The psychiatric ward of a hospital has its mental health services. People might be sent there by a doctor, or be taken there by authorities in more emergency situations, sometimes without their consent. Some people live in the ward for a while, some are outpatients who only go in for assessments or appointments with psychiatrists or counsellors.

You might have heard that someone “spent time in the psych ward” used in a slang way to mean “crazy”, and probably not in a kind tone.

There is a large and proud culture of people who feel like survivors of mental health systems, who may or may not still be involved in them. They think of their experiences in hospitals as more harmful than helpful, because of the treatments and/or drugs given to them, and might call themselves “psychiatric survivors”.

On the other hand, some people have mixed feelings or positive feelings about treatments, and value the drugs that make their lives easier or even possible. No matter anyone’s opinion, though, the important thing for everyone is to have choices in what happens with them.

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