what living in a mental hospital is like (part 1)

MASSIVE TW for

mental health issues in general

suicidal ideation

sexual assault (none happened while i was in there)

so not too long ago (a day when i'm first writing this), i was discharged from a mental hospital. I haven't seen many people talk about mental health issues on this website, so i decided that maybe i should share my story in case someone can relate to my story, or if someone reading this is headed to a mental hospital soon and wants to know what it's like, or if there's people who are just curious about what mental hospitals have to offer.

DISCLAIMER

this obviously isn't going to be what every mental hospital is like. this is just my personal experience that i want to share with other people who might need it, and for myself to feel more open about the situation in general.

alright, with all of that aside, let's get into the first part.

PART 1: Admission

so first off, you're not going to get into the mental hospital right away. first, you have to get evaluated from someone in your county to check your mental stability and to assess if you are safe at home or not. if the evaluator thinks that you are not safe, then they will transport you to the nearest emergency room and get you admitted for a room at the normal hospital until there's an open bed at a mental hospital. this usually takes 8-12 hours, depending on if you're staying the night at the hospital or not. my advice is, if you're evaluated at home, to pack comfy clothes with no strings in them so you wont have to wear scrubs the whole time you're there. i had to sleep in jeans when i was in the mental hospital, it was terrible.

once there's an open bed somewhere in your state/province, you will be given transport by your county. your phone will be taken at this time. you may be able to watch a movie on your ride there, or you may not be. i don't know what every county is like.

when you make it to the mental hospital, they will look through all of your belongings that take anything that is sharp, has strings, or can be easily broken. they will be given back to you on discharge.

in my opinion, this is the hardest part. there is nothing worse than waiting sleeplessly in a hospital bed for you to be sent away to an unfamiliar place.

PART 2: First Impressions

usually, the staff will show you to your room and let you get settled in. you'll notice immediately that you can't really climb anything, and there are no handlebars in the room. you may have a window overlooking something, but there is a chance you don't. you also might have a locker where if you ask the staff, you can access toiletries for a short amount of time.

PART 3: Daily Life

daily life can vary based on your hospital's schedule, but mine looked like this:

7;30- Hygiene

7:45 - Vitals (they take your blood pressure, heart rate, weight, ect. sometimes you may have a blood draw)

8:15 - Breakfast

9:00 - Goals Group (they have you fill out a sheet that basically plans your day and what you want to learn.)

10:00 - Activity Group

11:00 - Process Group (talk about your feelings with a therapist)

12:30 - Lunch

1:15 - Activity Group (this is when you go outside)

2:00 - Process Group

3:00 - Hygiene