I think one thing that is important to note is that things do vary from hospital to hospital depending on what sort of hospital you're being put into. I have been into two psychiatric facilities, both under an involuntary hold. The first one was a "behavioral hospital", also known as a mental hospital. Mental illness is what it specialized in. However, the second one I was put into was a Mental Health Ward and they did things a bit differently. So it does change depending on where you go.
Before I go on, I do want to encourage you to look into the psychiatric facilities available in your area. These places can seem scary and they can be hard to be in but if it's what is best for you then it is what is best. You need to do what's best for you. I hated both stays in the hospital and I felt betrayed by my therapist when she called a 5150 on me the second time. But looking back on it, I know she did what was best for me. I might not be around if she hadn't done that. Sometimes, the hospital is the best place for someone to be so I do want you to consider doing this and do some research into the hospitals/wards in your area. It'll be okay. heart
The first hospital I was in, as mentioned, was a mental hospital and I was sent there for attempting suicide. Before I went there, I was in the E.R for 27 hours because I didn't have insurance and no hospital wanted to take me. It was only when the county stepped in and agreed to cover the bills did a hospital accept me. The involuntary hold which lasts 72 hours began while I was in the E.R, so I spent the first night of the hold there. When they transferred me to the hospital, it was around midnight. The nurse who was there took me from the paramedics and put me in a secluded room. They made me fill out paperwork before asking me question after question, some of them including why I tried suicide and what had gotten me to that point. After the nurse was done questioning me, he found two female staff members to come in and check me. They asked me if I had any scars and I told them where and showed them. At this point, I was already in a regular hospital gown so they made me pull the gown up and down to check the rest of my body to ensure I wasn't lying. They also took pictures of any cuts they found on me.
The nurses took everything including my earrings. I wasn't allowed to have even earrings because I did have a history of self-harm and that made them see me as "dangerous". They gave me Ativan and sent me to bed. Most of the days in there were similar to each other. You get to see a doctor every day, although not at the same time. My doctor would sometimes come in the afternoon and she sometimes wouldn't come until 7 or 8 at night. You'll have therapy and groups, the hospital is going to try and keep you busy. They are going to encourage you to come out of your room and socialize a bit. Most likely, you will have one to two roommate(s). In the first hospital, I had two and in the second, I had one. Chances are, unless you're deemed an immediate danger to other people, you're not going to get your own room. Honestly, it can be nice sharing a room with someone else if you talk to them a bit. It's...comforting in a way.
I was put into the "low risk" ward. Mental hospitals, unlike regular hospitals with mental health wards, have different risk level wards. I wasn't determined to be an immediate danger to myself or others so I was allowed into the low risk ward. You most likely will be put there as well. The hospital I was in also had a high risk ward, children's ward, and (as the nurse's told me) a Bipolar ward.
In the psych hospital, visitors couldn't bring us anything like food and they wouldn't allow my mother to bring my stuffed rabbit no matter how much I begged them. None of the doors will lock and in our rooms, the bathrooms didn't even have doors. They were covered by a curtain and the nurses told me that was done so it was easier to check up on us. Most hospitals seem to do their rounds every 15 minutes, which is basically just checking up on all of the patients to see where they are and how they're doing. Privacy isn't going to be a thing, but you're not going to the hospital for privacy. You're going for help and supervision. The mirrors in the room weren't actual glass and the showers were hard to turn on. There weren't any knobs and you had to push a button that was rather heavy. You will not be allowed near anything sharp. This hospital wouldn't even allow us to touch a pen because it was deemed as being "too sharp". We weren't allowed to go out very often, only about twice a week for 30 minutes each day.
The second hospital I was in was a bit more lenient; I was honestly surprised at how lenient they were. I was sent to this hospital by my therapist because I confessed to her that I was going to try suicide again. They allowed me to keep my earrings despite my history of self-harm and they allowed our visitors to bring us food. In fact, the visiting hours were placed at lunch and dinner purposefully so our visitors could eat with us. It was really nice; it made it feel a lot less lonely and more home-y. The mirrors were actual glass and they had a patio we could go out on during the daytime. The patio is encased in glass though to keep us in. We were also allowed to put in a meal request to the cafeteria instead of having to eat whatever they gave us.
Both hospitals had "snacks". The first one had them out all day while the second one had three designated "snack times" where we were allowed to ask for something small to eat. Both hospitals won't allow anything sharp such as knives and wouldn't allow anything like strings. We could have jackets but the string had to come out. However, the second hospital allowed us to at least have pens. Both hospitals, the doors didn't lock and the staff checked up on us constantly. Both hospitals had therapies and groups throughout the day.
So there are a lot of similarities but there are some differences in how psychiatric facilities work. I encourage you to look into them and do what is best for you. I hope this post, despite its length, was able to help you at least a little.
I wish you the best. heart
200
200
100
