To ask about psychiatric wards. **title edited by MNHQ**

[Nerdygalwithabook]

Has anyone got any advice or experience of staying in a respite centre or a mental health or psychiatric ward? Hopefully not too bad things! Like do you share rooms? Is it really dreadful? Are the nurses nice? What do you do? Do you sit in your room at all times? Etc
Thank you xx

Oh why did the title get edited ?
Also for all you kind people.

I was in your position last year and ended up being managed as an outpatient with a diagnosis of severe depression and severe anxiety with suicidal thoughts.

My experience is that the NHS is grossly underfunding mental health. I had daily contact initially with a mix of Dr's, psychologists and cpn's while I was being assessed, then weekly therapy sessions with a cpn and fortnightly Dr's reviews, then monthly and from what I gather the treatment I received was better than many inpatients. However, what I should have done was be admitted and have the enforced break. Im still not fully well and can feel myself slipping back.

The Dr's admitted I was quite complex due to my physical health issues and it made medicating me a very difficult task.

Inpatients here are on a mixed ward basis and the trust only has 17 beds which are highly sought after.

Good luck and wish you a speedy recovery

Thank you. I'm sorry you went through such a thing and I really hope you don't get ill again!
Best of Luck xx

When I was a patient there were no single rooms. It was bays like a hospital ward. The support for eating disorders was non existent and I never once went to the dining room. But it wasn't that bad. I was allowed a phone charger.

It really wasn't bad, just boring. I'd take some books, sewing, art supplies, notebooks and pens and try to keep your day structured.

It was more about containment and keeping people safe than therapy in my experience.

The private ED unit I went to was single rooms. MeAl plan prescribed by dietician and you were allowed two foods you didn't like. Meals were at set times and therapy groups in between.

I think the nurses are great, I might be biased as my son is a mental health nurse.

My experience is that facilities/staff vary as much as they do in almost everything in life.

Where my son works it is single rooms and wards aren't mixed. Funding and as a result staffing levels aren't great. I know my son works really hard to get his patients out for trips, work with them to move things on but sometimes he doesn't have enough staff for people to get trips out.

I haven't worked in psychiatric ward, but I used to work for MIND and I did visit some clients whilst they were under section.

Every patient gets their own room (dormitory) group activities happen during the day, you don't have to stay in your room all day, there is a lounge area where there is TV, I don't mean to frighten/worry you but some of the nurses can be horrible.

Regarding same sex ,mixed sex wards the trust i worked for kept changing its mind when i first got a job twenty years ago alk the wards were mixed sex then they deceided to have single sex wards and then tjey deceided male and females should be mixed as they are in life when i worked on the PICU, psychiatric intensive care unit we would charge people s phones in the office there are no dormitories on any of the sites of the very large mental health trust i worked for all single bedrooms but obviously not all trusts are like that.

The hospital I visited, the wards were mixed.

I work in single sex now but have worked in mixed with sexes split by corridors and with staff on each one.
Depending on each persons needs they are nursed on different levels of observations so some more risky patients may be nursed on what's called line of sight meaning that they will have a member of staff observing them at a close distance for the safety of themselves and others. Some people are nursed on hourly observations meaning that a member of staff will 'check' them at least hourly. All sorts in between this but it might help you feel safer if you know that staff are observing.
Phones and chargers etc will depend on type of ward and on the risk to yourself and others. What other belongings are 'allowed' on the ward vary greatly between each setting and again tend to depend on risk.
Each setting is so different that it's hard to give advice.
Remember that if you do end up spending time as an inpatient that it may be a stressful time but it will be for a reason.
Good luck to you Nerdy.

It definitely depends on which hospital you go to, and also your age. Having had to section my mother twice in fifteen years, the care for over 65s is vastly different from under! I'm assuming you are under 65 :)
Are you being sectioned or is it a voluntary admission? This makes a lot of difference in terms of what you're allowed to bring - chargers etc. My mother who was having a bipolar episode was allowed her charger, but nothing with glass (photo frames etc) or sharp like nail scissors. It really depends on each individual situation. If they know you have self harming thoughts they will probably check your belongings thoroughly
Regarding activities, for an NHS ward, they had lots going on. Quizzes, movie nights, knitting etc. There was a patient's kitchen where they could make their tea and coffee. There was a secure garden which was beautiful.
Patients were encouraged to eat together in the dining room but it was understood that some weren't ready to socialise, and they had meals brought to them in their rooms. The food was really nice.
One woman had severe anorexia, and they monitored her eating, but didn't force feed her or anything like that.
It was a very calm atmosphere - nothing like the movies. I really hope that if you do go, it helps and sets you on the road to recovery. Best of luck.

Oh also, if they deemed you a risk, you had a one on one obs for 24 hours and all patients were on 15 minute check ups. Some patients had their own rooms, and some were on same sex wards - only 4 beds.
Bathrooms and loos were same sex.

I've never stayed, but have extensively visited my Mum as an inpatient in 2 different MH Units, and while she was there under a Section and not a voluntary patient so didn't really want to be there, she said she couldn't fault the staff on the Units at all.

Both units were really light and decorated in 'calming' colours, and had an enclosed garden which patients could access any time til 10pm.

I haven't RTFT so don't know if you've said if you're a smoker or not, but if you are, a tip I'd suggest is to only take the cigarette you're going to smoke with you, not the whole pack- because DM quickly learned that if she got out a pack of 20, patients would descend and ask if she had a 'spare'. They are too expensive to give away every time (and a bit more inconvenient to just replace as an inpatient too) so worth bearing in mind.

She said they were quite boring, so was glad to have books and DVDs sent up, and having her phone to hand helped too!

As she was admitted under a Section each time, she couldn't leave the unit at all, but once a day a member of staff would ask all inpatients if they needed anything from the shops, toiletries, newspapers etc.

In both places, patients each had their own rooms, with men on one corridor and women on the other, but the dining and communal areas were shared.

Just one quick thing though, if you have any valuables, please give them to staff to itemise and lock away for you. While the staff do try their best to make your room feel homely to you, your room isn't lockable when you leave it.
The same way you wouldn't leave your handbag unattended in a house full of strangers, the same caution should be given for a stay in hospital too.

Either way, I can't sing the praises highly enough of both the staff, and the Unit structure too, in making patients feel cared for and listened to.

Good luck, OP

I was Sectioned on NHS. Mixed ward with small private bedrooms. Communal living space with TV, books, craft materials, potted trees etc. There was a coffee and tea making facility on the ward. The ward itself was locked. Not much to do all day, but daily meetings with your own care team. Nurses are nice.

NHS inpatient, twice in 2013, not a high secure ward. Aged 23.

First time: was on a ward, one woman was muttering about wanting to kill someone. One lady had dementia and was elderly; she would have episodes of being mean and verbally attacking everyone, then she'd scream when they gave her a depot. Male and female wards were separate (for sleeping) but communal areas were mixed. Two patients were dating. One male patient befriended me and at one point sexually assaulted me when I was in a bad place, I didn't know how to speak up so it was never dealt with.

The nurses and HCAs were mixed. Everyone knew who the "good ones" were and avoided the bad. Some wouldn't give sleeping pills and PRN meds as a sort of power trip. Others would give what was on your chart. One nurse was an evil witch who would tell you off for crying or curling up in a ball, saying you were making yourself sicker and you needed to think positive.

The OT was an amazing, lovely woman, genuinely caring and sweet and responsible in her role.

A girl a year younger than me smashed a glass window and used the glass to slit her own throat. Then walked around dripping blood all over the floor. It was shallow but looked scary. We weren't allowed to leave the ward. Patients were crying and screaming and getting set off. They called the police but allowed her to stay. She had some kind of personality disorder.

One man had bipolar and epilepsy and frequently fitted. We'd be shut in the lounge while they stabilised him and not allowed to leave. This happened nearly every day.

I was voluntary but they didn't let me leave the ward for an entire week because they wanted the psych to approve it first and he didn't visit the ward until a week after I got there. You could only go out to smoke, onto a balcony, so I took up smoking.

One boy with schizophrenia (I think) laughed to himself a lot, masturbated in communal rooms and then smashed up our computer.

A schizoaffective, paranoid patient kept waking me up in the night and asking if people were watching her. She eventually escaped.

2nd time: my hoody was confiscated because they thought I'd hang myself with the strings, and they almost took away the panda bear toy I've had since birth because they thought I might have hidden razor blades in there (totally baseless; i was a very cooperative patient even though I was suffering psychotic bipolar depression). I felt like a caged animal and had no privacy; my door wasn't allowed to be locked. One girl was suffering mania from cocaine abuse and kept stealing from people and talking a mile a minute. Another patient kept yelling that aliens were persecuting black people and trying to beat up the staff. My mum ended up effectively getting me out of there because I was petrified of the environment. She said she could manage me at home.

I wouldn't go back on a ward unless I lost contact with reality completely again. Hopefully that will never happen.

**I meant my door wasn't allowed to be shut. Obviously a locked door would be a bit of an issue.

Also, I would have left early, but when I cried and said I hated the hospital and wanted to leave, they said "if you try to leave as a voluntary patient, the doctor will probably section you". I was later told by a GP that that was possibly illegal.

Dd has been an informal patient in NHS and private acute mental health units. She had her own room in both, although the private place's care was dreadful and she would have died from an unrelated acute physical condition, if we had not spent 2 days on the phone to get her out, so we could take her to A & E!

We visited her at the NHS unit - she and us did not find the people with psychosis frightening at all! Most of the staff did not engage with the residents at all - there was no compassion, except from the odd one and they seemed to spend their time in the office doing paperwork. She said they did not even speak to her, when they came to check her blood pressure. There was no treatment on offer except drugs? She said the food was ok, but although they were able to order from options, the staff allowed other residents to take someone else's food, if it looked better, so what was the point of asking? It did keep her safe though and give her respite from her problems.

Was in and out of 2 facilities - both private - for about 6 months when I was suicidal. One was possibly best 6 weeks of my life as I felt really cared for and put first and safe. Second was a one therapy fits all rehab centre and I really shouldn't have been there - ended up with raging anxiety not having had any before I went in. If you are worried about your safety then my advice is go in and have someone keep an eye on you. Could you put your mediation on an ipod so you have a back up to your phone? I was allowed my phone and most things in the first hospital but not in the second - no phone no perfume no razor no sewing etc.

I'd second the advice up thread to call and find out what restrictions there are but try to take in lots of things to do and distract you whilst you find your way around. (And take a load of antibacterial wipes in case the facilities aren't ensuite).

YOU could also ask about a ward on the community where you go in during the day and or get visits at home and have a number to call 24/7 if you feel bad - it meant that I knew there was someone to talk to and a place to go if need be and that got me through when my insurance stopped covering the private costs.

PM me if you want to know anything else.

I've been on NHS wards a few times, most recently at the beginning of the year (suicidal intent). Most staff were great, psychiatrist was good. I got moved around a lot, moved room/ward every few days, once in the middle of the night. That didn't help at all. There was racism (ill people being racist or unwell? who knows…), you had to keep your wits about you around some men. I was accused of being a spy/terrorist and had things thrown at me by other patients when they were unwell. I was called some very nasty names. The food was ok. Talking to other patients was useful. I'd say if you can stay out, it's best to stay out and use community services. But, if you need to go in don't be scared. Just remember that there will be some very unwell people in there, so don't take it personally, and to keep your wits about you.

I have been verbally abused by staff on psych wards (called "a pathetic little child with no dignity") and been assaulted by 2 patients.
horrible places.

My brother stayed in a respite centre after he had a breakdown. I don't know the ins and outs of daily life but I know he was very relaxed there and it helped him so much. It led him to getting the help he needed and the right diagnosis, and therefore medication! It sounds awful but the best thing he did was getting to the edge.

Thank you everyone for your advice. And for those who had a bad time I really am sorry X