Can you go into inpatient rehabilitation as an informal patient/from the community?

Raindrops1999

I've had mental health issues that have been long-lasting since I was 9-years-old. I'm now 25-years. I also have autism. I was diagnosed with ASD when I was 18-years-old. I was under CAMHS for since I was 9, but no one ever picked up on the autism.

I've never been sectioned or been in hospital as an informal patient. I've always lived in the community but nearly went into hospital when I was 15-years-old. Despite living in the community all my life, I still struggle with OCD, GAD, depression, binge eating/emotional eating and mood swings.

I'm losing weight (finally) only because I am Wegovy, an injectable weight loss drug. I'm not sure if my weight plays a part in my mental health.

I see a psychologist under the CMHT, he said he would be willing to refer me elsewhere. I was thinking of inpatient rehabilitation. However, I've never been in hospital and also I'm worried they might think I'm not bad enough. I have had suicide attempts in the past.

I've been stuck in the rut for a long time on and off. I can go a year feeling good, and then go years being really depressed. In the meanwhile I have really bad mood swings.

Has anyone ever lived in the community and been referred to inpatient rehabilitation as an informal patient? Is this even possible?

Holly_Scope

Hi @Raindrops1999 I'm so sorry you've not had a response to this yet. Did you manage to discuss any further with this with your psychologist who mentioned referring you?

Best wishes,

Holly.

Raindrops1999

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/978302#Comment_978302

Hi Holly,

I think someone did reply to my question but deleted their response back in December 2024?

I haven't seen my psychologist since December due to our timings keep clashing. I will be seeing him on Tuesday this coming week (fingers crossed).

I think my psychologist would be willing to refer me, but if he did I would probably get rejected from the service that he refers me to as I've never been in hospital before.

Some weeks I feel like nothing is wrong with me and I actually feel quite alright. However, there are also some weeks where I feel so low and depressed and that I should just give up. Right now I'm feeling quite good and feel like nothing is wrong, but that will probably change again.

I don't really know what to do in terms of getting the right help.

Holly_Scope

Thanks for getting back to me @Raindrops1999 🙂 They might have left the forum which can sometimes result in that too.

If you're still interested, it might be worth asking at your appointment about the potential options, get a feel for what options might be available before taking any official steps to refer. They might have some outpatient support options.

Bless you, I can empathise with your last paragraph but I'm really pleased you're feeling good at the minute. I hope it goes well Tuesday 💛

Hopeless

I was an informal inpatient at a rehabilitation unit. Most of us there at the time were informal though a couple were on a section. Some of us came straight from hospital and others from home. I have to add though that this was in the 1990’s so things may well be different now. I know the place I was in has closed.

Holly_Scope

Thanks for sharing @Hopeless 💛