\*\*Hello. Our son (15m) has struggled with what we believe to be bipolar disorder for the past year. He made an attempt on his life last year, and then was hospitalized after threatening another attempt a few months later.\*\*
While his medicine (Lamictal) has improved the duration between his suicidal “dips,” he has taken a turn for the worse. Last night, he woke me crying telling me he’d been ideating how to kill himself for the past hour. This middle of the night wake up was new territory as he’d generally always told us as he was dipping.
He now says he isn’t confident he can resist the urge to hurt himself when alone. And we of course are not confident we can keep him safe now that we are aware the overnight time is now a danger zone.
His experience in the facility he was sent to from the hospital last time (on an involuntary hold) was terrible. The employees were very unkind to him, and his roommates were snorting their meds at night and threatening to hurt him while he slept.
I’m trying to understand the difference between the kinds of places he’d be sent on an involuntary hold, and the impatient facilities I see online which seem much nicer. We have good insurance and (while it’s not awesome/comfortable) have enough resources to cover treatment costs.
Can anyone with experience help me understand whether there is a difference between behavioral centers for involuntary holds and impatient treatment centers we sign on for voluntarily?
Scared parent thanks you in advance.