Psych wards and Autism.

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I was hospitalized twice. They were the two worst experiences of my life. I was 14 the first time and the second time, I went in on my 16th birthday. I hated being away from my family and my pets. The first hospital wasn't as bad as the second one. The first one had some very nice workers and one who always reassured me when I would cry because I was afraid I would never get to leave that "They can't keep you forever here". The second one had really unhelpful staff and I was bullied horribly by the other patients who would hit me and shove me and call me names because I cried so much. Luckily, neither stay was more than three weeks.

Twice,.

The first time was in an adolecents ward which I hated, my freedom was extremely limited and there was only one other person there who only spoke French. I was there for a suicide attempt

The second time was for a mental breakdown and I was at RISK for being suicidal, it was in an adult ward and I had much more freedom and there were a LOT more people there, some were my age and I got along just fine. A majority of the people were schizophrenic and hallucinated but I didn't mind any, my grandmother was schizophrenic. Everyone was nice (except for one person who scared me because he called me cute and stared at me. But I even made a friend there; he had social anxiety and I could relate to him.

Overall I enjoyed the scheduals and lack of stress but sometimes I wanted to be 100% alone which was difficult. They also drugged me the first day I was there so I slept most of the time. I also had to get my vitals checked early in the morning and I am not a morning person.

Insane asylums were once the things of pure nightmares, that's why so many survival horror games and movies focus around them. I don't think anything has really changed. If you're not mentally disturbed when you go in, you will be before you get out.

I've had severe meltdowns since childhood... and adult life if I have had enough of a meltdown, I'm thrown into the psych ward... I've been verbally abused by other patients especially, but the nurses are bad too... like listening to your phone calls, and flirting with the patients that are verbally abusing other patients... seen that happen. They once blaimed my husband for my problems and tried to convince me to go into a group home for no good reason.

The doctors are pretty good though, I had two doctors there say I have AS, but that dx had never made it to official.

Now they know I have meltdowns.... but they insist it's borderline personality.

I have also had very bad experiences with most of the staff in psychiatric wards. My experience with psychiatric nurses has been terrible. I think they have their souls removed as part of their training. I have never seen a human treated as poorly as by some of those nurses.

Wow, it is odd to see this thread from 2013 resurface.

In my previous comment, I had been admitted to psychiatric hospital once, for two weeks. A month after that, my husband told me he didn't love me anymore, and we separated.

Since then I was been admitted another 6 or so times. I'm not actually sure because there is a lot I don't remember from that period. Shortest stay was 6 weeks, longest stay was 5 and half months. All admissions were for suicide attempts, ideation & behaviour, self-harming and not coping at all with life (not washing, dressing, eating, drinking or communicating).

This is an NHS hospital in the UK. In general, I found the staff very good - they dealt well with the difficulties I experience due to my ASD, looked at ways to alleviate some of those difficulties on the ward, including providing me with a weighted blanket, understanding my sensory sensitivities, providing regular time in the snoezelen room, and they helped me each time to get back to a level of functioning where I could go home. They were all voluntary admissions, although during the course of one of the admissions I was sectioned. During my worst periods, I had a private room and 24 hr observation, and as I gradually became more functional I was moved into the 6 bed dorms, and then my 24 hr observation would be phased out (or brought back if I became worse - recovery is rarely a straight line in the right direction).

I was restrained several times for my own safety. Usually by 3 people moving me back to my bedspace. A couple of times face down on the floor by 5 people (which usually resulted in an injection to calm me down) - once very publicly out on the street when I had escaped the ward with the intention of walking in front of a bus ... they caught me just as I stepped off the kerb and pulled me back from at least very severe injury, it was a fast road. I'm a person who really doesn't like being touched - but I was surprised to find that restraining me did usually calm me down. They never let me go until I was calm. I think it's like I was with my husband ... I hated light touch and hugs, but if he laid on top of me as a type of "blanket" so his full weight was on me then it would gradually make me feel better.

Overall, each time, they didn't discharge me until I felt able to function enough to go back to living on my own. I wasn't really alone though as I received (and still receive) a large care package - psychotherapy weekly, support from the local autistic society twice a week, psychiatrist regularly, social worker regularly and, of course, my GP as well.

My husband (we are not divorced yet, even though he has now moved in with his new girlfriend - I'm not going to pay for it because I still love him - though I don't want to get back together with him - and it's obviously not a priority to him either) also provided and continues to provide a lot of support - both practical and emotional. Tonight we are going out to eat together.

I was discharged from a four and half month admission in November last year. I returned to work in December and, so far, I have had no absences. It's not easy going, I encounter lots of difficulties - but have both a counsellor and mentor at work, which helps. But I am glad to be back in a role I enjoy, feeling useful and earning money. And in April, I bought my own home, a small flat in the centre of the city. I love it and feel settled there already. This wouldn't have been possible without the meds I have been on since my last admission (I have been a lot less suicidal since taking them, which has allowed me to think about things like work and buying a place) and the support I continue to receive. And of course, it also wouldn't have been possible without my admissions to psychiatric hospital ... which kept me alive.

I have no idea what will happen in future, and I remain anxious about that. But so far, so good.

Just realised I didn't address the topic of other patients. Some were OK to be around, some were not. I generally don't do well at forming friendships with people because I don't really understand how to. So I viewed most other patients as obstacles to walk around and didn't communicate with them. I did punch one of them in the stomach during my longest stay - which is very unlike me, I am not an aggressive person in any way. I was very unwell at the time, and so was he and something he said just set me off. I ended up having a very tearful conversation with the ward manager, and the guy was moved to another ward (because they thought the change would be too difficult for me, given my ASD). A couple of months later, he came back to the ward. We had both improved and apologies were made. We weren't friends but had a healthy respect for each other for the remainder of my admission.

The other day I had an appointment with my psychiatrist at the hospital, and I recognised one of the female patients I had shared a dorm with a couple of times, standing outside having a smoke. I nodded and carried on walking, but she came over to me for a chat. I told her I was back at work and had bought my own place. She seemed genuinly happy for me. She was also generally doing much better, and had just been admitted for a short stay adjustment of meds.

Well that was an essay and half. Better get back to work!

I've been interested in this topic for some time. Both of my parents spent some time involuntarily committed as young people and both were "treated" with electroshock therapy. They both went in for manic depression (bipolar disorder these days) and drug abuse. My dad died when I was a kid, but people said that he wasn't the same after that. He was "blank" and not as cheerful or nice. My mom doesn't remember the shock treatment or believe that it happened, but she has an unreasonable fear of any kind of psychological labels or treatment, and she has a lot of memory problems.

I used to have a friend, the same age as my parents (60s) who was also involuntarily committed, probably to the same institution. He was autistic and I think he was a child when he went in and came out as an adult. He was unable to talk about his experience and also unable to describe himself as autistic. He would become very distressed at the idea that he was on the spectrum. It looked to me like he had been tortured and ridiculed in there. And this is one of my academic mentors in sociology, too. He has a profound understanding of human behavior and an amazing ability to analyze people.

I hate to say that it's "worse" for autistic people and people with physical disabilities who have no mental/emotional problems, but it somehow seems more cruel.

I too am interested in this topic but for a different reason. I have never been to a psych ward but my sister has (for depression which I also have). She said she was very relaxed the last time she was there. She is not on the spectrum though.

I am wondering if anyone has been diagnosed with autism while in a psych ward? I know they have psychologists and they do diagnose. This is one of my only diagnostic options since my insurance won't cover psychological testing and I don't have $3000 to spend on a diagnosis.

I'm in the US.

Psych wards vary. I've never been admitted to one, but have had friends who were admitted to mental wards.

Some of them could have a similar atmosphere to that found in the institution which Rain Man stayed in. Not a bad place at all.

Others, especially state mental hospitals, can be nightmarish places. You are put in these places if you have no money or insurance.

Then there are the ones which are "in between." In many cases, these are mental wards affiliated with "regular" hospitals. If it's a "research" hospital, you might have a better shot at experiencing decent conditions.

All the above is within a US context.

I was in a pediatric one twice. Once when I was nine and another when I was fifteen or sixteen. Both times I really had no idea why I was there but the first time was the worst...probably because I was so young. I may have been nine physically, but mentally I was around five or six. Knowledgeable autism was in its infancy back then, but they knew I had autism. I got assigned to an IDIOT psychiatrist who I explained in depth to about the bullying at school, but she did absolutely did Jack s**t about it such as talk to the school authorities or suggest to my parents to find another school. She blamed ME for it. Or at least made me feel like I was the one at fault. Her solution was to dope me up on Prozac to help me "slow down and think before I acted". Again, I really had no idea why I was there or what I was supposed to do. I still have nightmares from being there.

The other time I was fifteen or sixteen. I can't really remember how old. I just remember and I've always been mentally younger than my physical age. I still had no idea why I was there. Both times my parents brought me there. When I was nine, I was simply told I was going to the doctor, went to the doctor and I guess she suggested my mother try committing me. But when I was fifteen and having meltdowns all the time because my mom was putting so much pressure on me in school. I was home-schooled, but the pressure my mother put on me made me have meltdowns and I was punished for having meltdowns.

Anyhow, my dad who had his own temper problems (his "solution" for the meltdowns was to hit me and throw me into walls) was like, "Just take her to the hospital. I'm done!" I had a clue about why I was there, but I wasn't sure. They would drill you several times a day about why you were there and I couldn't provide them an answer. I again had a psychiatrist who was a total idiot who had no idea how they system worked. He said I could stay in my room all day long if I wanted. But the very next morning I was forced to attend a group meeting. I told them the psychiatrist said I didn't have too but they told me I did. They had no clue how to deal with someone with autism period and I just told them what they wanted to hear and pretended everything was "hunky dory"... without my parents around to abuse me, maybe it actually was? I couldn't focus on the problems at home because I wasn't aware of them...I essentially lived in my head and only thought of my special interests. I simply wasn't aware it was "abuse" to hit your kids at the time, I thought it was normal. And I just told them what they wanted to hear so I could go home faster.

I think my parents might have signed me out or something because they were pretty pissed that I wasn't receiving any actual help. Aside from an anorexic rape victim and a severely mentally challenged teenager that ran away from home looking for an animated character, everyone else was there for drug detox. I've never actually been committed to an adult ward, but I've come close a few times. But ever since I moved out of my parents' place, I've never even had a close call... But anyhow, the only time they understood autism...even just a little was when I was a child. Since I could speak when I was sixteen and didn't run away from home looking for cartoon characters (apparently the case with a boy that was there when I was sixteen who was one of the few who had a legit mental problem), I didn't need help with the autism.

Hello:

I know this thread is quite old, but I needed to bring it up because I have been through enough that I needed a place to address my feelings. Let's review a few things:

1. I've been on-and-off diagnosed with autism (or a related condition) since I was about 14 or 15.
2. My feeling more comfortable being nonverbal was a recent thing starting in 2014 (but had been in the back of my mind even earlier than that).
3. My own private doctors place me consistently at the middle-end of the low-functioning group to the middle of the mid-functioning group (forgive me for not having the best words right now). My private doctors used a battery of both online (computer-based) and paper-based tests as well as well as observing me in a production environment and asking a junk load of questions and collecting data from me, colleagues, close friends, and family (with my permission obviously). These consistent findings are the exact opposite of the all over the spectrum type responses that government-paid or school-paid doctors have provided.

Now on to the real response now that we have those disclaimers out of the way:

in 2014 I was beaten up and restrained as well as denied water by hospital security staff and nurses because I was nonverbal. I still have scars on my left wrist, and both of my elbows along with left arm and wrist pain. I also suffer from PTSD because of this event. Why is this a thing? Because I was nonverbal and the security guy wanted my (at the time) iPod which ran special communication software but they WERE NOT giving me any other way to communicate. So, because I was non-compliant; this is an acceptable reason to "go code grey" on me (physically assault, restrain, drug, etc.) Why answer non-violent communicative behavior with violent and traumatizing behavior? Because they can. They to this day blame me for why this was a thing.

Since that incident, I have had a doctor who was understanding enough to write a doctors note that basically says "Carly requires her iPad to communicate...", but this is still not enough because of the following summaries of the most recent psych ward visits:

1. Forced to be verbal because "your doctor doesn't have privileges at this facility and the doctors note is invalid" during this the guy actually tried to physically take the iPad away from me (to me that's like if he physically took a wheelchair user's wheelchair and expected them to transport themselves within the facility without it). In addition he gave me two choices 1) comply or 2) he'd call in staff and they'd physically take it from me and who cares if it gets damaged?
2. Denied iPad "due to patient privacy concerns" even though I have a doctors note. I had to use pencil/paper and communication between staff at the ward was inconsistent so no one seemed to know what in the name of pretty nonverbal things is actually going on.
3. Allowed iPad with one-to-one supervision and then when what limited verbal ability I had did come through, the iPad was promptly taken away from me.

I am sure there are plenty more where that came from, but I can't think of them at this time.

Talk about violations of my personal and state given rights anyone? I swear. If I ran a psych ward the following would be our main selling points:
1. We would specialize in treating patients with autism and other special needs, but everyone would be allowed to be patients.
2. 24/7 access to hospital food (for those of us who love the stuff (psst! me... I love the hospital food seriously)
3. Each patient's strengths and challenges would be used to the advantage of the patient and the facility to help shape an individualized approach to treatment.
4. Minimize or eliminate the use of seclusion and/or restraints and only forcibly drug someone if they are getting injurious to themselves or others and all other attempts of redirection have failed.
5. Respect the sexual orientation, gender identity, and other individual metrics of the patient. This includes special sensory needs.
6. Train ALL staff on autism and recognition of autism, PTSD, and other behaviors that way they reduce the number of people falsely flagged as psychotic.
7. Get the best doctors and therapists both during the hospitalization and after it to support the individual and their friends/family/other support systems.
8. Have a patient-centered approach and not always use a drug first approach.
9. Take all patients and never turn anyone away because of their inability to pay.
10. Allow patients to retain their iPad or other communication system (whether electronic or not) all cords would need to be kept with staff to avoid self-injury or injury to others; but we would promptly charge the devices and ensure they got back into the hands of the patients as fast as possible.

And we'd call the place "Hologram Hills Psychiatric Center"

Do you think that my dreams are way out there? Do you think such a thing will be existing anytime soon?

WORST, EXPERIENCE, EVER. But that could be because I have the big 3.