I unfortunately have firsthand experience with this in the US.
First I was sent to the ER where I was placed under constant monitoring. I was interviewed by the medical staff as well as a case worker from the state, and given the option to voluntarily commit myself to a mental care facility, or take my chances with the court.
The first time this happened, I chose to take my chances. The court determined that I needed to be committed, and I was sent to a mental health facility anyway. The second (and last) time it happened, I volunteered.
In both cases, the facilities were basically a mix between a hospital and a jail. Multiple layers of locking doors, no doors on the rooms, visibility into the bathrooms, heavily weighted or bolted down furniture, but also medical equipment, nurses, and the overall asthetic of a hospital.
They were also both basically a one-size-fits-all for any kind of issue that didn’t qualify for prison. There were homeless people that were stuck in the system waiting for housing to become available, drug addicts going through remission, people with multiple personalities, two different Jesus Christ’s, one at each facility, and people that would be mostly normal most of the time, but would suddenly snap, become violent, and need to be detained while everyone was sent to their rooms. There were also people that were struggling with depression or bipolar disorder, and in one case a kid (18 or 19) who had jaywalked across a normally busy street and a cop decided to harass him and have him committed (because that was supposedly not a mentally sound action).
I could go on, but I’ve already written a short novel so I think I’ll leave it there. Please feel free to ask any follow up questions and I’ll try to answer to the best of my ability.
Did anyone there experience it as a positive stay or expect a positive outcome at the end? It doesn’t really sound like a healthy place to be. Especially if you have problems.
I can’t say for sure if anyone saw it as a positive experience overall, but while we were in there, the common feeling expressed was how much we all wanted to get out of there.
I fully agree that it’s not a good place to recover from many mental health problems, but that’s unfortunately the system that we have. The staff were trying their best, but both facilities were clearly underfunded and working with what they had.
It was even worse when the court was involved, because I had to speak with a lawyer regularly and attend court hearings over the phone. That only added to the stress of the situation.
Can confirm. I had a bad reaction to some new meds and tried to kill myself twice in one week. The second time I even fought with the cops. First I was sent to the er then to an all purpose rehab/loony bin until I was cleared for release.
Spot on with the heavy furniture you can’t easily lift. You also needed a doctor’s recommendation to shave and they watched you like a hawk with that razor.
There was also groups where the helped with coping skills and talked about problems. It wasn’t a fun place to be but they were trying to help.
Yeah group activities were one of the better ways of dealing with boredom and passing the time. I feel like the coping skills provided were overly generic, but that’s to be expected when dealing with such a wide variety of people and issues.
The staff were absolutely always trying to do their best, there just weren’t enough of them. At both facilities I went to, the ratio was around 1:10 or worse (as in 10+ patients for every staff member).
Exactly. I got to see it from both sides because my sister is a nurse for a facility like I was in as well.
I’d talk to her a lot on the phone. You know the phone with the super short cord you couldn’t hang yourself with lol
Ah yes, the phone that is out in the open so everyone gets to hear your side of the conversation.
I’m glad to hear that you’ve been doing better since then, and I hope your sister is doing well. I can’t imagine how difficult it must be to work in a place like that.
On a sadder note I remover just walking laps around the area when I was bored and thinking about the animals in zoos that just pace back and forth because they’re cage is too small with nothing to do… so you just walk around…
Yeah pretty much. I would also write out nerdy things like the ASCII table, or do the math to figure out how many seconds I had been at the facility, and stuff like that. Of course using paper they provided and those damn bendy pens.
It’s not illegal in the u.s. but you pretty much end up in jail because of it depending on how unprivileged you are. They force you into a hospital for however time they want to “protect you” often times giving you little to help and just throw you out and by that time you lost your job and some loose there housing and then become homeless because of it and then eventually jail for just trying to eat.
That’s if you actually someone stops you before you do it. It’s even worse if you survive the attempt.
Yes I know its not always like that. but from my experience with the system in Amerikkka and from others I know and used to know (RIP) this is how it pretty much works.
Please remember this is from my experience and people I know and know experience with. Suicide and attempting it.
Yeah this basically aligns with my experience as well.
In my experience, there was no difference between getting talked down and surviving an attempt. I’m curious what differences you saw or experienced between the two, if you don’t mind me asking.
I don’t know exactly, but I think it is made illegal mostly in order to clarify circumstances:
Police has a clear reason to get involved (not just a general “maybe somebody should help this person”), people who “help” with committing suicide are also doing this illegally (no need to start a discussion first) etc.
Even then, in the US, police have no duty to protect an individual.
The police have a general “public duty”, apparently to protect capital.
Confirmed once more, Us is no good example for anthing.
I only know one country where suicide (attempt) was illegal in the past (UK). Aside from that you get sent to a medical facility in most countries.
It’s illegal in most states in the US.
You’d get detained, and sent for medical/psych eval.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suicide_legislation
Getting detained and sent to a medical institution doesn’t make suicide attempts a crime.
In the US, they’ll likely get “51-50’d”. Sent to a medical facility for a max observation hold of 72 hours or less if a doctor clears them to leave.
I could see there being a gray area with assisted suicide if it were legal, assuming that isn’t a separate illegal thing.
“I didn’t murder him, I just helped him out!” - whoever killed Epstein
There is a gray area where assisted suicide/euthanasia isn’t legal. Shall you take 20 or 30 years of jail for helping your loved one to end their suffering or shall legally murderer get away with suspended sentence/probation.
A clear legal context for assisted suicide suicide solves the debate
Legal in Oregon! You need a lot of paperwork, but if you’re terminal it can be done.
Or straight up legal and recommended by doctors in some countries. Depends on where you live.
Effectively, yes, as long as the “”“right”“” person talks them down. Say bye bye to ever having an independent, normal life afterwards.
I’m not sure what you’re implying, but this has not been my experience in the US. Which country are you referring to?
After I was released, there were no follow ups or anything like that. It wasn’t exactly easy to get back on my feet, but I’ve been living a normal and independent life for years.
The police released me into the custody of my wife. They did pat me down and put me in the back of a cruiser so I wouldn’t hurt myself.
I hope you’re doing better now. What were the circumstances that led to police involvement and what happened afterwards (if you don’t mind me asking)?
Not great but better. There will always be bad days.
We thought I lost my cat and I was only a few months from being inpatient the first time. So I took a knife, turned off my phone, got in my car and started driving to where I was going to kill myself. After about 30 minutes I thought better of it and pulled over and called my wife. She already had local PD there. I talked to them while they had the county sheriff come get me. They held me until my wife cane and got me. Then back into inpatient I went.
ETA: Cat got in behind a wall and decided to hang for awhile. We found out that he was back out while we were driving back.
I’m glad your cat was fine and just being a goober, and not anything more serious. I’m also glad to hear that you’re doing any amount of better. Progress is very rarely a straight line, and almost always includes ups and downs.
How was your experience during inpatient care? Did it align or differ from the experiences discussed in this thread so far?
I was in a combined depression and substance abuse unit. It was mostly boring. We had privacy when in the shower or the can. Doors had to be open when we were sleeping. Law enforcement wasn’t involved at all. It was a private hospital, not state-run. I wouldn’t ever want to go back but AFAICT it was pretty good as far as mental hospitals go.
