"Mental health experience"

Quite possibly the most traumatic and heartless hospital experiences I’ve ever had. I came in due to a mental health related emergency, and was immediately sent to ED, where I sat for around 3 hours until being moved to another part of the ED.

I wasn’t informed or communicated with at all during this, which left me feeling extremely ignored, alone, and isolated. I feel it’s absolutely disgusting that someone who has come in due to a S*icide attempt was expected to sit in complete isolation for 8-10 hours with no support. I’ve never felt so alone, it was extremely traumatic hearing doctors walk in and out, it seemed checking on everyone except me. I needed help, and not only did I feel you ignore me both mentally and physically (I literally called for help many times and felt I was either talked down to like I’m stupid, or ignored entirely!) but I was told that I can’t stay longer than the one day because, I believe, I’m not actually s*icidal, it’s an 'acute case' meaning to me that they believed my experience wasn’t as bad as it was. I had doctors yell at me demanding that the way I felt was wrong, and overhearing a conversation by two staff members about myself saying when am I getting discharged? Today? Oh yeah, they mean I didn’t take that much. If I was really bad it would be different but I can just go home that day. I've left feeling disposed, uncared for, and completely robbed my right to seek help over something that was extremely stressful and hurtful to me. I found the lack of empathy was dehumanising. Based on my experience, I will avoid this hospital entirely unless I am comfortable being greeted with this behaviour.

I was having severe sensory overload (I am on the autism spectrum) and recall I had one nurse laugh at me, and say well it’s my fault I took the pills. they can’t control the noise. Which made me feel incredibly ashamed and embarrassed of my experience, and this comment certainly didn’t help my mental state. In my opinion, when you try to end your life, you should never have someone in a medical profession mansplain your experience, especially when their comments are seemingly derogatory and insinuating it’s your fault. Mental health is never your fault, I found this extremely triggering and overall quite awful. 

I would however like to thank one Nurse by name, I believe it was Harry who literally came in to check on me and sat down for 40 minutes to allow me to talk to him. He was the only Nurse who truly listened to me, and after feeling cut off, ignored, neglected, and pushed away by countless staff, he truly made me feel heard and I’m so grateful for at the very least his company. He made my very horrible experience that bit more bearable.