Being in a Psychiatric Hospital - Ask Me (Almost) Anything

Ahh ok. I used to be annoyed and thought I had wasted two years of my life in hospital.. But I honestly wouldn't be who I am now, and I have made the greatest most understanding friends ever! I spent time in a PICU too which really opened my eyes. I found the adult unit I was in very boring. It was NHS and they didn't really do much.. I looked forward to meal times because it was pretty much the only thing going on where I was. CAMHS units, private and NHS have a lot more going on. How are you doing now?

I'm glad it turned out to be useful for you, and that you made some of your most understanding friends! How have you been doing now?

I'm not doing badly, thanks! Still not 100% there but am slowly trying to make a recovery. Been trying to go to the gym, swim, eat more to increase my weight (I'm very underweight) so just trying to keep myself busy and occupied, really.

Honestly? I am doing better than ever mood wise... On the other hand my OCD symptoms are creeping back but luckily my Care coordinator is ace and keeping track of it. I am getting my life back on the road. I'm hoping to volunteer at my local hospice, start driving lessons, spend more time with my beautiful horse and the thing I'm most scared about... Starting college.
You are doing everything right, make sure to fit some sleep into your busy schedule though! I kind of have the opposite problem with weight due to such long stays in hospital doing nothing physical really other than eating aha. Plus meds really don't help.
Remember slip ups might happen, it's how you deal with them that makes the difference.

Haha, sleep has been a huge problem for me still. I struggle to sleep and get about 2 hours sleep at most these days. I don't really want to take my sleeping pills unless I have to in case I get addicted to them so I'm thinking of other ways to keep myself relaxed. Ah well, I've just always been slightly underweight but never this bad!

Very well said - I'm sure we can both get through this.

There are CDs you can buy (or try Youtube or Spotify) with relaxing sounds. My favourite is rain. Very relaxing.

Hey everyone.

So this thread has mainly been inspired by @The_Lonely_Goatherd's Mental Health AMA thread. It's a bit of a continuation to my depressive episode from Sixth Form but I'll keep it very brief.

As some of you may know, I started Medical School this year after the whole adventure I had during Sixth Form/my gap year and while it started of very well, things got absolutely crazy again during second term and by third term, I found myself admit in a Psychiatric Hospital. My depression was back but this time it was even more severe than last time, and resulted in some psychotic episodes too.

Basically, I went out for dinner somewhere late at night one day and decided to go for a visit to Lords in London (being a massive cricket fan ). Then before I knew it, something happened that made me insanely upset and led to a very bad psychotic episode. I was then taken in blue lights by an ambulance to the mental health unit of a hospital, where a psychiatrist suggested for me to be admit in a psychiatric hospital for a few days. There were no hospital beds in the whole of London, however, so I was transferred outside of London to a private hospital the next day.

I stayed there for a few days before I decided to self discharge myself - not because I felt better really, but because I had my first year exams in a few days and I wanted to have a shot at them...

Anyway, ever since, I can't say I've been at 100% but I've learnt to be way more open about my Mental Health now and want to give the encouragement to others to not be afraid to open up too, should they want to. The stigma is absolute bull****. I started a Mental Health blog (not on TSR) to try to keep myself busy that way and even though it's very early, I'm seriously beginning to think about a career in psychiatry now.

I've seen many myths circulating around about what happens in a psychiatric hospital, and this seems to put many people off from seeking help in the first place when they need it. So I thought I'd make this thread to answer anyone's questions about what my experiences were like there, or to answer questions about my mental health experiences in general.

Just as an aside - please keep all questions sensible. I will remove any questions where there is malice intended, and will take appropriate action on those posts. I may also have to remove some posts if they're triggering too, but I won't take any action there if it's not intentional.

Hey Which Unit were you in? I'm currently in Severn in Maidenhead, and I was just wondering if you were this girl that our Doctor always mentions to me, saying how she's/you're doing so well and studying medicine now...? This probably sounds really weird if you're not that one lol xD

Hey Which Unit were you in? I'm currently in Severn in Maidenhead, and I was just wondering if you were this girl that our Doctor always mentions to me, saying how she's/you're doing so well and studying medicine now...? This probably sounds really weird if you're not that one lol xD

Usy is a male!

Hey!

Haha, I'm afraid that that's not me - for a start, I'm not a girl. I was first in St Charles but then was taken to Surrey when no beds were found.

I hope you're doing OK.

haha whoops sorry ^-^ didn't do my research properly :/
Thanks <3 stay strong everyone (that sounds so cheesy but whatever)

Hey!

Haha, I'm afraid that that's not me - for a start, I'm not a girl. I was first in St Charles but then was taken to Surrey when no beds were found.

I hope you're doing OK.

Could I ask how you found St. Charles (presuming its the one with all the wards named after rivers)? I used to work in the CMHT attached and just wondered what you thought of the place?

Hey everyone.

So this thread has mainly been inspired by @The_Lonely_Goatherd's Mental Health AMA thread. It's a bit of a continuation to my depressive episode from Sixth Form but I'll keep it very brief.

As some of you may know, I started Medical School this year after the whole adventure I had during Sixth Form/my gap year and while it started of very well, things got absolutely crazy again during second term and by third term, I found myself admit in a Psychiatric Hospital. My depression was back but this time it was even more severe than last time, and resulted in some psychotic episodes too.

Basically, I went out for dinner somewhere late at night one day and decided to go for a visit to Lords in London (being a massive cricket fan ). Then before I knew it, something happened that made me insanely upset and led to a very bad psychotic episode. I was then taken in blue lights by an ambulance to the mental health unit of a hospital, where a psychiatrist suggested for me to be admit in a psychiatric hospital for a few days. There were no hospital beds in the whole of London, however, so I was transferred outside of London to a private hospital the next day.

I stayed there for a few days before I decided to self discharge myself - not because I felt better really, but because I had my first year exams in a few days and I wanted to have a shot at them...

Anyway, ever since, I can't say I've been at 100% but I've learnt to be way more open about my Mental Health now and want to give the encouragement to others to not be afraid to open up too, should they want to. The stigma is absolute bull****. I started a Mental Health blog (not on TSR) to try to keep myself busy that way and even though it's very early, I'm seriously beginning to think about a career in psychiatry now.

I've seen many myths circulating around about what happens in a psychiatric hospital, and this seems to put many people off from seeking help in the first place when they need it. So I thought I'd make this thread to answer anyone's questions about what my experiences were like there, or to answer questions about my mental health experiences in general.

Just as an aside - please keep all questions sensible. I will remove any questions where there is malice intended, and will take appropriate action on those posts. I may also have to remove some posts if they're triggering too, but I won't take any action there if it's not intentional.

Really amazing thread! Really, good luck with everything. You seem so incredibly strong and very inspiring. I've seen hundreds doctors, a couple being some of the best in the UK, and I can honestly say I'd be honoured to be a patient of yours.

Two questions! Do you have any idea of what kind of doctor you'd like to be? Also, did you find a way to kind of distract yourself or keep yourself busy while you were in hospital and had nothing to do?

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That's the one (one in Ladbroke Grove?)!

It wasn't my main place where I went to (my team were based in Chelsea and Westminster but I think both units were linked) but in my brief time there, I was impressed by the way the staff worked. The receptionists were a bit grumpy but I had paramedics with me so they dealt with everything, thankfully, but the rest of the team were very good. As I said, it was a bit disappointing that they had no bed so I had to sleep on a sofa that night but they got me food and everything and were checking for a bed every hour or so, so it wasn't all bad and that wasn't really their fault.

I think that, in general, most of the professionals I've met (bar one psychiatrist, unfortunately at St Charles too) were very good at dealing with things. There is just a huge funding issue, with things like a lack of beds being a big problem.

Hope that helped a bit.

Yep that is the one. Ah yes, I know that team. Was that in the Place of Safety (136 suite?) Glad you had a good experience there. I have heard a number of stories from there and just wondered how it was for you

Do you ever worry that one day you might get bad again and be put back in hospital? The absolute thought of it scares me, tbh, and I think I have been close in the past year again for it to happen.