Discussion What do you wish your healthcare team understood?

[Idontrecognizemyself]

This time last year, I was working on an inpatient psychiatric floor as part of my university requirements. The patients in my unit were mainly withdrawaling from major drugs, or on the schizophrenia spectrum. I was in a weird place where I needed to spend several shifts there, while not actually having the credentials to do anything medical/ relating to my major of study, so most of my time was spent just chatting and hanging out with the patients. So many people gave advice and warning ("don't become like the drs and nurses working here when you graduate, they don't actually give a shit about any of us", etc), and I was immensely grateful for the insight they provided to me. I will think about those patients for the rest of my career.
I want to know what you wish your healthcare team knew before interacting with you? If you were to imagine a perfect doctor or nurse to interact with (in any setting), what would they behave like? What are the good healthcare traits?
I have seen so many healthcare horror stories on this forum so far, and I myself have experienced such systemic medical gaslighting and misdiagnosing that has almost cost me my life at LEAST twice. I have literally never truthfully taken a mental health screening because nothing the practitioner did made me feel like they would be helpful or empathetic to my situation. Even the antidepressants I have been prescribed have made me feel worse.
Sometimes my stomach turns at the thought of entering this field (why do they make you choose a life path at 17, haha). When I graduate next term, I hope I can be the kind of medical professional who makes people like us feel respected and listened to. I would appreciate any insight on what that meaningful support would look like to you and your situation.

 

[motyxia]

For psych wards,
Don't talk & laugh about me in the hallways at night, I can hear you. When I say I don't want a sitter it's for a reason, I don't want a sitter forced on me because they make me feel worse but every time they ignored me & gave me a sitter. Don't compare me to the "good patients." The bracelets hurt, why can't they use soft ones.

In general,
I'm a person with feelings too. Not everything is caused by my brain problems, there's things like homelife. People with brain problems can still be going through real stuff so take it seriously. Take people seriously when you meet them, don't wait until they reach a crisis (& forget about them again after). When you diagnose me with something explain what that means don't leave me to the internet full of misleading things to try understanding. When you prescribe me meds tell me the side effects. The questions you ask me usually don't make sense, I can't answer them & when I try to say that I don't want you to get angry at me, I want you to find a way to help me understand instead of repeating it & getting angry I still don't get it. & when I can't talk using my voice try to find another way to talk to me not get angry I can't use my voice. The questions I do understand often can't answer because my mother tells me what to say before I see you, then you go talk to her yourself if she wasn't beside me so I can't be honest I'm scared you'll tell her I said something I wasn't meant to say & punish me. If for the first time of all these years a therapist is helping, don't believe my mother when she tells you that I don't want to see you anymore & close my case. Please don't stalk me. Please don't hide "problems" I have from me, when I saw the papers left on highschool guidance counsellor's desk it freaked me out seeing these problems I apparently have that no one told me.

What I think of right now, idk if you were asking about in general or specific to psych wards so I put both. Thank you for asking this question. I wish more would ask it.

 

[xLosthopex]

The right to die and that the choice to ctb is not inherently an irrational one

 

[Beeper]

My suicidal ideation will likely not be cured with medication.