has anone had experience of mental health services? was it helpful or not? stories please?

Answer 1

well my daughter is currently seeing a psychiatrist and it seems to be helping with her conditions.She has ADHD,Bipolar disorder,Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and she has Personality Disorder. She receives bi weekly apts with her doctor and it seems to help her.

Answer 2

i spent 3 and 1/2 months in a psychiatric clinic in France. I went of my own accord, although it was recommended for me. I was really scared the first day - of what would happen to me, what I would become and the other patients especially. It was a lovely clinic however and even though I had my days, I still write occasionally to the staff there and have contact with the friends I made there. The people working there were very nice - ready to listen at any time. Everybody was dressed everyday and had meals in the dining room or bedroom, depending on how you felt. There were games to play, tv to watch, a sports room. An important part of treatment for almost everyone was art therapy and ergotherapy. These were both very beneficial and gave me alot of confidence as I learnt to do new things for the first time. It was also possible to go out walking in the grounds and nearby area. With the drs permission, we could take a bus to town and go shopping or go to the cinema etc.What was great was the mutual support given and received from the other patients. It was easy just to be oneself without having to put on a front. You were accepted for the person you were at that moment in time. Hope this helps. All autonomy was left with all the patients. All care staff and doctors had great respect for our decisions and our liberty.

Answer 3

I am now 55 and have been having treatment for mental health problems since I was in my late twenties. I am coping well with them, but friends have been more helpful than psychiatrists (for example). The last time I was in a psychiatric unit (last year) the psychiatrist put me on a drugs trial for a new antidepressant, and it made life 100 times worse. I now take only the minimum of medication (Seroxat once a day). Someone told me once never to trust doctors but then what they do to me is not as bad as what I do to myself. I have learned now to take much more responsibility for my own self. Prayer and meditation are great sources of comfort and stability. One day I shall be right off drugs. I now work full time as a carer for people with mental health problems and I understand them. They sure have some stories to tell.

Answer 4

Yes if you have problems with your mental health you should see a Psychiatrist or a Psychologist and they can help you with the problems that you may be having. Sometimes you may be put on medication to relieve the symptoms. If you believe that you are Bipolar (severe mood swings from high to low) then maybe you should alert the doctor. Remember the doctors can only help you if you tell them everything that is going on. Make sure that you are honest and don't be afraid to tell the truth about all of the problems that you are having. They are there to help you. Good Luck

Answer 5

Where I live, there are discrepancies between psychiatric units/wards even in the same health care trust. When I've been in a ward in a hospital about an hour away from where I live, the staff don't interact with the patients and if you try to talk to them they're forever looking at their watches as if they have something better to do. Needless to say, I HATED being in that ward. I've absconded from the ward and had the police called in to bring me back and ended up being sectioned. I've even took an overdose whilst in their "care" !!!!!! Their attitude was that I had to take responsibility for myself when I was in there because I was in NO FIT STATE to take responsibility for myself. MY gp was doing the right thing in trying to get me specialist help, but, he wasn't getting the back-up he was sending me for !!

I've recently been in a hospital unit which is about 10 mins from where I live, the staff are ALWAYS around the patients, playing board games, doing quizzes, doing craft therapy with them. If you want to speak to a nurse, they give you the time you need. The consultants give you time to ask questions in their ward rounds. It was a much better environment which helped speed "recovery" so that patients were well enough to be discharged alot quicker than they were in the other ward. I now have a CMHT nurse who I speak to every couple of weeks and an occupational therapist who are both invaluable. Would I say that mental health services are helpful around where I live - YES & NO !! It's just a lottery as to where there is room when you're in a CRISIS.

Answer 6

Both, at different times, and under different consultants.

I was misdiagnosed and put on inappropriate medications when I was younger, but a few years ago changed consultants and was with an excellent one. He re-assessed and re-diagnosed me, changed me onto another antidepressant which works much better for me, and got me onto NHS therapy, which was incredibly helpful.

More important than all of that was having a good GP. Without him, I wouldn't have had anyone to support my wish to change consultants. And he was the one keeping an eye on me, week in week out, through major depressive episodes - the Community Mental Health Team were too overstretched to be any help at all and told me I wasn't a serious enough case.

Answer 7

I probably have some mental disorders, i.e. depression, social anxiety...

I don't take any meds, cause no one knows what the long term side effects are. I feel they deteriorated my mother permanently. She will never be able to go off them, and they make her more dependant everyday. But she swears by them.

She also has no sense of financial responsibility.
She cannot feel deep emotions without freaking out (not the case 10 years ago).
I can't communicate with her on a mother/son level.
Her memory is HORRIBLE! I remember things better and I smoke pot all the time.

Still, she would probably have killed herself long ago without them.

Still, I would rather have a dead mother than the hollow shell of an emotional human being all those drugs leave behind.

I AM ALL FOR THERAPY!

But you may want to try everything else before pills, cause once you start, odds are you'll be worse without them and stuck on them for life.

Good luck!

Answer 8

in our society(the place where i live),it is considered a big shame to seek mental health's services. i know this is an uncivilised way of thinking,coz i guess over 75% of people all over the world are suffering from mental health problems. i had an experience of those mental health services,and i started to feel much better,i started to understand myself,my ups and downs,started to learn anger management,of course i went thru chemical medication first which adjusts the chemistry of the brain,am at the reduction of the medicine stage now.i find great comfort and peace just finding someone listening to me with great care and respect.

Answer 9

If you mean going to counseling, yes, I have and it was a positive, life-changing experience. It helped me to see certain things, to change what was changeable by my own power and to let go of what I couldn't.

I was able to see how my childhood got me to a certain point in my adulthood and how my parents could have done much better.

It also helped me to forgive and not be bitter so I could move on. I did a lot of hard work. I didn't stop when it got tough, like most people, I kept going. Was it worth it? Hell yes!

I went to a Christian Counselor, she was a wonderful lady who I will never forget. But the true healing is when we go to God and ask Him to enter into our pain.

Answer 10

First I would like to say that it really depends on the issue at hand. For drugs and alcohol I sought help and thought I was crazy. I didn't want to admit that maybe getting sober would help solve my problems. Finally, going to AA and turning my life over to my higher power (Jesus) is the only thing that helped. I now have freedom and and very happy. I hope this helps. God Bless you.

Answer 11

At one time in my life, my EX-Husband convinced me I was crazy.
I went to my local mental health services and through several counseling sessions, I learned what I already knew, I was not crazy.
Hope this helps.