HTT are handing me over

[EnpoTree]

Woop! Just got a call asking if I wanted to be visited today (er, no, ta) and telling me that they're about to call CMHT to hand me over to them. Finally getting off this daily checking up soon I hope

Replace it somehow.

People shouldn't be nervous to access services.

I wish I could remember what Mavis said last night the new mission was going to be called.

Getting used to calli her Mavis now. Was a struggle not to do it to her face

I think she might be quite ill.

But she seems a lot more calm when high.

weird, I was thinking a little earlier of what might take the place of stuff like the MHA in a truly developed society (I don't think we can consider ourselves there yet while people can still be deprived of their liberty without having committed any crimes)

Costs a fuck of a lot though; she's getting through £25 a day.

yes Mitch - I wonder what it would look like too. I'm thinking of those "enlightened" asylum wardens during the era when occasionally they would decide to do away with restraints and locks and found (surprise surprise) uncaged humans are a bit less mad.

they still use restraints in the states

I wonder if it would ever be possible to end compulsion or coercion completely. I don't think it will be though; not unless we make different decisions on when someone Should be allowed the responsibility to damage themselves.

But yet certainly need to get rid of the voluntary-but-not-really loophole.

probably we still use them here, in fact wasn't there a report recentlyish showing weird regional patterns of their use in the UK?

What, like actual straps and stuff?

yeah

actual straps and stuff, to beds

I feel I can't talk from a place of personal experience here as I've never been detained under the MHA, just under the threat of it or lied and been told I was under nurse holding powers when I wasn't so it's not something I have a lot of right to campaign about or comment on.

That's foul.

Some drugs have a similar effect though, but you can at least still scratch your nose.

It depends how long they're used for though, partly. I think I'd rather be in straps for an hour than restrained by people for an hour.

But then I have this thing about people touching me.

living under the threat of it is probably not much better

it was a deep deep shock that I can't see myself ever fully getting over, that I could be locked up, secluded even, drugged, all that, against my will and for no reason that made sense to me at the time (I do realise I wasn't well but have unhelpfully forgotten almost everything now) but while it was happening I had no idea what I was supposed to have done wrong, it felt like it must have been a case of mistaken identity or something - I hadn't been to my GP or anything, it was straight there without passing Go :(

But sadly I bet people are actually left in restraints for hours or longer.

That sounds so terrifying Mitch.

And as you say your worldview can never be the same again when you know what a thing of utter simplicity and ease it is to lose all sovereignty. Really any of us at any time are only independently-acting sovereign individuals for as long as we are protected by the force of law; a totally abstract thing.

I don't have to fear the MHA at the moment but it's always lingering. Never mind that I section people all the time.

here is a literature review probably interesting if not v cheerful reading, doesn't include UK as mechanical restraint is used only rarely apparently

Really?

It's that common to have to section people?

Has it increased in frequency or something? Last time I had significant involvement with inpatient MH was over a decade ago and almost everyone was voluntary.