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What Are Mental Health Facilities Like?

Question by J.Taylor: What are mental health facilities like?
What do they look like and what do the patients do there? And how do they get there? Does their doctor recommend them? How long do they stay there?

Does thereapy really help? I heard it doesn’t and just makes patients worse. Do mental facilities really brainwash you? If so, how?

Best answer:

Answer by Chris, Appointmentlink.com
Mental health facilities are often near or even on the premises of a hospital and resemble hospitals because mental health is a medical issue. I feel that many people go to mental health facilities in the same manner they go to the dentist. Some people can recognize early when they are having a tooth problem and seek help right away at the dentist, some people ignore the problem until all their teeth fall out or an ambulance brings them to a hospital for emergency medical treatment. It truly seems like people can understand dental pain but when the pain is in their brain they let that excruciating pain continue, untreated, until their mental health becomes an emergency.

People can go to a mental health facility as a walk-in or with a physician referral. If people want to go with a referral they can call their primary care physician and ask for the referral and/or call their insurance company (even after hours) to request assistance in obtaining mental health care. Like any other hospital visit the length of stay depends upon treatment outcomes, physician input and the patient.

Does therapy help? It depends on the type of therapy and the condition of the patient,in my opinion. If you have heard it makes patients worse, try to consider the source of the information. When/if seeking mental health treatment make that one of your first three questions. The first two questions, if I were asking, would be 1) tell me about your credentials and 2) what is your experience treating people with xyz symptoms.

Brainwashing? I haven’t heard that term in a long, long time. Wouldn’t it be great if brain wash were a product we could buy like shampoo or soap made specifically for the brain? I know a few people I’d give it to in a gift basket. Try not to let mental health stereotypes get in the way of helping yourself or the people you love. When a doctor asks the question “where does it hurt?” Give the truthful answer. Let doctors try to help.

More mental health training to help young Canadians — Canada’s biggest school board plans to train all teaching staff how to help young people struggling with mental health issues.


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