Mental Health
Mental Health, what a huge subject. I often throw into conversations, my previous career as a Psychiatric Nurse/Counsellor. I cant help it. It was my life for over 40 years. It has shaped who I am and how I think. But when Im asked about it, its just too huge. As many of you know Im too wordy at the best of times. So Ive decided to explore it here in a blog as a one off.
I am very aware that many people will have very difficult personal experience around this subject. There will be others better qualified than I. I do apologise if my opinions are offensive in any way. But this was my experience in the Uk.
I believe I had the best and some of worst of experiences from 1974 to 2016. I trained in an old Asylum. It was a good one. A stunning old Elizabethan style Hospital set in its own beautiful grounds. It opened in 1766, and is now a grade II listed building. It spread into secondary buildings including separate houses that rich people would move into with their own staff within the Asylum grounds.
By the 70s the hospital had a good therapeutic ethos. Our patients were ladies and gentlemen and should be treated accordingly. A dated but respectful attitude which I liked. I wore my white uniform with my starched white cap with pride. But mental health care had a harsh history at this point. People were locked up, against their will, for many debatable issues, including moral insanity. One 80 year old lady had been there from the age of 16 Having had a baby out of wedlock. Its unlikely she was mentally ill back then but she certainly was well institutionalised with many issues by the time I met her. There had been very cruel practices, largely due to ignorance and a lack of medications and therapies for many serious problems. Padded cells and straight jackets were a part of history but our patients had lived it. People had had wombs removed for Hysteria. Their kidneys highered for schizophrenia. We had patients who had endured lobotomies. These tortured souls were our long stay patients they now needed our care. A place of refuge and shelter. They needed and were owed Asylum. They lived in what was essentially a protective village. They had workshops, a garden group growing veg and maintaining the grounds. We even had an industrial unit, a hat factory. If you saw a carnival hat on Granda TV in the 80s it was made by our guys.
Along side we had acute, short stay wards. People were admitted both voluntarily and much less often, against their will. Sectioned under the Mental Health Act. They were assessed over a realistic period of time. Treatments were planned and tried out. Families were given respite and were part of the healing process. People went home on leave whilst they learned how to cope once more. Done well, it was Mental Health Care at its best in a beautiful therapeutic setting. Yes treatments, medications and practices have moved on. And not all stories were happy ones.
But the surge to close these institutions in the 90s really ignored their value and duty of care. Long institutionalised patients were sent out into a community, they had never been part of, were not wanted or understood and often left to cope alone. The modern mental health units; Were soulless, clinical wards, tagged onto General Hospitals. Often with exercise yards like prisons. Initially they tried to offer good assessment, treatment and safety. But were very quickly overwhelmed. By the time I retired there were only beds for the most disturbed people. And they were in and out of hospital before significant progress could be made. There were small centres of excellence if you were lucky enough to find one. And these days wealthy enough to pay for.
So I found my way into the community. I was lucky to work in a beautiful rural area so didnt see too much of the inner city. One of my best mates worked in Manchester city centre and her experience was very different. I was a CPN community psychiatric nurse, with counselling training. I supported people in their discharge from hospital. But better still worked with the local doctors surgery, to assess people and avoid hospital admissions where ever possible. We had a great team with access to many different forms of psychotherapy, medical assessment and monitoring if medications were required.
My last 10 years were spent between, the community and crisis teams. I just loved assessment. So many people just need to be heard. Someone to bear witness to their lifes struggle. People deal with so much, bereavement, physical crisis, financial crisis, family crisis. No wonder they are sad, angry and desperate. Its not always depression or mental illness. But sometimes it is. My GP had under 10 minutes with each patient. I had the luxury of 2 hours, longer if I needed it. Home assessment. The freedom to offer counselling for a few weeks if necessary and psychologists, psychiatrists and social workers to call on for specific help. It was my dream job. I was hands on working with anxiety and panic attacks. Working with behavioural programs in peoples own homes, helping to monitor medications. When patients needed hospital care it became very challenging. Services were over whelmed. And in later years paperwork now on computers made prioritising time with patients; go from challenging to almost impossible.
So nearly 10 years ago I took early retirement aged 60. It was time and I am loving my retirement. But Im still proud of being registered mental. A Registered Mental Nurse RMN
Recommend0 recommendationsPublished in Senior Chatters
This post is totally utterly brilliant – I don’t suppose everyone will read it but, they should 💖 Thank-you @tjay
Thanks @scorpio It felt good to write it. 🙏
@tjay I agree with @scorpio . Excellent blog. A serious topic which is always a good discussion. Well done on your great work and dedication and caring attitude towards the patients.
Thanks @grandmaj It was a fabulous career. I find people fascinating and was honoured to share so many lives.
You are one brave and strong lady to do that for so long. Not too many people could handle that job for a week. My hats off to you. I was married to a Psych nurse once, but I won’t hold that against you. In my personal opinion she should have been a patient, but I might be a little biased since she threatened to kill me in my sleep many times. At any rate, nice to meet you. Enjoy your retirement. You deserve it, and need it.
@TennesseeDude Thanks TD. Yes its was always a debate whether Working in Mental Health attracted us or turned us. But we loved it and each other. 2 of the ‘girls’ I trained with are still my best mates 50 years later (this year). In two weeks time we have a hell of a weekend planned. Nursing memories will be shared.
A career to truly be proud of. It takes a special type of person.
Thanks @Rain but I think we are all special. And extremely lucky if we find a place where we fit in and feel we make a positive difference.
Absolutely amazing, it’s so very rare for me to agree with everything someone says. You speak the plain truth, an increasingly rare talent nowadays. Your comments on moving mental health issues (a financial decision) into ‘care in the community’ a disgrace. So many thanks for your sharing your vast knowledge.
@John5 I take that as meaningful if too generous praise coming from yourself. Thankyou🙏
Now you’re being far to modest, sounds like you enjoyed your work as much as I did, a wonderful thing.
You know that when a Psychotherapist walks into room all conversation stops. Should I be careful talking about my relationship with my mother:)
Its funny you say that @John5 Ive just sent you a pm 😂
What a great read that was. Thank you.
I wonder a lot these days if our mental health as a society in a computer based, get it done yesterday along with a ton of other jobs, has no time for mental health issues until we finally collapse with no one around for help because everyone else is way to busy to help. In other words… are we generally better off today with all the advancements in mental health than in the last century. I like to think that in my days of the 1980s-2010s we were enlightened, but reading your blog, I don’t think we were. Just like now, I would like to think we’re ‘new- enlightened’ but in 30 years from now, I doubt it. Are we better off today?
Anyway, thanks for your story, comes at a good time.
Yes I guess there will always be pros and cons. Good and bad practice. Each individual who lived it on both sides of the fence will have a different experience. I would like to think less horror stories as we move into the future. But how the resources required will ever be provided and well managed I just cannot see. @Andeas
A great read, and yes I did read it all. I have a son sectioned and in fact he would have destined for such a place had they still existed at the time. Fortunately he has been well cared for – eventually – although to begin with he was actually thrown in jail due to a lack of understanding and proper mental health assessment. Several years later and with the proper treatment he can now function quite well, albeit under supervision.
It really does seem to me that the way you have described the way things were previously, that he would have benefited much more and much sooner.
I’ve also read through all the comments and it’s true that the way mental health is handled these days is highly contentious. I’m sure some affected people don’t get enough care & attention anymore whereas others are too easily on the bandwagon, and attitudes have changed so much that it’s sometimes hard to draw the line between mental health problems and general behavioural issues let alone questionable treatments. When I was a cab driver the situation with school transport paid for by the local authority for special pupils going to special schools absolutely exploded beyond belief. In fact some cabbies didn’t need to go out on the circuit at night at all for regular passengers because their special school work kept them so busy and well paid. Anyway, that’s another matter entirely.
I have previously blogged about mental health. Many people can be acutely aware of the way they might be different from others, and work with it, whereas other people don’t and can’t. For those that do, understanding it and having acknowledgement can itself be very enlightening, and is sometimes enough to make all the difference to their quality of life.
Again – great blog.
Thanks @dj for the time you gave to read and reply. Your son’s story just confirms how everyones experience is so different. I am glad your sons care ‘eventually’ met his needs. And I totally agree that finances are often poured into questionable support. As usual its easier to see the problems than the solutions. I think just sharing as we do on SC increases our knowledge. I found your blog on Neuro Diversity very enlightening. 🙏
Ditto from me about your blog. Knowledge is useful, enlightening and can be very helpful in ways of acceptance and moving forwards for making progress in life and health. I think what I just said was a very clumsy attempt at putting that sentence together but hey ho. It is an emotive topic for me.