Quoted By:
So, as someone who has actually done this, here's what I discovered:
>You are there by choice, unless they give you and you accept medication. Then, you are now there for 'observation' at the behest of an on-site medical specialist.
>If you are trying to get a psychiatrist appointment, it might take a year. If you self-commit, you will see one within an hour of getting to your room.
>You won't be allowed personal electronics. No phones, no Nintendo Switch. I recommend taking a good book. I read '1984', probably a bad choice in hindsight, but that's the kind of time you'll have.
>Hospital food. Get used to it.
>TV is in a glass case on the wall.
>You will never, ever get to go outside. If you are allowed out, it will be a field-trip affair.
>There are security guards on your floor. Depending on who you are unfortunately stuck with, they may be in your common area.
>The people who work at these places are seriously nice, or the meanest no-nonsense people around. Which ones you get is mostly up to you. Mostly.
Oh, and
>Voluntarily committing means you're less insane than the other people there. I knew one guy who kept hearing voices tell him to kill his neighbors. Another girl wouldn't talk except through notes, and was convinced she was pregnant, but wanted to kill herself to kill the baby. I talked with a room mate about God and how I didn't believe, and he told the nightly nurse that I scared him too badly to be in his room. One fellow became incredibly violent without provocation.
>You'll share a room with one of these people.
I say do it. I got on some medication and now my life has turned around. A bit. Holding a job is still really hard, but, I'm not putting the pistol in my mouth today, or tomorrow, and that's good.
