I'm in a private mental health hospital AMA

[Gigi20]

Arrived here a week ago

It's great to hear back from you and that your short stay helped and that you are doing better.

Have you managed to get onto medication that helped or is it still being tweaked?

Sounds like you tried a lot of different therapies in the time you were there? What did you find helpful and have you continued with it?

A bit of a random one but what was the food like? On my psych ward the food was good (although got very bored of it after 2 years) but was spoiled by being served on toddler plates/bowls and cutlery (i.e plastic!)

What did you miss the most when in hospital?

@StudentNurse3
sorry for the late reply.

Yes, I'm still taking medication and feel I'm on the correct dose now. I would like to lower that over time, but I'm not ready yet.

I learned a lot from most of the classes and do practise some of the techniques that they taught us. I'm also still seeing my therapist and psychiatrist.

The food wasn't great, it was normally always cold. They did have a salad bar though and the desserts were nice.

We also had normal cutlery and plates.

I missed my children the most, it was very hard.

Two years is a long time, were you in a NHS hospital? How are you feeling now?

That's good about your meds and still seeing your therapist and psychiatrist.

Cold food doesn't sound good! We had nice desserts too.

I started on an NHS acute ward for a little while and then moved to a long term unit which was in a private hospital but funded by the NHS. I completed DBT while I was there.

I missed my children the most too. Once I was at the long term unit my leave gradually extended from going home one weekend day a week, then the whole weekend, up until I went home Friday to Monday. How old are your children?

I feel much better now. My hospital admission definitely saved my life. I learned a lot and made some friends and got my medication to a good place. Despite it being hard being away I know I was very lucky to get the opportunity to complete DBT. It was very difficult when I came out to adjust to life at home and I still have my struggles but I'm getting there.

I would also like to lower my meds eventually as I think they do affect my memory and have also caused weight gain, but we'll see.

I really enjoyed DBT too, much more than CBT.
I also made some great friends there, but also realised how little I mattered to some of my friends.
I found that especially hard.

I too struggled when I came home, after 2 years that must have been especially hard.
My children are late teens.

I experienced that too. Someone who I considered one of my best friends never visited me once.

My children were 5 and 10 when I had my breakdown. It was particularly hard for my older one and our relationship is still not as close as it used to be. I hope your children are ok and I expect they were very happy to get you home!

@StudentNurse3

Yes they were happy. Thankfully they have grown up in a generation where mental health is discussed quite openly.
Maybe, in time you oldest will understand a bit more.
Mine coped well but then they were a lot older and had supportive friends.

I am glad in a way this happened as I am a lot more understanding of mental health issues now. Would like to volunteer at some point helping other people.
And losing people that were fake friends is a good thing too! X

I'm very sorry to hear this, OP, and I hope you soon begin to feel a lot better

If you don't mind, can you describe how you felt when you woke up from your overdose and realised you were still here?

@SpudsandGravy

I was never unconscious. When I took the tablets it was a really strange experience, the only way I can describe it was like an out of body experience.
It was like I was looking down on myself but I truly believed it was the best way out and that everyone would be better off without me.

I regretted it straight away and told my brother who was staying with me. I then made myself sick. He took me to A & E where I was really sick and had to drink charcoal.
I was aware that a paracetamol overdose can still kill you days after and my thoughts at the time were "what will be and god would decide if it was my time"

They then admitted me and monitored me overnight. I can honestly say that night was the worst night of my life. I was incredibly ashamed and didn't sleep at all.

They said that I would have to stay in until they found a bed for me at a psychiatric hospital. There was another lady there that had had a breakdown and she had been in A &E for 4 days waiting for a bed.

Luckily, my Insurance Company managed to find me a bed in a private hospital and I went straight there once my obs were ok.

I remember waking up the next day and feeling so relieved that I would finally be getting some help. But very mixed emotions too and very upset that I had put my family through all this.

Hi @Gigi20 and thank you very much for your very detailed reply.

It sounds terrible. Thank goodness you'd not done irreparable damage and were able to survive it. Thank goodness also for that health insurance

Just thought I would give this a bump, incase anyone else had any questions x