can forsee it not actually helping me at all to keep me sane... probably making me MORE crazy with a lack of things to do. Just my opinion anyways.

I did all my clinical rotations for school in a psych unit of the local hospital. It was similar to how your friend describes it... basically like another unit except that there was a little structure and you wear your own clothes. There were 2 educational groups per day. Locked unit so you couldn't ever leave it. Kinda a bummer.

When I needed hospitalized last year i was scared to death because all I knew was my clinical experience. I worked with my T and I went to a private psychiatric hospital where they have separate units for people... they have a building for kids, one for adolescents, 2 separate units for dual diagnosis people, 1 detox unit, 1 unit for lower functioning people with severe bipolar disorder or schizophrenia, and 1 unit for higher functioning people... professionals, college students, etc. We were loekd in the unit 24-7 for at least 1 day until we were determined to be safe, then we were allowed to leave (always with a staff member) to go to the cafeteria for meals. Also my unit often was allowed to have fresh air outside ever 2 hours and a few times each week a staff member would allow us outside leisure time. I was in there 2 times... they were both overwhelmingly positive experiences. I saw a psychiatrist every weekday and we had structured activities/groups all day every weekday. Weekends are typically more relaxed.. less structure.

All in all, you don't want to go to the hospital if you dont have to but if you do, hopefuly there's one around you that's privately funded. Freestanding places tend to run better from my professional and personal experiences. Best to you.

Well, my experience was not like a regular hospital...but I'm not sure I can give it a hearty recommendation either. There were structured activities...group therapy, art therapy, skills groups that happened every day (sometimes not weekends) plus you saw a pdoc and had daily meds and all that and visitation time. I still thought it was boring all day. Sleep was impossible in the awful beds plus the noisy nurses desk and who knows what from your roommate if you have one.

I thought it was awfully restrictive...but I guess that's the point. One positive thing though, was having the ability to make med changes so quickly and get that stabilized. Med changes were possible on the spot. I was in for mania, so that was a big plus...and you might have to factor that in to my feelings of boredom/oppression. There was no individual therapy and my T didn't have privileges there, so the group stuff was the only therapy during my stay.

Bottom line, I guess for me, is that if that's where I have to be to be safe then I just have to suffer through it. The hospital I was at also had partial hospitalization options. I'd take that in the future if only to be able to sleep in my own bed!

I hated hospitalization, but at least I'm still around to complain about it. Without it, I'd be dead. Go with what keeps you safe.

((((((Christina)))))))

It is my opinion that how helpful a hospitalization can be depend on a number of factors.

1. What hospital you go to. Different hospitals will have different programs for their patients. Some hospitals have groups, it sounds like the one your friend went to did not. You should find out what will be available to you while you are there.

2. What you are going in for. Different hospitals have different specialties even in general psychiatry.

3. How motivated you are about getting the most you can out of your hospital stay.

4. Know that it can take a little while to adjust to the hospital environment for example just sleeping in a different bed with different noises can be hard to adjust to.

Also keep in mind that what day you go in can make a huge difference. Usually you will not see the pdocs on the weekends. So if you can choose the day of the week you go in do it at the beginning of the week. If you go in on Thursday or Friday you wont get much done before the weekend and then just have to wait through the weekend until Monday to see the pdoc again. Often there is less activity on weekends. They can be very long and feel frustrating becasue not much gets done.

I think it is important if you can plan ahead for what your goals will be. Then you will be able to get the most out of it.

The hospital I go into is a locked unit for dual diagnosis, meaning some are there for detox, some for psychiatric. I see my pdoc every day. There are structured classes during the day that keep you very busy. One class a day is a process group, more like a group therapy situation. The nurses and techs were wonderfully kind and attentive. But from what I heard, the hospital I go to is the exception, not the rule. The other psychiatric units in the area were much less positive experiences for those that had been to them.

I go into the hospital when I am a danger to myself. When my depression is so severe that I am barely functioning. The advantage to the hospital is that it is a very safe place, and meds can be more closely monitored and more quickly changed and increased. Most psychiatric units anymore are crisis stabilization units like mine that are there to keep patients safe, get them stabilized, and send them out to get care from private practitioners. The average stay is 3-4 days, but my stays are usually around two weeks or so.

I liked being hospitalized. Because I was usually suicidal and it took the pressure off of me (I couldn't do it).

With that said, you must do your homework. It pays to research to see what psych unit is the best in your area. Some are like what is described above. But I had the priviledge of being in a very good unit and it made all the difference. It had the normal daily visit with the Pdoc but also had group therapy, recreational therapy, occupational therapy and it even had a gym.

Just my 2 cents.

ah..."chez bin" as i like to call it...the good thing about the hospital where i go...is the view...right on a river so its really pretty...

i go when i don't feel safe...suicidal, too many memories, or when there is a medicine change that needs to be monitored. its a locked ward, floor whatever. usually i get my own room (its so much easier being crazy in a single room). there is a common room with a big screen tv with dvd/vcr and tons of movies. everybody eats together. there is a stocked fridge and cereal, bagels fruit etc available for snacking too.

groups are held 2-3x daily and 2x on weekends if i recall. the nurses were great...they check in with you daily to see how you are doing. i saw the pdoc 2-3 x each vist which lasted anywhere from 4 days to 10 days depending on what i was in for.

food was okay...not great. no phones in rooms only at nurses desk and in common room. you could make 1 call/shift for free at desk which was good since i didn't have a phone card (they take your phone etc). if you are going put all your # in your pocket so you have them to call your friends...it makes it easier than trying to remember things.

is it a great thing? no but if you need it you need it. oh one thing my hospital does that my friends found upsetting...they don't list your name on the hospital records so that if someone calls to find out how you are they don't show you...so my friends didn't know where i was...they knew i was suicidal and thought i had gone to the hospital but then i couldn't be found so needless to say they were upset...and with no family to reach....it was upsetting. that's why i take a list of # with me now.

also you have to provide a list of who can visit you...people just can't show up and visit...(altho i would imagine if they did and you were okay with it i guess they might be allowed in) and in my place they do look thru bags and such to make sure nothing unsafe is brought in...but that was just after another patient had committed suicide so things were a bit tense.

there are showers and washers & dryers too...

i have had to stay at chez bin i think 5 times the worst was for the med change because honestly i felt fine it was just to be monitored for the new meds and the blood levels and stuff...and then when they took me off the meds i had to do the same thing. the other times i was a mess and needed to be there. like i said...enjoyable...no.

Thanks for everyone's feedback.

((((((((((everyone)))))))))))))

I told my pdoc that if I was feeling worse by the time January came around that I'd go in willingly, but it's looking like (for now anyway) that I'll hopefully be feeling better by that time (Thank God!)

I'll keep it in mind for the future though, although I kinda hope it never comes to being admitted against my will. He seemed very close to doing it this time...

Wow, those descriptions are so different from my experience in the UK. I found it largely positive but there were not so many groups or activities. I spoke to a nurse most days and saw my pdoc a couple of times a week. I was there for 4 weeks which seems to be much longer than in the US, but there were people who had been there for 6 months or longer. It wasn't a locked ward but I had to be escorted if I was leaving the ward - eventually I could leave on my own for 1/2 hour and that made me incredibly anxious - you get institutionalised very quickly. As others have said, med changes could be done more quickly and under supervision than as an outpatient. It also felt a safe place to be and that's why I agreed to go in. I hope if it comes to it for you, you will also find it to be helpful.

Christina,

I haven't been inpatient that many times but the differences between the way the hospitals are run vary greatly. Some are the WORST. I think the worst ones are the wards where there are mixed psych patients with detox patients. The staff has a hard time remembering who is who....my one visit to one of those units was just for 4 days so I could get back on a mood stabilizer quickly and this one stupid nurse kept asking me if I was having the shakes yet. I kept telling her I was not there for detox!!! You basically sat around all day, waiting for meal time. They also had a floor monitor who went around inspecting the rooms and yelling at everyone for leaving anything on the floors or for having food in their rooms.

The best one was just the opposite. Very organized, everyone was very kind, they knew what they were doing, they knew who you were and what you were there for, and here's a tip: go to the drug store and buy some of those silicone ear plugs that swimmers wear. They are GREAT for cutting noise. I use them all the time. Also, make sure the pdoc prescribes you a sleeping pill every night. Even if you never take one, tell them you want one. You won't get enough exercise to make you tired and you will have trouble sleeping even if you weren't sleeping on the worst mattress ever made.

Just remember: You are going to be there either to keep you safe or so they can make some med changes quickly in a safe environment. Your first visit is a little weird because they have all this safety stuff they have to do and it seems a little impersonal. But try to understand they are looking out for you and the other patients.

I've never been inpatient for my eating disorder or self harm, but very well could have been. My psychologist didn't want me to be admitted for either one. I think the closest I was to be admitted was for self harm & it was last year in the summer; I had a psychologist appointment (my usual weekly) & wasn't myself because I was mad at my boss. I kept threatening to cut myself with an object I had in my purse (won't say what) until I bled. She said, "Do you want me to take you over & have them evaluate you for admission?" I said, "No, no, no!" I know if I had cut myself, she would have taken me over there.