The medical facility I recently visited in Southern Oregon, USA, was nothing but entirely professional, warm, and helpful on all counts. It was nothing like One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, or Girl Interrupted, certainly nothing like David & Lisa or Insanitarium. There was no Nurse Ratchet at all where I was cared for.
People were attentive to the best of their ability, and the doctors attended to each patient every day. There were artistries, which were pleasant, and then there were lethargies of television — which was boring, but it could have been worse. The best part was that they got me on the right meds so I could try to get on with my life – and on with my life I am. When you stay on the meds, you may not like some of the side effects, but they are better than the dangerous aspects of mania or the despondency with which depression grasps you.
Within the walls of a good mental facility, you are nurtured and attended to with correct maintenance medicine in combination with psychotherapy. You are not left to your own devices, so you have no resources with which to wreak havoc or cause yourself or others trouble if you’re in a highly manic state or in a state of severe depression. Furthermore, the consideration and responsiveness given helps you to find practical ways to address your mental and emotional state. The staff is there to help, and in a good facility you feel safer than you would on the outside, where trouble can always befriend you or isolation can control your decisions. If you are ever in need of hospitalization, have a friend research the facility.