checking into the loony bin: good idea/bad idea

looking back, i think what i may have needed at the time was some sort of outpatient program - the group therapy was really helpful, and having something to do / somewhere to be would have kept me out of trouble. at the same time i could have kept doing what i was doing (school and work) ... quitting my job and dropping out was a HUGE interruption in my "life path" (whatever the fuck that means). also i have done lots of individual therapy since then, which has been IMMENSELY helpful, but at the same time, because it has been individual therapy it has, at times, made me feel somewhat more isolated / especially fucked up than i actually am / have been.

i have a few friends who are doing outpatient for various things (addictions, eating disorders) and it seems to be working really well for them ... maybe you could look into that?

Not in this age of fraud, they're not.

x-post: Miss Misery, did I say that I needed help? If you think such information isn't being covertly passed around, I don't know what to tell you.

If someone's gonna spread malicious gossip about you and take it to your boss, take the hard line. Don't say anything, or threaten to sue if you're harassed over a medical condition. Then maybe you can find the fuck out who is ratting on you.

Furthermore, you shouldn't have to use vacation time for a fucking illness. Or don't these naive people giving ridiculous advice have REAL jobs?

"Fuck off" - that's an eloquent defense of your comments.

It really depends upon what you are trying to get out of it i should think. Would a change of environment (ie a vacation) work just as well? Or regular therapy? I'd say that inpatient care should be a last resort.

To wit: one of my teacher's in HS took medical leave because of cancer (this is what she told everyone). Later, after she had an illicit affair w/a 15 yr old student it was revealed that she had taken it for mental illness.

(I am NOT comparing you to my teacher, btw)

you're not going to be able to just check yourself in. If you're not already under the care of a psychatrist (which I hope you are) then a doctor at the facility will evaluate you. She or he could then decide you'd be better off in an outpatient program or whatever. But if your instincts are saying you need this kind of respite you're probably right.

I've been in individual therapy off and on for nearly twenty years and have also done intensive outpatient therpay (reporting every day to the hospital) in addition to inpatient stays. Each has been helpful in different ways.

Good luck.