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Just_Listen
Contributor

BPD Vs The Mental Health System

Hi All, 

 

In the last 6 months I have received some horrific treatment from 3 WA hospitals. 

Talking with other consumers I am starting to see a very serious problem with our system.

 

Throughout the entire health system Australia wide, the message/ policy is... If you are suicidal, not safe, present to an ED. 

BUT NOT IF YOU HAVE BPD (EUPD) I have become acutely aware that getting a hospital admission is near impossible. In some cases I have heard that consumers couldn't even get a MH Assessment. 

Consumers with BPD are committing suicide, because our Mental Health system is turning them away. 

I would love your help on this! If you have had a similar experience could you please answer the following questions. I'd really like to know how big this problem is. 

What state are you from?

 

Briefly why did you present to ED?

Suicide Ideation?

 

Did you go on your own, a service recommend you go or were you referred? 

 

Did you get an admission?

 

Did you receive any crisis intervention?

 

And briefly, what happened? 

22 REPLIES 22

Re: BPD Vs The Mental Health System

About 10 years ago I had a nearly fatal suicide attempt, was still very ill from the after effects. Was admitted to the MH ward, then diagnosed with BPD and the next day was told to go home overnight and would be discharged the next day. I was psychotically and suicidally depressed, BPD or not I was in no fit state to be at home alone all night and not to be discharged either.
I have PTSD from this hospitalisation. I will never NEVER forgive that doctor for treating me the way he did.

Re: BPD Vs The Mental Health System

Hi @Just_Listen 

@I've been diagnosed with BPD 10 years ago. 
to answer your questions. 
1. from Victoria 

2. I've gone in on my own. Sometimes with an ambulance and twice through my GP who called an ambulance 

3. I was admitted twice in a very small unit with only 6 beds for one night. Max stsy is 72 hours. It's for crisis. 

I would go in with suicude ideation all the time. 
the mental health clinician would chst with me to make sure I was ok. Then they would refer me to the CAT team and my private psych. 

Always treated with respect and empathy. 
this was in a major public hospital. 

ive just come out of a private psych hospital after three weeks. Great treatment and service. 

 

Re: BPD Vs The Mental Health System

Thanks TigerT, sorry to hear. What state are you from?

Re: BPD Vs The Mental Health System

NSW

Re: BPD Vs The Mental Health System

Sorry just remembered, the above story was in the ACT

Re: BPD Vs The Mental Health System

I have also had many negative experiences with the mental health system not understanding or helping me. It has got to the point that there are many people and services that I do not trust to tell them how I am really feeling - as I fear they are either going to over-react and treat it like a crisis when it is just a normal everyday feeling, or under-react and tell me just to go away when I really need help. I feel I need to choose what I tell people and can't say the truth.

 

I have almost constant suicidal thoughts. And many plans - some quite well thought out and ready to enact. I often feel like life is not worth living. But often I can keep going despite all of this. But not always.

 

I had many times that I have been turned away from hospital as they say it won't help me & that I just need to learn to cope. The worst time was just after a suicide attempt. I was unconscious in ICU for 2 days, then in a medical ward receiving treatment. I was specialed (1 on 1 nursing) for a few days, but then was told I was medically cleared for discharge. I was very worried about going home and was still extreemely suicidal. When I told the nurses how I was feeling they got a doctor to see me immediately. The doctor told the nurses that if I kept threatening suicide I should be immediately discharged, even though it was in the middle of the night, and I was far from home. I kept asking how that could possibly help me & if they wanted me to have another attempt. Luckily the nurses on my ward stood up for me and went over the doctor's head to get me kept on the ward for a few more days. But still no psychiatric help. Nurses did their best to keep me calm & a social worker tried to arrange help for me when I went home.

 

A few weeks later I was convinced to try an inpatient stay at a private mental health clinic. I thought it would help. But it seemed to be a waste of time and money. The nurses didn't want to talk with me. When I eventually opened up to them about my suicidal thoughts they decided I was too high risk and called an ambulance to take me to the mental health unit at the public hospital. I was very scared and agitated and was trying to escape - both out of the hospital & into the nurses offices. One of the nurses got very angry at me telling me "you keep doing this, that is why the police brought you in". The police had accompanied me in the ambulance just in case I had tried to escape. Then later the nurse told me " You know your diagnosis of BPD. You know what you're doing. Get a grip." This made me even more angry & I asked another nurse if I could make a complaint. I was given a feedback form but was refused anything to write with. I was frustrated and threw the pile of feedback forms all over the floor. The same annoying nurse who i was trying to complain about came back and told me that as I couldn't control myself she had called security to take me to the high care unit. Even when security came she kept following me and harassing me, telling security they should remove all my possessions and just drag me there. Eventually the security told her to move away and were able to calm me enough to convince me to go with them. I remained in the secure unit for 2 days as I was so upset and kept trying to escape. It was very traumatic and unfair. They kept threatening me that I would have to stay in the secure unit for longer if I complained, tried to escape or didn't comply with everything they told me to do. I never want to go back to a mental health unit again. So am stuck - want help, but am scared if I ask for it I might get that again.

 

Thank you for sharing your story & reading mine. The systems definitely don't seem able to give appropriate help to people with BPD. We are human regardless of the diagnosis we are labelled with. We are not trying to be annoying or hurt anyone. We are just trying to be understood and get the help we need.

 

Good luck.

 

 

Re: BPD Vs The Mental Health System

Your in Wa?
Omg reading your post was like pulling out a bad horrible memory from my head.
RESPECT
It's crap.
I'm so scared of being alone but I'm also really scared that I'll get turned away Again from The Mental Health System

Re: BPD Vs The Mental Health System

No am not in WA

 

I thought getting into the system would get me help. But I think it is a worse nightmare to be in the system and still ignored and mistreated. Even though I was still suicidal, I had to force myself to pretend to be ok, just to get out of there as it was unbearable. They didn't want to help me, just control and oppress me.

 

I don't know how exactly how it works in WA, but assume it is pretty similar to here. Once you are made an involuntary patient under the mental health act, then you have almost no say over what happens to you - you loose almost all your rights, and the psychiatrists can control what happens to you. They can lock you up. Deny you visits, phone calls, your own clothes. Control what and when you eat and drink. Refuse you access to anything you might like to do. Almost anything they can justify as being a potential risk so can prevent you from having anything. They can give you drugs & if you refuse force you to take them. They don't believe anything you say. Their treatment can make you so angry that you want to react, but if you do then they punish you for it.

 

I don't think that getting help through a hospital is a good idea. I am hoping to get a new GP & psychologist to help me, but that is proving difficult as I am in a remote area. My local GP has refused to treat me, so I am travelling 3hrs to see a new one. I am trying to get a psychologist who can phone me.

Re: BPD Vs The Mental Health System

Thanks for your replies!


What absolutely astounds me is how the MH System has gotten it so wrong for ppl with BPD, there is such a massive underlying problem. They know this. But instead of the system  being overhauled, which needs to come from parliament. They are sweeping the issue under the rug and putting the blame on the consumers. "Hospital admission won't help you, the statistics show that ppl with BPD have a much higher risk of self harm and suicide if admitted, so you need to seek support elsewhere." 


Why is it a higher risk? What is happening that increases this risk? What are they doing to lower the risk? 

We need crisis intervention! Support us through it, support us to get to a place where we feel safe enough to seek or continue with outside support. And NO we can't be forced into this in 24-72 hrs.

YES the statistics are true, but how can that be used as a reason for not helping us? When the reason it's true is because they aren't equipped or educated on supporting us. (Which isn't exactly hard... listen, empathise, validate. Don't need a degree for that.)

FIX the system, stop turning us away, change the statistics! 

Psych wards are set up all wrong. There is only so much psychiatrists can do, with a strong focus on medication. BPD in its own, doesn't respond to medication. So the attitude is, we can't do anything. 

I was telling my dr and nurse I was suicidal, if I left I wasn't safe. They record this as "Goal seeking suicide threats." Basically saying, she's using it to get her own way." My own way? What is my goal? What do they think I want?

 

If they bother to ask and you say to keep me safe, your not believed. One dr told me "We are not a babysitting service." I said well it would be pointless if you were because this is an adult ward, no children here!"

 

 

I want to stay in hospital because I'm not safe if I leave. Maybe they should actually try asking what it is we want/need. Why else would I WANT to stay in a place that causes me nothing but added stress? A very interesting way of justifying a discharge, it makes no sense! 


Sorry, I'll get off the soap box Now! 

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