Comment

Comment on For some reason suicide is illegal. If someone is going or trying to commit suicide and get talked down are they still in trouble or get locked up or sent to a medical facility?

aMockTie@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

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 to answer to the best of my ability.

source

Sort:hotnew top

dontkickducks@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
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.

source
- aMockTie@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  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.
  
  source
Aeao@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
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.

source
- aMockTie@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  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).
  
  source
  - Aeao@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    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
    
    source
    aMockTie@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    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.
    
    source
  - Aeao@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    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…
    
    source
    aMockTie@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    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.
    
    source