Has anyone done intensive outpatient therapy, did it help?

Post Reply New Topic

Hello!
I have been going to psychologists and psychiatrists for years and there hasn't been too much progress aside from the initial diagnosis being a game-changer. I have Asperger's, ADHD, Depression, and anxiety, and have been gradually degenerating ever since having to drop out of college due to meltdowns (in online classes currently and no longer have them). My psychologist recently suggested (aside from joining this site) that I sign up for intensive outpatient (partial hospitalization) which would be radically different than anything I've done before.

From what I understand it is 4-6 hours a day, 5 days a week of basically just nonstop group therapy sessions, and I can't find any groups that are specifically for Asperger's locally, so it would be mood disorders group in general. I'm not sure if that would be of any benefit for me, but it would definitely be extremely difficult and cause me great pain. For this reason, I was wondering if anyone had any experience with this sort of thing and if it would be worth.

Thanks!

A few years ago I did day treatment at a hospital that was three days a week, three hours per day. I was also offered the five days per week one but I chose the three days one. I completed this program after two or three months and was "discharged" lol and then a year later did it again but dropped out about half way through when I became too depressed to attend related to some experience outside the program that I found overwhelming.

There would be three groups per day which in my case included group therapy, mental health skills management and occupational therapy. I think they try to tailor a program based on your diagnosis and for me seemed like cognitive behavioral therapy also some dialectic behavior therapy stuff also. Some people in these groups are coming from hospitalization.

I did find it helpful and did learn some things so no regrets.

I've been in a Radically Open Dialectic Behavior Therapy program since April this year and I believe that I'll be a free man if I can stay with it and participate but that remains to be seen as I'm pretty resistant and the work is quite challenging.

The first time my counsellor took her annual vacation, she suggested I take a 3-day program. It was awful. It took months to recover. I should have walked out at the first warning sign, but I'd paid a bundle.

I did partial hospitalization very briefly after I was released from a psychiatric unit. It was before I received my autism diagnosis. I didn’t find it in the least bit helpful. No one else in the program had problems like mine. Many were court ordered to be there.

The social aspect was just too much for me. I’ve found weekly therapy and case management with a social worker much more helpful. These days my service dog in training helps, too.

Yeah, I suppose if I find a program that is more specifically geared to people like me it would probably be a much better idea. Thanks for the responses!