Inpatient therapy programs

I am considering inpatient programs to get over the hump into good communication, and to address my concerns about safety when (if) disoriented young alters start coming out. I'd appreciate feedback from those of you who have been inpatients, especially recently. Thank you.

My GF is currently inpatient but for different reasons. One of the things that is important to know is that as soon as you enter an inpatient treatment facility you will be in the hands of a psychiatrist who will decide when and what you are allowed to do as well as when you're allowed to leave again. There is no walking out when you feel like you want to leave. So that is an important thing to know before hand. There's different programs but you do your research so I'm sure that you know better what types of programs there are out there and how they work. Another thing you need to realize is that you're gonna come in an environment that in the beginning is only gonna create stress. So you're gonna get worse before you're gonna get better. This is a normal step in the healing process. You need to know for sure that the facility that you are going to actually has psychiatrists who have experience with DID and PTSD, because if they don't have those you will be stuck in a place where no one can offer you real help. My concern with you wanting to go inpatient is it causing more stress instead off being a safe place. It will take a long time before you and your alters actually see that it is a safe place. Cause you won't just have to deal with yourself and your issues but you will be forced to deal with depressed people, suicidal people, schizophrenic people etc etc. You will be put in a group and you will have to do things with that group. You'll have your own private sessions, group sessions and group activities. Everything will be monitored and you will do as you are told. I don't think that it's a place that will be able to help you with establishing communication as most alters see it as a prison and it brings them back to the bad place they were when they were younger. They will pull back or take over completely. Ofcourse this is not a fact but this is my experience not with my GF but with several other people I have met there. Every system is created to take care of itself, to keep the body going so to say. Young alters might be distressed but if they are someone else will usually take over. My advice would be: stay home, get help from a good psychiatrist but don't put yourself in the hands of some psychiatrist in a facility you don't know because you want to speed up the process. You're gonna end up being there for maybe a longer period of time then you intended. So think long and hard. If you are no danger to yourself or others and have an SO that can help you or a very good friend than let that person help you with the alters. It'll possibly be less stressful and disorienting for them to be at home than in a place you know for sure they won't recognize and that has a lot of people pulling at you constantly.

For me inpatient programs are a last resort. When things get extremely bad and you are a danger to yourself and others than I think it's a good place. For however learning more about yourself and your system and dealing with it, establishing communication etc I think a good psychiatrist and a support system is the best and safest way to go. If things go bad that way you can always have yourself admitted in a hospital. I am speaking from an SO's point of view and I don't know what it's like for my GF only that she is there because it's not safe for her to be home right now. It has nothing to do with her but with her past which for her makes it even worse cause she is capable of being out in the real world. I will ask her later what she thinks and let you know. That might be of more help.

Una+ Thank you for posting your question. I am interested to hear what responses you get because certain anniversary dates of traumas are particularly difficult for me and as we delve deeper to discover what is causing that, it is at times making our system unstable. We had thought about inpatient care as an option if things ever get too unstable but had also wanted to hear a bit more details...

Onlyme, that was such an indepth response I feel much more informed now, thank you. I hope Una+ gets as much out of your response as I did, thank you.

Your welcome Salted.

In the mean time I have talked to my GF and asked her opinion on the matter. Her immediate response was: no, don't do it. There are ofcourse plus sides and down sides to inpatient treatment. The plus sides being the 24/7 care that you are given. You will have private sessions every day instead of with a regular psychiatrist or therapist who you might see once or twice a week. When things don't go well, you'll immediately have someone there to help you. You will also have a strict daily schedule and can do what you like to do when you do not have to participate in group sessions and activities. You'll be able to see your friends and family and can go do things with them if the therapist there things you're ok enough to do so. One of the major down sides to it, is that it will go onto your mental record i.e: it will be noted everywhere, whenever you apply for a job, want to leave the country etc it will be on there and you'll never get rid of it. Then there is the stress factor which I also addressed in my first reply. This is a big one because for people with DID it activates their problems caused by the disorder such as hallucinations, flashbacks, dissociating, switching etc. Which means alters will most likely come out to help you, the Core, deal with the stress. For new alters, who might have seen your own home once or twice, it'll cause them to be more disoriented because they are suddenly in a white room etc.

Other than the above my GF came with some suggestion to help you with communication and your young alters. Now establishing communication is a lengthy process. There is no way you can force communication or speed up that process. Like every relationship there has to be a give and take base. For example if you have a new kid in your system and you want him/her to come out and talk etc. Try and see what they like and then get them that. Get them something to play with, reassure them that when they feel safe enough, they can come out and play etc and you will take care of them. When you're at home no one can see you and it won't be as weird for yourself either because you can slowly get used to your younger alters being out. Treat them as real kids and give them what kids want. You give them something, they will give you back. Show them around if you can be co- conscious with your alters and help them. They will slowly start building up that trust and safety net that they need for good communication. Maybe after a little while you'll find out that a certain alter can speak to another one or co-exist etc. The truth is it takes time and yes you will need some help with it but safety and security is always the best way to go.

So follow your heart. If your heart tells you to go commit yourself into a hospital then go with that. Just make sure that said hospital actually has therapists who are specialized in DID and PTSD. Otherwise you will be in a hospital but nobody will really be able to help you properly. This will only make things worse and could very well lead you to get transferred to an ever stricter place. DID is a very serious and rare disorder and make no mistake, the people there will treat you as such. I'm not gonna make it sound prettier than it is. It'll take time for the people there to see as well that you're not 'that crazy'. So maybe you can ask your current therapist (if you have one) what he/she thinks about your concerns and go from there.

Whatever the decision is you choose to make, you will be ok. Inpatient programs are good and yes you will book results. Ow I just realized I forgot a very crucial thing! There are courses you can take that can help you establish communication etc. You can look online or ask your therapist. You can just take the course and go back home at the end of the day. Some of these courses take up a few weeks but they're very helpful! So me and my GF think that is a very good alternative to inpatient care.

I think I've covered everything my GF and I spoke about. If anything else comes to mind or I forgot something, I will let you know.

I definitely would not want to go into a program that would not let me out again. And I would want to be absolutely sure they understand how to treat DID.

My situation is that I have young children, I do not live in a metropolitan area (drive time to my current therapist is 50 minutes, and he has no experience with DID), I have very little internal communication, and I know my alters have very little experience being out and when they are out usually I lose time. I am extremely concerned about child alters coming out when I am outside my home, perhaps even hundreds of miles away, and being disoriented and terrified. This could be extremely traumatic, and they may not be competent to drive a car or navigate home. Imagine this happening while I have my children with me. This is a real risk, because lately some aspects of my daughter's behavior (normal for her age) have been triggering me into very yucky body memories, extreme dissociation, and/or rage.

I have a cell phone that is compatible with the Enhanced 911 system, and I have discussed with my husband how to work with emergency dispatch services to get them to locate my phone ASAP in the event I am overdue for returning home or calling in. But this is only a response to a dissociative type emergency; it does not prevent or mitigate the emergency.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enhanced_9-1-1

Oops, posts crossed in the aether. This is really good feedback, folks. You have given me a lot to think about. Thank you!

Here are 4 inpatient therapy programs of 2-3 weeks duration for trauma and dissociation:

http://www.delamohospital.com/TraumaRecovery.html
http://www.bridgestorecovery.com/psycho ... _disorder/
http://www.psychinstitute.com/inpatient ... center.htm
http://www.sheppardpratt.org/sp_htmlcod ... _sp.aspx#4

Anyone here have experiences with any of these programs?

Haven't been to the Shepphard Pratt inpatient but the outpatient there (after an inpatient at Johns Hopkins [NOT helpful, re traumatizing, maybe if they hadn't misdiagnosed would have been different]) was completely useless.

If you are able McLean Hospital near Boston MA is excellent. Appears to be a small DID unit with constant waitlist... spent 2 weeks or so in PTSD unit, which seems to be all women most of the time. Don't remember much as was very dissociated but helped stabilize. Good follow up includes option of partial hosp. and outpatient. See 'Women's Treatment Program' if you are eligible... DBT and borderline oriented but staff understands trauma.

Also a Short Term Unit (STU) where they assess if you come in from an emergency... overall a safe place.

http://www.mclean.harvard.edu/patient/adult/ddtp.php

http://www.mcleanhospital.org/

Good luck

steadygirl wrote:Haven't been to the Shepphard Pratt inpatient but the outpatient there [...] was completely useless.

Steadygirl, I am sorry you had such an unsatisfactory experience there! Thank you for the good report on the McLean Hospital program in Boston.

If I can ensure my safety during rough patches in therapy locally, I should not need to enter any inpatient program. There is a local chapter of RSVP (Retired Senior Volunteer Program); I will ask if a volunteer could escort me to and from sessions.