Life In A Canadian Mental Institution

 Let's say you break the rules here.  What kinds of things can you expect?.... 1)  If you use your cell phone to take photos of anything that is not approved by staff outside your room then expect them to take your electronics away - not just the cell phone but any that you have (i.e. laptop, tablet, etc.) 2)  If you curse they may put you in your room for 24hr. Then when they let you out they may only let you on the unit for certain times (1 to 3pm for eg) for a few days.  After that if you were good you get to stay out longer.  If you were not good you go back to level 1 and do 24hr in your room.   3) I have seen it where staff have removed everything in a person's room including the bedframe and only left a mattress on the floor and some sheets. Please see my Care Plan logs for specific punishments....

 There are two buildings at the facility I am at.  One houses all the mental patients like myself and the other houses elderly people of people that are not "mental". The photos below show the building I am not in or the building without "mental" patients,  There is a cafe pictured below and the atrium which activities take place in.  There is also a piano here for resident use.  

Many people here have to have staff hold their cigarettes for them and their lighters.  The residents who smoke (many of them) get "x" amount of cigarettes dispensed for a day to smoke and thats it.  Other residents get an "allowance" for their money and might get $5.00 or $10.00 dispensed at a time.  I want to note that this photo is not of my faciltiy.  

 Alot of people will say that living here is cool bc you got ppl who cook and clean for you and to talk to.  However, it is not all roses here.  People like myself who live here make multiple sacrifices and many of the things you take for granted on the outside we cannot do.  Here is a list..... 1) We cannot browse any website we want unless we pay for our own data. I tried to type on my url to this page and could not view itm. It is not just things like porn sites, online gambling sites but many sites that you think are ok will not be allowed to be viewed if u use the facility supplied computers or wifi 2)  We cannot bring a boyfriend over or girlfriend here and we cannot have sex.  This 9a a basic human need and right.  Most of us on my floor have our own rooms but masturbating is frowned upon. 3)  Staff come in every day and night with flashlights to do safety checks.  They cannot in my room bc it frustrated me and I took the front of my d...

 Most of the residents here are pretty normal.  Aside from looking poorer then most average people on the street alot of then are kind, polite and look after themselves.  There are some exceptions though... 1) There is 1 old lady who had never taken a shower or bathed.  She wears the same clothing and jacket day after day.  I have never seen her go to her bed and sleep.  She sleeps sitting upright in her walker.  Her head falls to her chest when she sleeps.  She has no friends and talks to herself alot and says things like... "I'm gonna smash you" "I'm gonna kill you" 2)  There is an old lady here that when she gets upset at the staff will slam her room door (which is heavy) over and over again. 3)  There is a guy who lived here and would talk out loud and say "I'm a nuclear scientist" 4) One old guy who is blind has very poor hygiene and pisses himself.  You cam smell them 10 or 15ft away from you. 5)  One guy laughs to himsel...

  Residents, like myself, can order things from outside but all 99% of mail is opened before it is given to residents.  Staff have removed things I ordered such as vitamins, herbal supplements and ensure. You do not have the same freedom ordering things as you do in your own home. Below is a list of things that you need special permission to have in a mental facility... 1)  Nail clipper 2) Tweezers 3) A can opener 4) Scissors 5) Craft Needles 6) An exactoknife 7) Alcohol or cigarettes 8) A craft needle ......

The following are some things that we have at our facility for the residents here.  You cannot access most of these facilities unless staff are with you and I rarely see people using them.... 1)  We do have a gym with exercise machines. 2)  There is a woodshop with all kinds of power tools and equipment.  However, I rarely see it being used either. 3)  There is a kitchen with stoves and cooking utensils and appliances but I again rarely see it used with residents. 4)  This shows the main entrance to the facility I am at.  The double doors are there because once you enter the bldg through the first door, you must buzz and be let in to enter the building.  Usually the reception is there to let you in.  If they are not there someone from one of the floors will let you in.  Sometimes it can take several minutes before staff attend to the buzzer and let you in (up to 10min I have waited at times). 5)  This is a seating or waiting area be...

In order to get into the unit I am on you must press the buzzer to get in.  I believe it is to prevent residents from other floors from wandering to other floors.  This makes it difficult to see your friends if they get moved to another floor.  When I first got here you were not allowed to leave the unit without the staff letting you out.  It felt like a prison and I guess enough people complained about that fact so they made it so you can get out when you like.  However there are still a couple floors that cannot leave in my building.   You must also buzz to be let into the building from the outside. There is also unarmed security in the building and peace officers I am told.  I have never seen the peace officers though.  I am told they man 1 or 2 floors.  The one lone security does walk throughs in the bldg on all the floors approx once every hour.  

 The following pictures show the inside of the unit which I live.  Most of the people on the unit eat on that common area which you see.  Those halls show the layout of the rooms.  I live down one of the 2 hallways there.  Dining Area Hallway 1 of 2 - Patient Rooms Eating area and common area in front of nursing station.   More of the common area.  Hallway 2 of 2 - Patient rooms.  My room is by the large board on the right and I put those plants there.  The unit does not have plants in it. 

        The following pictures show what the main floor has for residents.  It is a shared common area.   Most of the activities you require 2 people for such as the ping-pong and foosball table so they rarely get used.  There is that tiny fold down basketball game which I see people play sometimes but usually not very long.  I have seen people play that ping-pong or foosball game maybe 1ce every 3 months if that.  There are 5 computers for the whole building unless you have your own.  There is no printer so if you require printing you will have to leave the building and go to a library yourself for example.  There is one TV on that whole common floor and we just got a piano for residents.  It is old but still works and sounds ok.  There was a piano that some residents can access in another building beside us but it does not house mental patients, just elderly people.  The shelves in the bottom photo have books o...

     The following will show what we eat at any given time.  I eat a pureed diet but all the food I eat is the same as everyone else.  It frequently happens where the food is not pureed smooth enough.  I have to put it through a sieve so I can eat it.  Most times I just buy my own powdered food because of this.  I am fortunate that I am able to do this as most of the people do not have money and cannot afford to do this.   

This is what the inside of my bedroom looks like.  I did used to work and so I do have some money of my own.  If you look at pictures 1 and 2  the only things that the room comes with when you first get there are the bed and the little table to the left of the bed in picture 1.  There is also about 4 large shelves on the right of the bed and left of where my chair and a half is.  However, most of the furniture in these photos I purchased or someone in the community donated to me.  Most of the people in this facility do not have this much stuff in their room either because they are not mobile or do not have money.  They use hospital sheets and pillows and do not have their own like myself.  PICTURE #1 PICTURE #2                                                             ...

There is a smoking room on the unit located at the end of the hallway.  You must go in the room with the chairs and table and then open another door to access the smoke room.  When people smoke outside the designated area the staff close the smoke room to everyone.  I never liked having smoke inside but you really do not smell it in the common areas because it is at the end of the hallway.

 The following pictures show the view from our unit.  It is not a very nice view and because it is  February and I am in Canada there is snow.  This facility is located in a city of approximately  1.5  million people.