"Support Line Felt Unsupportive"

I called this crisis triage line in the hopes of receiving some support and guidance on my mental health. I recall telling the triage worker that I was feeling upset about how a recent experience with my psychiatrist had left me unfairly feeling blamed and hopeless.

Instead of validating my concerns and guiding me towards further support, it seemed as though the clinician was correcting me about my perceptions of my own distressing situation, leaving me feeling invalidated and increasingly upset.

The clinician I believe then kept asking me if I had an emergency and I told them that the East Metropolitan Health Service Website states it is not an emergency line and can offer brief crisis support and referrals to other services, but the worker seemed intent on arguing again that I was wrong.

This escalated my distress to the point in which I abruptly in an agitated tone told this person not to worry and that I’ll just go. I think I then heard them loudly say “oh gawd” in a laughing belittling tone almost as though the intention was to turn my distressed call in to an office joke. This felt humiliating, dehumanising and as though in the view of this service I am a worthless person to be made fun of.

I think this treatment towards someone in a vulnerable state is completely unacceptable and represents a profound lack of empathy and compassion towards the suffering of another human being. MHERL has a duty of care towards the individuals calling to be a safe and supportive environment, rather than escalate a person’s distress.

I feel these kinds of dangerous invalidating experiences are increasingly having a cumulative highly damaging effect on my already poor mental health, pushing me much closer towards complete disengagement from the mental health system.