From age 12 to 15 I was in and out of behavioral f...

From age 12 to 15 I was in and out of behavioral facilities and this is the facility I was sent to and held at for AN ENTIRE YEAR. This place left me with not only PTSD, but an eating disorder. The portions are filthy, wouldn't feed them to my dog. The staff was fairly pleasant, they cant get too personal with you but most were as passionate about their jobs as they could be. The majority of my time was spent locked in an awkwardly shaped hall with several bedrooms. Sexuality and threat weren't a concern when you were placed with a room mate, which resulted in me nearly being molested by a girl twice my size. Noise and excitement of any kind are not allowed. Books are locked away. The only form of "true" entertainment was a television which led to fights over what to watch. The tv was always stuck on either MTV or TLC which can drive anyone insane. I will not say that I was tortured here but I was not treated fairly or with respect. I was forced to ask male staff for a pad which made me uncomfortable and when I expressed it I was told that i lost my simple freedoms the moment i tried to overdose. Male staff was never touchy or overly conversational but to assign them to a female ward knowing that there are troubled young women in there who may have problems or may be triggered by the presence of men is wrong and irresponsible. Not only is it unsafe and inconsiderate to the patients but it can put the male staff in a sick situation if any patient ever got upset with them and decided to lie. Another issue with this place is the lack of privacy. I understand that this place is for people with issues such as suicide but there was more than one occasion where I was mid shower and staff would barge in without knocking. Or another instance where i was writing in my journal and the staff confiscated it saying they needed to make sure i wasnt plotting. Then when theyd finaly given it back they blurted one of my entries about a boy and laughed. Nearly every single day of your time being here will be spent sitting on those rubbery couches in that cold ass room with strange girls you do not know and staff who are there for a check, waiting for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, waiting to take your medicine, and waiting for the activities director to make her rounds and drop off sets of playing cards. you will go to bed at 8:30 pm and if you argue or disagree they will dope you up on a sleep inducing shot that knocks you out. Then they will make you sit in an empty room called the "quiet cell" and wait for you to either go to sleep or stop crying and they will escort you to your room where you will sleep for 4-5 hours and if youre lucky, when you wake up, they will not have let the other patients pick what they want from your plate. To the parents of children who are there/being sent there: please do not do this to your children. find anywhere else except northlake behavioral. the only reason i left in a year is because my parents withdrew me. please remember that places like these get PAID to hold your children and at some point your child goes from just being a patient to a paycheck.
i still have nightmares about being back in this place. it was scarring and there was frequent fighting. careless staff left a pen around and a girl got stabbed with a pen in a fight. if northlake is your only option, get your child on prescription and get them out. This place is not a cure, it will only scare your children out of reaching out for help.