Hi, I am a [relatively] sane person living in a hospital psych ward, AMA.

What's the most violent episode you've seen there?

I watched a girl rip a pair of 'contraband' scissors from another patient's robe pocket and proceed to slash her mom in the face with them before taking off down the hall yelling and screaming and slashing at anyone in her way (she didn't draw blood from anyone but her mom)

Hi! How come you live there?

There are only 6 inpatient beds to treat eating disorders in my city, they are all full but I was deemed not medically stable enough to go home so now I have to wait here in the only bed they had. The healthcare system is highly flawed (but sometimes there's not much that can be done about it..I guess..)

The atmosphere sounds absolutely horrible. How long do you expect you'll have to stay?

months and months..I have a lot of weight to gain and it doesn't look like a bed will be open for a while.

What's it like dealing with an eating disorder?

Excruciating, especially here where the psych patients are liable to say terrible things about you right to your face.

A second question, if you don't mind. How would you go about encouraging someone with an eating disorder to get treatment?

That's a REALLY hard one because I've only just very recently reached out for help myself. Ultimately the decision has to come down to the individual - do they want to live as a real person with real interests and real happiness or can they honestly be content living a half life where all that matters is food? I don't know who I am without this illness but I'm going to try to find out.

I'm a therapist and just have a general question--the psych hospitals in my state don't let patients bring in laptops/cell phones so they can focus on recovery and not be influenced by things such as (bad influence) friends contacting them and whatnot...do they just allow technology for you guys or is it a privilege you're granted?

It's different rules depending on what you're in for. Once I get an eating disorder specific bed my computer use will be more tightly restricted especially during 'program hours' but because I'm just a body in a bed at the moment I have pretty much got free range.

Hey, whats the worst/strangest encounter (with patients or staff) you've had while you've been there?

Also, i hope you have a quick recovery and that this leads to a happier, healthier life for you. Good luck :)

Well, I find the staff really distant and cold which is bizzare because the last time I was hospitalized I was a minor and staff would go above and beyond to try to explain everything and make sure I knew what was going on. Here they just kinda put you in a room and maybe bring you food (they keep forgetting!) The whole thing is just...surreal...

This isn't ment as a joke, but does the Movie One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest relate to you at all? Because that's kind of the same idea.

Edit: I just noticed you mentioned this is in the body of text i should have read.

absolutely. Literally, they could have shot all the lounge shots in the lounge here (half-done puzzles, dominoes all over the floor, flickering tv, dirty couches, etc.)

What's your family like? Do your parents get to visit you often? Why aren't you living with them and sorting yourself out (If it's that bad)? (Don't mean to be insensitive).

my parents are my saving grace - my mom took me to the hospital the second I collapsed into her arms and asked and my dad dropped everything to be there too. Furthermore, they've stuck with me while I was TERRIBLE to them (eating disorders make you a self-centered jerk)

*edit: didn't read your whole question: I've been living with my parents since leaving university two years ago (I left uni claiming I would get help but instead I just got way way worse and they put up with it) I think I just need more help, of the proffesional variety, than they can give and that I can give myself.

How has it affected you? Has anything changed because of the

'screaming, crying, hysterical bouts of laughter, threats, etc'?

Can't say it's affected me much so far beyond the fact that I just don't want any of them talking to me or looking at me. Again, it's only been a little while (a few days), so only time will tell.

greetings from germany :D

is the staff working there nice to you?

No! They pretty much just ignore me because they don't know what to do with me. I'm technically not a patient of any of the psych doctors.

I posted in another comment but it's likely to get buried.

I have a lot of issues of my own, maybe not the same as what you're diagnosed with, but I feel a lot of empathy towards you. I know the environment, and I know the kind of people who live there.

I hope you're ok in there. Can you get outside, off the premises when you want? or are you treated like one of the inpatients?

I will be able to leave the unit for walks with friends/family once all my vitals are a bit more stable - for now I'm stuck here.

do many of the patients or the staff try to get you to fuck them?

Nope, haven't had any remotely sexual experiences here.

strange, when i was seeing a psychiatrist a few years ago, I brought up to her the concept of whether a psych ward would be helpful to my mental state of mind. One thing she mentioned is that a big culture in those places is trading sex for medication that makes the experience easier to manage (and ultimately, makes the situation worse for the individual)

maybe that's an australian thing though

I haven't been here TOO long and I'm kind of avoiding the other patients for the most part so I might not be the best judge. Some of the patients seem to know eachother pretty well so there's a good chance some of them are up to shenanigans like that.