I was recently involuntarily held in a mental hospital where I went through prison like conditions (strip search, had to wear scrubs, was locked in a room outside certain times a day, stuff like that) and thankfully came out in one piece after 8 days of this crap. I was just wondering why we subject people to these conditions when they haven’t even committed a crime?
In theory it’s for safety, both for the patient and the workers. A lot of the point of inpatient facilities is to monitor the people, and ensure they can’t harm themselves or others, while their circumstances or medications get sorted out.
That’s not to say every facility is perfect, and that’s not saying anything about you. But generally, it’s for their own good.
Yeah when I complained about my treatment, they said it’s for my and others safety and to calm down. Even if they’re right, it’s still a really horrible experience.
So they gaslit you in to complying with their ill treatment…
There is zero logic to the idea that treating mentally ill people like shit is actually helping them, and anyone trying to convince you otherwise either has a vested interest in maintaining the status quo and/or is just a run of the mill ableist who thinks we somehow deserve it for being such a pain in their asses.
Edit to add: I’m truly sorry you’ve had this experience, and that you weren’t only gaslit about it by the staff at the place, but also by people here using the textbook abuser line “it’s for your own good”. The first and most important thing anyone who actually cares about your wellbeing can do is to hear you, and treat you with the same respect they would treat someone not in crisis (or even better, but worse??? and then twist it in to being your fault? fuck that, and fuck them).
Thanks for the support