What is wrong with the mental health service in the UK?

Question

I particularly want people who have used the service to reply.
Does the medication help or hinder?
Would you like help other than medication?
Do the health care workers trust you enough to encourage your personal amitions?

Answer 1

Medication - this is entirely dependent on the person using it. I've been on numerous meds - anti depressants, anti-psychotics, benzos, mood stabilisers; some have worked, others have done nothing. Some have given me horrendous side effects and some made my depression and suicidal tendencies worse. I've been lucky in finally finding the right one but not everyone does. It's often a case of trial and error and for some people it's not the effort and the wait. I can't blame them but I also don't think we can blame the professionals for that. How can they accurately predict how anyone will react to a mood altering substance?

I don't believe that medication is the answer to everything except in a very small % of cases. For the majority of people I think it needs to be given in conjunction with some kid of talking therapy which doesn't seem to happen very often these days. On top of talking therapies there are things like relaxation classes, exercise, being taught how lifestyle will affect your mental health. It's not just joe public and the professionals that need educating it's the patients themselves. They need to be given support and advice on how to help themselves.

Mental health workers are like any other workers - they vary greatly in their abilities and competencies. If you're lucky enough to find a good one who believes in you and pushes you to move forward then that's great but in my experience they don't come along too often.

As a service user the one thing I've found to be the biggest stumbling block is the attitude of some professionals. Ive seen them impose punsihments and restrictions on patients when they just don't understand something or if it scares them. A lot of them won't take you seriously and another load of them deem you as crazy and therefore incapable of making your own decisions. It's a fine line but if the mental health services were to listen to their patients then maybe we'd get somewhere.

Answer 2

I really feel for you Mortitia you are in an extremely difficult situation. Its a pity the government dont put a load of money into our health service rather than funding wars that no one want to happen.Over 5 billion was spent on the war in Iraq and ill bet a large number of those people who need the medical attention are soldiers and their families.My son has been under the mental health service fo 16 months or more now and i feel they are not trained proffessionaly enough to be able to deal with these patients.He is on medication and it hasnt helped and as we know medication is only a temporary measure it doesnt actually solve the problem.I am really dissapointed in our country it doesnt look after some of our people its a real shame.Some well thought out cognitive psychological treatments need to be developed so they can work through the problems they have in their mind.I had a mental health nurse come in every day for a month to help my son and it was a waste of time.I thought you dont know what to do or say.I think some serious training for nurses would make a big difference.

Answer 3

Well, I work with Mental Health practicioners and I have to say that it is very bad. They try their best, but some get too cold on the people they have to help (probably because they want to save themselves) or they are all overworked.
There is simply no budget and waiting lists are a joke. Mental Health in the community seems to be quite bad, some of my colleagues have been taken hostage by patients, there is always someone with a black eye and other bad things are happening behind closed doors. Of course this is not in the newspapers. 2 years ago there was a hostage taking in a big hospital, in one of the secure wards....noone ever found out about it.
There is no budget and mental health workers don't get the support they need.
Medication is also one of those things: Often patients in the community don't take them and they can't be monitored that well. At work we have patients comming in, who are in my opinion too dangerous to be in the community (there have been bad incidents), but of course there are not enough resources. I don't want to draw a negative picture of our patients by writing those things, what I mean by that is, that those people suffer themselves under their conditions and their families aswell. So the system is failing everyone.
Medication is often experimentation. I am taking antidepressants and I wish I could get therapy myself, but then my colleagues would find out about it, so I am in a catch 22 situation.

Answer 4

From my experience the mental health service needs to take people more seriously and act quicker. For example, I'm suffering from panic disorder, I can't drive, enjoy my kids, work because I'm on the damn pills but they have finally offered me counselling which is what i need. After all, fight the cause not the effect. The only problem, the two month wait to even get a first 'introductory' appointment. It's terrible, especially for people worse off than me, those who are suicidal for example.

The medication helps but it just leaves you in a state of limbo and I feel like the doctors give out these pills to 'shut people up' almost, so that they go away and stop making appointments.

Answer 5

Yes medication does help but there is not enough opportunity for counselling and other 'talking therapies'. You are lucky if you have a good GP and enough family support/money to help yourself. I wanted to get counselling for depression and my area has over a year's waiting list on the NHS so I am getting this privately. This means that poorer people have less help in my area. I guess that it is lack of money that makes this a problem for the NHS and maybe because
mental health is not a popular vote winner for the government.

Answer 6

There are not enough alternative options other than medication. My GP's surgery no longer refer patients to counselling services-its just not something they offer. I'd rather talk to someone that be on antidepressants for the rest of my life but because I choose not to take the pills thats the end of any kind of support or help I'm offered. Unless I become a danger to myself or others I'm just left to get on with it.
My old GP was fantastic, someone you could really talk to and she was very understanding and non judgemental and a great encouragement to me, but she left due to health issues herself. Doctors like that aren't common and she is missed by all of her patients.

Answer 7

Having known multiple social workers and mental health officers i think the problem is that the professionals themselves are in dire need of help.

Answer 8

Lack of funds from the goverment.

There has just been a huge budget cut for the mental health services.

That's what's wrong with the the service.

Also why do you want to know??

Answer 9

it is a joke my mum has taken 6 overdoses since January and they say that she is in a crisis so they cannot commit her surley that would be the best time to commit her as she will only get worse FRIGGIN JOKE

Answer 10

the NHS are slow
im waiting to go to 'diagnostic dilemma' clinic. and they have,nt contacted me with the appointment. it,s been MONTHS now. =(