No, I didn't really fall off the face of the earth after my last post. Unfortunately, I fell back into to Lindner Center instead.
After some thought, I finally came back down here to Mason and checked back in to the mental health facility. I guess it was the right decision; the jury's still out. At this point, I think I have more complaints than kudos for the joint, but that must just be my frame of mind.
Complaints:
--They took my bras, and I have to fight to get one at a time to wear. I've been here three times and never has that been a problem. And not wearing a bra is not an option.
-- When I came in late Monday night, I had to answer a long batch of questions for the intake nurse. This isn't odd. What is odd is that I did have to answer all these questions again for the admitting nurse. When I asked why I had to answer the same questions all over again, she said it was because she "was too lazy to read the answers off the chart to input them," and it was just "easier" to ask me again. This is after 2-plus hours in admissions and at about 11:30 at night. I was not pleased.
-- Nobody seems to be able to coordinate my meds. It seems like I take something different every day, and nobody can explain why or if that's the new norm. Plus, I brought in some of my own meds from home, prescribed by a different doc, and they seemed to have disappeared, even after repeated inquiries.
--I've heard Karen Carpenter's "There's No Place Like Home for the Holidays" at least three times. Today. Wanna make a depressed person more depressed at Christmas? Play this song.
Kudos:
--I spoke at length to the doctor in charge of the Electroconvulsive Therapy program, and am very excited about it. I've been doing research with the resources I have and have uncovered a lot of interesting things about the treatment.
--The contraband security is relatively lax, as evidenced by the fact I am updating this blog from an "unapproved electronic device." I feel so Andy Dufresne.
--The Oreo pie is excellent, there is no lack of group meetings you can attend, and if you want to be left alone, they pretty much leave you be.
All in all, I think I am accomplishing the tasks that brought me back down here. I don't know when I'll get to go home, but at least I now have my contraband iPod.
And don't forget to "Like" Bipolar Knitter on Facebook for a chance to win Blake Mycoskie's book! Assuming I still have my iPod or I'm home by then, I plan to announce the winner Monday.
My apologies for any odd formatting things going on here. I'm still trying to work out this Blogger app.
That's cool that they leave you alone if you need it. At my spa they make you go to every group and treat you like a child. It's horrible.
ReplyDeleteSounds better than the place I stayed at. The deodorant was awful and they didn't let you eat with forks. Try eating spaghetti with no forks. Interesting. Don't know if they took away your forks.
ReplyDeleteAs for the meds, hope they can start getting it coordinated. My stepdad is having the same problem with his doctors (he has congestive heart failure). As for electroconvulsive therapy, I did a speech on that in college. The main drawback seems to be memory loss. Kitty Dukakis talks about her experience with electroconvulsive therapy in her book Shock: The Healing Power of Electroconvulsive Therapy. They also did a ditty on her on NPR.
Good luck with everything. Hope your situation starts to improve.
Thanks for the info, Mel - I had no idea about Kitty Dukakis. I'll have to look up the book.
ReplyDeleteAnd why in the world would they serve spaghetti without forks? That's just cruel!
Well, this is not encouraging in regard to the competence of mental health facilities. But I guess that has been the ongoing message of your blog posts.I hope the weekend goes quickly and that you get home soon.
ReplyDelete