Planned Hospitalization At Sheppard Pratt

[EveHarrington]

Processing typically comes after skill building.

You need to know how to swim before you jump into the deep end.

I get that you need to process------are you aware that a very common method of healing (which all my therapists used) is to build skills and then process?

If you attempt to process and don't know skills you will be doing nothing but wasting time.

Is the writing not on the wall? You backed off of one type of therapy because it was too much to handle and opted into a skill building track. I really do not understand why you are so adverse to gaining skills first? Knowing skills is what will enable you to process. I repeat, knowing skills will enable you to process. IMHO otherwise you're just wasting time if you jump into processing but cannot keep yourself stable.

 

[recoveringfromptsd]

@EveHarrington I agree 100% with what you said, I could not have said it better.

 

[Cannottakethis]

@recoveringfromptsd
I've been in skills groups/classes since 2013. Ive been to a 12 week outpatient women's trauma program that was all skills, I've done dbt since the same time. I have every grounding tool, breathing acronym, dbt dialectic.... I've held frozen oranges, gone out in the cold to count 5 things that I can see.....had putty to play with and raked sand.

@EveHarrington I do know that you get the skills so that you can process more safely.

The last time I had flashbacks etc, processing made them go away. That was after the 12 week women's trauma program when I went to River Oaks. I stayed 5 weeks, one I paid out of pocket bc I needed to be there.

I'm having flashbacks of different traumas now.
I hadn't had more than a couple in several years till my mom triggered me 2 months ago.

They do processing AND skills at River Oaks and I've been there.

Sheppard Pratt does have an excellent reputation and sounds great but their admissions process has had me in tears multiple times, and I haven't been accepted yet. They keep saying I'm not right for them. I might not be.

I'm making plans so I can go somewhere and get help. I'm not going to just wait around for SP to finally decide 3 weeks from now when there is somewhere I know I will get good care.

As for backing off of one therapy and opting for skill based groups, I'm in PHP 5 days a week 10-3:30 Since the beginning of September. If I were inpatient, I could handle becoming triggered and dysregulated everyday. Since it's outpatient and I have to drive home, I've actually become more depressed since I started going there. In an attempt to keep me from becoming suicidal, I'm switching to dbt. Again. Did it with this program 4 times. But I can't stay home by myself. So I go.

 

[recoveringfromptsd]

Understood, maybe river oaks is the best if it worked for you before.

 

[joeylittle]

Did it with this program 4 times. But I can't stay home by myself. So I go.

Skills aren't only about grounding. I agree with you that in the end, processing is the only thing that can reduce/remove symptoms that are connected to reliving the event.

But there's a lot that goes into not only staying in the present, but ensuring that you are able to be functional in your daily life. I think maybe switching back to the DBT partial program is going to help - but I'll also say, if you still need the structured experience of a PHP to get through your day - one, it's great that you have access to it - and two, you will benefit from something that will accelerate you through processing as well as keep you stable.

That's where SP might not quite be the right fit.

I'm just curious - are you in private therapy for processing in addition to going to the partial program?

If I were inpatient, I could handle becoming triggered and dysregulated everyday.

This is definitely the reason to do a program, any program. And in this regard, I think SP might be the right fit, because I do think the individual sessions they provide create enough of a trigger/dysregulation - so that what you are working on is getting strong in tolerating those distressing feelings. The more resilient you become, the more rigorous your processing therapy will be.

What processing modality do you use? (forgive me, you may have shared this already, I just can't recall)

I'm making plans so I can go somewhere and get help. I'm not going to just wait around for SP to finally decide 3 weeks from now when there is somewhere I know I will get good care.

This - no matter what happens - is really great.

 

[Cannottakethis]

@joeylittle
I have private sessions once a week while on PHP. my insurance doesn't allow me to see my private therapist while in program only the program therapist, who I like a lot. I was actually starting to interview other therapists when this started but had to put that on hold. She and I were stuck in a holding pattern before.

As for modality, I don't know what it's called. I'm not up on those things.

At River Oaks they had us write stuff down, read it out loud to our therapist, then read it in our processing group, which was split military/civilian. After reading it out loud in group, the group would provide us with supportive feedback. I don't know if that's a specific modality but it worked for me.

It was an extremely safe environment with all the aides/mental health workers trained in trauma.

I don't think I need the structure of my current program all day. 10:30-1 is dbt. At 1:30-3 is therapeutic recreation which is playing games or coloring. I'm tired by then and could use that time better at home. They're afraid to step me down bc SP might think I'm too well to come.

It's only a few more weeks. I'll make it.

 

[recoveringfromptsd]

@Shells SP does have a lot of the same things, every day including weekends, there is a lot of DBT stuff, and journaling is a big part of the program there, and you meet with the therapist 3 times a week. So processing can and does occur there, it is not there central focus, which is safety first, teaching skills second, DBT stuff third, processing forth, etc.

 

[OneNightOwl333]

@OneNightOwl333 What I can tell you is there is a lot of competition for...

They didn't get more info to accept me because my psychiatrist called them twice the prior Friday and they didn't call him back they called me instead on Monday to say I was accepted and no I couldn't take the bed the day after I was notified I was accepted. After we went two weeks thinking I wasn't. That is putting to much stress on a patient. They could be more considerate.

 

[Clc122]

Hi everyone. I spent 2 weeks at Sheppard Pratt about a month ago. For me, it was the best decision I ever made. It took my T almost 6 months to convince me and when my symptoms became so acute that I was unable to function in my normal life, I finally agreed. I think I was approaching "involuntary" territory and I wanted to avoid that at all costs and retain some control over where and when I was going. I was extremely resistant and angry about going, about losing income for a period of time (but not my job, thanks to FMLA), about missing my family and about all the rules and regulations I knew I would encounter. But, even with those barriers, I can see now that that rather brief reset allowed me to return to my life better able to deal with its' unpredictability rather than being ruled by it. The staff was fantastic. Truly great. I felt safe and most importantly, respected. Sure, there is still stuff to deal with but I do feel like I can both do that and have a life. I never want to be in a position where this is again necessary treatment but if it is, I would go back (somewhat grumpy, no doubt).

 

[recoveringfromptsd]

My experience there was rocky, but they were the best. Anywhere else for me would have been a waste.

 

[coffeeandcats]

I've been thinking about going back, when my T called they said it was about 3 weeks, which makes sense to me, mental health gets busy at the end of the year and winter in general. So I might try to wait it out a bit.
They are very selective which is a good thing. Also the level of processing trauma varies depending on the Pt that was the CENTRAL part of my stay there, you don't process with nurses or BHTs but with your therapist, my T there said that not every Pt processes that deeply just depending on their level of functioning and where they are in Tx. SP's main line is "we dont process here" but thats not really true...it is for a lot of people, but not everyone. They really tailor Tx to each Pt.

 

[recoveringfromptsd]

what @coffeeandcats says is very true about processing. They also do a lot of dbt informed stuff, and they help you learn to stay grounded.