Hospitalization

Anybody else get nightmares/ stressful dreams of being back in the psych hospital even years after having been there? 😫 anytime I’m stressed and overwhelmed in real life, I end up having these dreams. PTSD response perhaps? (I’m diagnosed with it). #PsychiatricHospital #Hospitalization #dreams #anybodyelse #PTSD

Hi, I found this page from an article discussing loneliness after hospitalisation. I was hospitalised for 6 weeks early this year and have been struggling with reintegration to society ever since. I've lost a lot of friends who couldn't understand or deal with my mental health and it's been hard to discuss my wellbeing with others. I was diagnosed with BPD two years ago but the doctors changed the diagnosis to Bipolar. I believe I was misdiagnosed (family, friends and several doctors believe so too) so it doesn't help that I'm probably on the wrong medication. If anyone has been hospitalised or is sympathetic to my situation, I would love to connect and discuss :) #Hospitalization #BipolarDisorder #BorderlinePersonalityDisorder #PsychiatricMedication #MentalHealth

My suicide attempt was exhausting and traumatizing. I spent a week in the hospital following it that left me feeling afraid and spent. However, I walked away with three lessons I may not have learned otherwise. I’d like to share them with you.

1) Ask for help- before it’s too late.

When friends asked, I told them I was okay, just going through a phase. This, obviously, could not have been further from the truth. It’s better to ask for help now than to wish you had later. Had I received help sooner, I may have avoided a traumatizing stay in the behavioral health ward of the hospital. Regardless, I learned from my experience the importance of reaching out when you need it. Call or text a suicide hotline, phone a friend, talk with a family member. Most importantly, don’t pretend you’re okay if you’re not.

2) People care.

Instead of being abandoned, I found myself surrounded by love and support. My family, friends and pastors leaned in instead of turning away. With their help, I was able to slowly recover and find mental wellness.

3) There is hope.

No matter how hopeless the moment feels-which can be pretty damn hopeless- I have found there really is hope. Things do, in my experience, get better. I would have missed out on my fiancé proposing, getting my dog, and getting a new job. I would have missed out on the smaller things too, like time with my family and the way the air feels on a chilly day. I’m incredibly grateful I have not missed these things and that I have gotten to be here for them. No matter how dire the circumstance, you can come out on the other side.

Suicide is a real threat to lives in our communities, and I hope you can take these lessons from my experience rather than having to learn them on your own. While my attempt was traumatizing, I walked away stronger and more resilient. I hope you are able to find peace. Recovery is out there, it’s real, and it’s possible.

#MentalHealth #Hospitalization #Suicide

Check out this post and others at: mentalhealthworks6.wordpress.com

I have a secret. One that began in the behavioral health unit of a hospital, and has haunted me ever since. I am diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder.

When I first received this diagnosis, I was horrified. I could not be a “manipulative borderline”, or an “unstable borderline”, phrases I had heard time and again in reference to people with BPD. Yet, here I was, receiving the diagnosis of Borderline Personality Disorder. I was crushed.

I left the hospital a wreck. Not only was I recovering from a suicide attempt, but I was now a dreaded “borderline”. How was I going to face my professors and classmates in my counseling graduate program? They had heard the term borderline and feared it. How was I going to return to my life, how could I expect people to respect me? I was marked. Worse, I was borderline.

Enter my therapist. He met me where I was and did not judge my BPD traits and anxious mannerisms. He saw what a diagnosis of BPD really is: a person in pain. With the support of good therapy and close family and friends, I have been able to know recovery.

However, my fears of judgement by the medical community and beyond were not completely misplaced. As a student studying to be a counselor, I have heard the way many professors and counselors-in-training refer to those with BPD, and it is not positive. BPD and those diagnosed with it still experience significant stigma within the mental health community. This is in spite of research which has found that it is treatable. The counseling community as a whole, particularly those in the profession who teach or mentor counselors-in-training, needs to reconsider its view on BPD and how it is presented in the classroom. Had BPD been presented to me as a severe but treatable illness, I may have been more open to my diagnosis and received help sooner. Instead, I was terrified of being labeled a monster.

It is the job of our clinicians and counseling faculty to learn and begin introducing the truths of BPD. It’s a diagnosis of pain that presents through turbulent emotions and behavior. Remission is possible and there is hope. Borderline Personality Disorder should not be a clinical death sentence. It should be the start of proper treatment and a chance at recovery.

I am so thankful to have had a therapist that could see my humanity, and for friends and family that saw and see me as far more than any diagnosis. The conversation around Borderline Personality Disorder can change, and it starts with counselor education and, by proxy, the education of the public. The narrative can change, just like those diagnosed with BPD can and do get better. Let’s change the conversation around BPD, starting in our counselor education programs and moving out into the world.#BorderlinePersonalityDisorder #BPD #MentalHealth #Hospitalization #Diagnosis

If someone else were to share with me the thoughts that have been going through my head lately, I would be seriously concerned for them. But, somehow, when these dark thoughts are in my own head, they seem quite normal. I've lived with similar thoughts for years, and they are just a bit worse than usual, right? I feel that I don't know how to appropriately assess my own thoughts because I'm just so used to them. I spoke with my therapist this morning and she was definitely concerned and started talking with me about the possibility of making a visit to the hospital. It's just hard to know - when are these thoughts just run of the mill depression heightened by life stress vs. go get help now thoughts? How do you figure this out?

#CheckInWithMe #MentalHealth #Depression #Anxiety #PTSD #abusesurvivor #darkthoughts #Selfassessment #Decisions #Hospitalization #SuicidalIdeation

Is anyone willing to share their bipolar hospitalization stories? Or point me in the direction of blogs to read?

It is my one year anniversary (to the week) of being hospitalized from a suicide attempt. I am struggling, but wanted to turn this energy into something positive. How can I celebrate how far I've come in a healthy way? What do you do, write, paint, draw, buy, eat, etc. to celebrate your mental health milestones?

#Depression #BipolarDisorder #Hospitalization #overcoming