Building hospital might worsen psych crisis

My heart sank reading about the possibility of U of M Health Sparrow converting the Eastern High School building into a psychiatric facility. My career as a dance therapist and counselor began in psychiatric hospitals, including a brand-new facility in Portland, Oregon, created to solve psychiatric boarding, the same problem that Sparrow is hoping to solve. Although I loved bringing the healing power of movement to people in acute emotional distress, I made the difficult decision to leave a failing hospital system. In-patient psychiatric hospitalization increases the risk of suicide, and that risk has been rising for five decades. People with comparable psychiatric symptoms fare better in alternatives, a fact I know all too well.

I was born at Sparrow and raised on Lansing’s east side. During a difficult 7th grade year at Pattengill, I attempted suicide. Sparrow pumped my stomach and discharged me with the agreement that my parents would take me to counseling. The next day, my dad encouraged me to take a walk with him on Lansing’s River Trail.  I remember seeing the river and murals near Impression 5, and the both awful and incredible feeling of being alive after such an ordeal.  My mom found a counselor who worked with youth, and after several awkward sessions we clicked. In therapy, I explored the context of my crisis and found relief.

After graduating from Lansing Eastern, volunteering at the Listening Ear Crisis Hotline solidified my interest in a mental health career. During graduate school, I moved to Oregon for my internship. After finishing, I worked at every psychiatric hospital in the city. My breaking point came when I experienced six suicides (four patients, two co-workers) in under two years. Recently, the dangers of hospitalization resurfaced when a friend admitted herself to a hospital for suicidal ideation, then killed herself a week after discharge.

I often think how different my life would be if I had been hospitalized at age 12 instead of being able to walk on the riverwalk with my dad.  Losing my autonomy and being required to take antidepressants — which now carry mandatory warnings of increased suicide risk in young people — would have made my situation worse. I was not the type of teen to comply and likely would have experienced restraints and seclusion rather than what actually helped: compassionate conversations with my counselor. 

Many communities seek hope through a new hospital, but more beds cannot solve a mental health crisis. The people of Lansing deserve a thorough examination of their mental health crisis service options, including likely costs and outcomes. Less restrictive crisis and preventative options such as peer support, respite houses, drop-in single session therapy clinics, non-police mobile crisis teams, and voucher programs for counseling should be examined. It is incumbent on Sparrow that they provide evidence that building this hospital will improve patient outcomes in Lansing, because if Sparrow’s proposal follows current trends, its contribution to Lansing will be expanding a suicide crisis.

Colleen Donaldson
Milwaukee

(The writer said  she is a board-certified dance/movement therapist and licensed mental health counselor.)