12 month BPD rehabilitation unit

[CyanideSoup]

With treatment off the cards with the NHS, my family have banded together to push for a referal to a private inpatient unit. It specialises in rehabilitating difficult to place BPD patients and is a 12 month intensive DBT treatment where you pretty much eat, sleep and breathe DBT for a year. It's all pretty overwhelming to me but everyone's telling me this is my last opportunity at recovery. And I agree because if I stayed in hospital for a year and didn't come out the most mentally stable person in England I think I'd probably CTB then and there.

Anyway, does this sound like something I should go for? It's intense and I'd probably never have the opportunity for something like this again. It could potentially be the thing that saves me. But on the other hand it's a huge commitment, a long time to be separated from my daughter and it means going back into a psych ward which I hated so much in the past.

 

[GoodPersonEffed]

Before I say anything about impressions, I have a question:

I understand that it's inpatient, but will it just be you going through this for a year, or will your family/loved ones also participate in some way?

Edit: Also, have you done any research on the organization and the intensive program? And who is part of the "everyone" who is saying this is your last chance?

 

[MBlue]

It's not your "last chance"! I think that it's too much pressure on that. You can have as many chances as you need and want to You are free to try many times, no limits here. But I like the idea and I'm glad for you to consider that. I Wish you good luck if you'll decide to try

 

[madbananas]

With treatment off the cards with the NHS, my family have banded together to push for a referal to a private inpatient unit. It specialises in rehabilitating difficult to place BPD patients and is a 12 month intensive DBT treatment where you pretty much eat, sleep and breathe DBT for a year. It's all pretty overwhelming to me but everyone's telling me this is my last opportunity at recovery. And I agree because if I stayed in hospital for a year and didn't come out the most mentally stable person in England I think I'd probably CTB then and there.

Anyway, does this sound like something I should go for? It's intense and I'd probably never have the opportunity for something like this again. It could potentially be the thing that saves me. But on the other hand it's a huge commitment, a long time to be separated from my daughter and it means going back into a psych ward which I hated so much in the past.

definitely not your last chance of recovery. I have never been in an intensive inpatient treatment programme, but I have significant traits of BPD, you could say I'm on the borderline of being borderline, and the only reason the psychiatrist didn't diagnose me with it was because I was on the threshold of severity and that in my area, the label BPD would just create harmful judgements of me. I have found my own "Healthy" ways which haven't saved me but keeps me from spiralling when I've been significantly triggered. I would definitely go for the programme you are being offered, but it is in no way your last chance of recovery.

 

[Final Escape]

I would research first, so u don't end up in some institution u can't get out of. You need to find people who have went through this program and are now having functional lives. The medical business is so corrupt now that I would really make sure u are not putting self into danger.

 

[Deleted member 1465]

It's a huge step. I think the research advice is good.
Will you be voluntary?
Will you be able to or capable of getting out of it if you want to?
Can you get a month by month breakdown of the program?
Will there be medications?
If so, what are the long term effects of those medications?

Personally, I'd not take anyone's advice over this, I'd ask loads of annoying questions and get all the facts for myself before making a decision.
After all, you can't make an informed decision without being informed.

However, I understand BPD is truly punishing and that this may offer you a hope despite any potential pitfalls. So in the end it's up to you, I think if you get informed, you will maybe find yourself veering naturally towards a decision one way of the other.
And if they don't want to answer questions and give you the info but expect you just to do what they want... Then personally I'd be suspicious. Care should be patient centered, not doctor centered, especially if you are paying for it.

 

[Lostmind92]

Hi im 28 and i have bpd. I was sent to a private bpd unit. Im not going to lie it was the hardest 1 and half years of my life. I made friends and that helps alot but i had alot of restrictions. I even ran away a hand full of times. Its a very hard situation to be put in. Even now 2 yeats later im still doing the things i did that made me go into the unit in the first place. Its a choice u alone have to make. I wasnt given that choice. Good luck message me if u want to know anything xxx

 

[Emily_Numb]

Private Inpatient for a year in the UK? Surely that's going to cost hundreds of thousands of pounds?! I looked at Private inpatient before and it's like £30k a month.

I wouldn't rush into any old inpatient place. A year is a massive commitment. Do your research, the quality of service varies massively.

I'd be interested to know if this is a specialist BPD facility or any details.

 

[rebelsue]

Private Inpatient for a year in the UK? Surely that's going to cost hundreds of thousands of pounds?! I looked at Private inpatient before and it's like £30k a month.

I wouldn't rush into any old inpatient place. A year is a massive commitment. Do your research, the quality of service varies massively.

I'd be interested to know if this is a specialist BPD facility or any details.

Yeah that was my first thought. Places like that in the United States would cost as much as my house. It's not an option for 99.999% of us. Maybe NHS has some kind of government subsidized thing? I don't know how healthcare works over there.

 

[BlackPoppet]

I went on a 6 week BPD group. I've never heard of an actual inpatient place for sufferers of BPD. On my BPD course they taught us all about BPD ...... the thing is I already knew all about it because I'd been diagnosed with it 4 months earlier.
Being on the course did help me a bit though. They discussed managing emotions. Among other things.
Do they do any shorter outpatient BPD management groups in your area?

 

[Final Escape]

The more I think about it the more that sounds shady. 12 months of intense what? Medication and who knows lol! You might look into Brian Barnett about BPD. His podcasts are on a site called the last symptom.com. On it he talks about how corrupt the medical establishment is when it comes to BPD. They never diagnosed him right and it didn't have to take 7 years to heal from it. After a whole lot of misguided information, he finally found a real psychologist who actually understands what BPD is and how it forms etc. DBT doesn't cure it but just deals with trying to control your emotions. I kinda want the cure not symptom control.

 

[BlackPoppet]

The more I think about it the more that sounds shady. 12 months of intense what? Medication and who knows lol! You might look into Brian Barnett about BPD. His podcasts are on a site called the last symptom.com. On it he talks about how corrupt the medical establishment is when it comes to BPD. They never diagnosed him right and it didn't have to take 7 years to heal from it.

Yes probably medication and Dialectical behaviour therapy. I agree that the medical establishment is corrupt when it comes to BPD.
It does sound odd though. I'm sure you don't have to go to an intense impatient program to receive both these treatments. My GP was supposed to refer me to a Dialectical therapist, guess what, she didn't. She told me to go back to a place that I had counselling before, that doesn't do Dialectical behaviour therapy. NHS are rubbish when it comes to mental health. They are incompetent.

Yes probably medication and Dialectical behaviour therapy. I agree that the medical establishment is corrupt when it comes to BPD.
It does sound odd though. I'm sure you don't have to go to an intense impatient program to receive both these treatments. My GP was supposed to refer me to a Dialectical therapist, guess what, she didn't. She told me to go back to a place that I had counselling before, that doesn't do Dialectical behaviour therapy. NHS are rubbish when it comes to mental health. They are incompetent.

That's why I refuse to clap like a seal for them every Thursday. Haven't clapped once for them. Sorry, not sorry.

 

[Emily_Numb]

Yeah that was my first thought. Places like that in the United States would cost as much as my house. It's not an option for 99.999% of us. Maybe NHS has some kind of government subsidized thing? I don't know how healthcare works over there.

This would not be subsidised in any way by the nhs. That's why I was curious

 

[cloudgazer25]

I did a month of intensive out patient this time last year and despised DBT, CBT is what really got to me and helped. In my defense, I have schizoaffective and the entire idea of mindfulness makes me sick to my stomach. My negativity aside, I hope it works for you and you find a new sense of calm and ease.

 

[Final Escape]

Fuck DBT seriously so I'll learn new skills to manage the pain of BPD but it's likely I'll eventually forget what I learned anyway and it won't solve the problems of relearning how to appropriately perceive situations so I don't overreact in the first place. Sounds like a waste of time.

 

[RileyTanaka]

With treatment off the cards with the NHS, my family have banded together to push for a referal to a private inpatient unit. It specialises in rehabilitating difficult to place BPD patients and is a 12 month intensive DBT treatment where you pretty much eat, sleep and breathe DBT for a year. It's all pretty overwhelming to me but everyone's telling me this is my last opportunity at recovery. And I agree because if I stayed in hospital for a year and didn't come out the most mentally stable person in England I think I'd probably CTB then and there.

Anyway, does this sound like something I should go for? It's intense and I'd probably never have the opportunity for something like this again. It could potentially be the thing that saves me. But on the other hand it's a huge commitment, a long time to be separated from my daughter and it means going back into a psych ward which I hated so much in the past.

I think you have a golden opportunity here. DBT was designed by Marsha Linehan to be ideally done in a private group treatment setting, and not so much through patchwork (i.e. done in individual therapy or through self-help). I know a year is a long time, but the benefit you could get through lasting behavioral change and skills could noticeably change your quality of life, depending on other factors going on in your life. I wish you luck in whatever you choose.

 

[JustLosingMyself]

Had DBT. It works for some apparently. Was an unmitigated disaster for me.
Guess it depends on the quality of the consult team

 

[rebelsue]

Had DBT. It works for some apparently. Was an unmitigated disaster for me.
Guess it depends on the quality of the consult team

The team does make a huge difference. I think a lot of people don't have it explained properly and during sensitive, high risk times with personality disorders that matters a whole lot. The subtlties can be hard to convey to someone in crisis. The team has to be really "in it" fully, like a lifestyle, and really understand BPD -- not just any old therapist going to DBT trainings to learn to help "those people." And even then it's really hard. I've been doing it for 5 years and it actually is just barely starting to click for me. I stuck with it because other forms of therapy were even less effective and I built up a trust with this one center. They aren't perfect but at least they will keep helping me despite how difficult I am.

Fuck DBT seriously so I'll learn new skills to manage the pain of BPD but it's likely I'll eventually forget what I learned anyway and it won't solve the problems of relearning how to appropriately perceive situations so I don't overreact in the first place. Sounds like a waste of time.

I'll give you that -- it's hard to use DBT to actually know what is true. I feel frustrated with that also. You almost have to just assume everything you percieve is wrong by default, which is also dangerous. DBT helps me with some things but that's a little bit of a "last frontier" -- how to know what is true for me? I'm starting to figure that out but it is not because of DBT. It's also hard to know if these moments where I feel like I'm figuring stuff out are actually permanent or if I'm going to spiral out of control again. I guess only time will tell.

I did a month of intensive out patient this time last year and despised DBT, CBT is what really got to me and helped. In my defense, I have schizoaffective and the entire idea of mindfulness makes me sick to my stomach. My negativity aside, I hope it works for you and you find a new sense of calm and ease.

That honestly makes sense. I have heard that the mindfulness component of DBT is not useful for people with schizo-type disorders and can actually be pretty scary. Glad CBT helped you.

It's a huge step. I think the research advice is good.
Will you be voluntary?
Will you be able to or capable of getting out of it if you want to?
Can you get a month by month breakdown of the program?
Will there be medications?
If so, what are the long term effects of those medications?

Personally, I'd not take anyone's advice over this, I'd ask loads of annoying questions and get all the facts for myself before making a decision.
After all, you can't make an informed decision without being informed.

However, I understand BPD is truly punishing and that this may offer you a hope despite any potential pitfalls. So in the end it's up to you, I think if you get informed, you will maybe find yourself veering naturally towards a decision one way of the other.
And if they don't want to answer questions and give you the info but expect you just to do what they want... Then personally I'd be suspicious. Care should be patient centered, not doctor centered, especially if you are paying for it.

I think another important question would be how much individual therapy you get, vs being put in groups all day long. That speaks to the quality of the care if there is actually time and resources for one-on-one therapy. Regular mental hospitals just put everyone in groups for financial and staffing reasons, not because it is the best treatment strategy. Groups are good, but complementing them with individual would make a program like that worth the cost and time.