A little bit about the 4th floor

I want to let everyone know a little bit about how disorienting the 4th floor is. While I fully admit that I needed to be in a psych ward on Jan 2nd. I do not believe I needed to be there for 10 days. I also think that there are many things about being on the 4th floor that if corrected would make patients feel more like human beings and less like inmates. When I first entered the 4th floor I truly didn't know which way was up. My whole world was gone. I was disoriented and I felt like I was the lead character in a "mind fuck" movie such as Jacob's Ladder, The Matrix, or The Game. If you look back in my blog right before Jan. 2nd I had published a post about INOVA Fairfax screwing up my family and if they would just apologize then everything would be better. On Jan. 2nd, I felt that by going to Fairfax INOVA someone would read my blog and tell us just what they had found out about Cassie's case, why she had died, and what safeguards they had put in place so that no other child would die. I remember bits of the conversion that I was having with my husband in the ER when he seemed to be talking in riddles to me... things like "Everyone is watching you". I felt that if I just said the "right thing" Willy Wonka would come into my room and hand me the keys to the factory. When I was being wheeled onto the 4th floor I heard an announcement for creative therapy starting and I swore it was a code that I was on the floor and all the actors could begin the scenes that would help me get over the loss of Cassandra. I didn't know that creative therapy was the daily time in the arts and craft studio. But enough about me for right now.

There are 4 types of professionals on the 4th floor:

1. Therapists - These are the people who run the therapy sessions. From the community meetings in the morning, creative therapy, movement therapy, group, to wrap up at the end of the day. By and far they treat the patients with the MOST amount of dignity and respect. Without them I don't know how I would have survived. I'd like to send a special shout out to Vern. He really helped me with some major concepts like Higher Power (which I still wrestle with). The one problem with the therapists is that they are not drugged. I don't think that they understand just how slow you become on most of these meds. They rattle off information in the community meeting so quickly most of the patients can't process it. I asked time and time again for the rules in writing and finally got them on day 9.
   
2. Nurses - Some nurses are better than others, I'd say about 2/3 of them treat patients with respect. The answer to issues such as being unable to sleep is ALWAYS more drugs which was very hard because some us us wanted to do this as drug free as possible. I actually heard one night nurse say to another that they do not respect the patients until the patient gets with the program and takes their meds.
3. Technicians - The technicians who monitor the elevator, take vitals signs and walk the floor making sure everyone is still there are the least respectful to the patients. Even though each room has a note on it about how to enter a room, very few of the technicians enter that way. I was actually sleeping one afternoon when a technician came into my room and woke me up to take my vitals. She told me that vitals were soooo important that she had to wake me up (remember I was there because I was manic and hadn't slept for days). Then one of her coworkers or her supervisors came into the room and began fighting with her at the foot of my bed. I told them I wanted to go back to sleep and they told me to go right ahead and they continued arguing. I finally had to leave my room and ask a doctor to remove them. That got them out VERY quickly.
4. Doctors - I was lucky to have a pretty decent care team. There was a doctor, a resident, and a med student. I totally didn't mesh with my Doctor but the resident was very respondent to my concerns. Because I was very foggy for my stay on the fourth floor I actually wrote letters to my doctors with my concerns. Sometimes they would up my dosage of meds and not tell me about it, then the night nurse would be the person who came with extra pills and I would question them. I wish they would explain things a little better and once again understand that all of their patients are drugged out of their gourd.

Well that's a little bit about the 4th floor... I hope you never have to experience it.
There will be more later.
Take Care,
Daria