Self-Harm Services are Fast Becoming a Myth

Hi Silvisrivers,

Thanks for that I only heard about this through my blog at user watch,

your words are evry real and I agree it does need talking about.  I just need to get into my stride lol

Take care x

good stuff:

emmaj112000, I like this story. It's good stuff.

I've flagged this story because Emma is showing real spirit as a young person trying to highlight the additional; pain that self harmers have to endure when they are not supported better by services . My background is in effective therapy for complicated post trauma and sadly many self harmers have been through deeply disturbing experiences which needs powerful emotional healing - if only there were the right depth and frequency of therapy  for them ..

They are short changed ..

Nowpublic.com takes a bit of handling - it seems awkward when it reproduces text sometimes but crack on in there,  your voice matters in Birmingham UK  . Too many are not speaking up in Birmingham 

tell me about it, well no worries with me I am diplomatic sometimes but I am also opinionated.

x

There's too much to tell Emma -but  let us say that a good many things are sat on in the Trust

UserWatch is correct when they assert the Birmingham And Solihull Mental Health Foundation Trust made 3.9 million in financial surpluses in this last financial  year running up to Foundation Trust status ..Its openly in their Board Papers - although the political pressure is on them and others to create such surpluses ... . 

In order to make that surplus some people had to go short and that is expressed by less staff on units,  and rationing of staff time -  and contraction of services where they can be managerially squeezed .. The same techniques were used across the years 2003 - 2007 to ration money and "clear debt" ...

"Debt" is a false term however dreamed up by the Govt and DOH - it actually means the Trust exceeded a target figure for finances and thus demand for services were cut and thus supply sides were constricted... This happened over a few years ..

.Trust psycholgists in the main are useless because in the main (meaning not all)  they practice an anti-emotional stance - they do not get down to allowing Users to find their distressing stories enough to mourn or grieve properly . People need therapeutric guidance into deep emotional navigation rather than what I have seen which is often a poverty of empathic skill and emotional approach

Its all in the Board papers Emma over a few years about the financial strategy though .. .

Takew Care you too ...

x

You might like to try

COMIC RELIEF GRANTS CLICK HERE 

If you form a group and aims and it creates advocacy for MH Users then this route will help 

.

Thanks for that and I totally agree I am under the same system that I feel is destroying patients, I have two groups up and running and I have tried for funding from comic relief, the only trouble is that the need for this is not steady.  So appreciate my predicament I work with people who self ahrm under a tyrant and neglectful system yet when you listen to patients and give them what they want they do not take it, how can you improve services if ppl are reluctant to accept?

Take care xx  

That is a difficult question to answer Emma :

"So appreciate my predicament I work with people who self ahrm under a tyrant and neglectful system yet when you listen to patients and give them what they want they do not take it, how can you improve services if ppl are reluctant to accept?"

It seems to me people in the self harming bracket for want of a better set of terms may be inherently ambivalent and partly rejecting of what they actually need ... Its part of the condition sometimes that people will on the verge of getting some of their needs met potentially will also shut down  and punish those who seem to offer a need meeting situation .

This contrary position can only ever be faced straightly and with consciousness to give those who are acting it out a chance to alter and risk being helped . Being helped you see threatens great pain in some people - because it ascends the areas of damaged Trust etc .. Its easier for Users to switch off again ...

Its complicated behavior Emma and is set inside changeful damaged people ...Perhaps the best that can be said is that when others do reject help they can be challenged quietly and offered the alternative of that help again with the caveat  phrase " When you are ready come to us "

As for funding yes its bad isn't it that people are not funded for 3 years at a time ...Only more organisation can drill into that and make it better perhaps   ..But beware of the big charities because they can be as overcompromising as the NHS can be now they too have become highly corporatised in structure . 

Take Care and some time for you too ... Remember Emma you have self too that needs support and its life ..

I understand your answer and whole heartidly agree, how ever when we give the user the choice to come to us in their own time, which we do I may add, then we are left helpless, and although it is not about us as workers, we still have to stand by and wtch people sink further when we have offered support, which they asked for.  I totally understand the intimidation and hurt self harmers are faced with and the world they suround themselves in is far much safer than the one of the trust.  However there is a need for somone to recieve the correct level of care and help if it is required, lets face it many believe they want help and in fact some are quite happy to continue harming, so again it's about knowing the individual and their needs.

I just feel sometimes we are all fighting for something and none of us know what it is, the trust , user watch, service users, none of us have it right yet we are all involved.  Thank you for your reflection and yes I know I need to support myself and hopefully I think I succeed.

Take care x

Where we differ I think is in the belief that the Trust or even a Trust can exist which can properly care for people with serious damages in their personalities. There are a few places which have created a "specialism" out of this area but even those become a diversion for facing up that across the UK there is a large amount of people in pain left to semi-suicidal lives often ..

For well over 30 years I have watched the system and feel its time Users had purchasing power which got outside of the monopoly of the State supply sides of therapy ..The money is there but its diverted into identifiable bureaucracy .

User-Choice is not about picking between options that a NHS Trust supplies - its about using purchasing power to create new vehicles through any supply-side  of care and recovery that can navigate people through the trials of facing what is underneath their drive to self harm .

New cultures of deeper therapy led answers and voyages need to develop but the NHS and others suppress this because they argue it might cost a great deal . The reality is many people who languish inside damaged personality syndromes just cannot functionalise properly and have difficult lives without deep help and the cost is higher over the years they cannot purchase help to stabilise better ..

I have no particular faith left in the Mental Health NHS system apart from absolute crisis events because outside of crisis I have watched time and time again people being driven back to crisis because supply of recovery orietated choices that gets them away from the NHS system does not exist or is impoverished ...There are some better practitioners in the UK for helping the dynamics of damaged personality than exist in the NHS - I have met them - seen their work, but mostly its private . I think some of them should be made available to Users and Trust should stand out of the way ..

I think some of us are fighting for sure .. Fighting for life itself and the rights to be helped in authentic ways..What a fight it is Emma ..

I shall call you Emma-sparky ....Part spirited and part firework - but a good one though ..

I met an Emma

Of sparks and lights

With hope and a petition's kites 

There in the sky winds

Of the brave ,

She's an indian spirit

Set out to save ...

thanks Silvisrivers,

it has been an eye opener talking with you and I have to say I am glad I accidently found these two sites as it brought me in touch with you.

If you could change things how would you do it, as you seem well connected within the trust?

Thank you for the poem it was touching and very much appreciated.

Take care x

Changing things is hard in the immediate future but that should not stop you from bringing to attention your well founded thoughts so that some extra compromises might be reached at some point  - MIGHT is the word . Activism is a hard game .  The Trust  have financial ambitions and priorities that seem governed by holding onto the position of the creation of surpluses which ultimately though they can spend as they wish as long as it benefits patients .

I think you need to present your concerns,  arguments and evidence regarding poor service provision  to the "LINks Transition Group For Mental Health  In Birmingham and you might ask for contact to key members who have some knowledge of Therapies and Personality Disorders. There are two LINks (Local Involvement Networks)  members who are conversant with PD type scenarios

You should present your arguments to them or whoever contacts you  (they are Statutory MH Independent Monitors) and back your arguments and position up with evidence and cases that support them  . Most self harmers are often labelled PD or BPD - all the facts need to ne known ..

Thus I think you should contact Katy Bunn through  0121 561 5964 - she is the officer for the LINks Group .....Her office email is :

bunnk@bcha.co.uk

The concern expressed in your petition is something you need to outline in writing and with as much evidence of poor patient satsfaction as you can ..Evidence based argument is important.

Email me at silvisrivers@yahoo.co.uk and I will give you the names and one contact email address  of the Statutory Monitors,  one of whom signed your petition  -  but  do also seperately contact  Katy Bunn because your concerns need to be conducted in writing that way also  ..

There may be a couple of other people too who are high powered and lie just outside of the Trust but I prefer to let you contact the statutory monitors  first , present your evidence and even have a chat with them ..Your concerns must be fully grasped to see and guage what action might be possible . Be warned though it is not easy to create momentum for deeper change unless the bureacracy really want it ..

Katy Bunn's phone number  goes through the Black Country Housing Group so you will need to be very specfic when asking for her if that is what you want  - ask for Katy Bunn  "LINKs Transition Oficer For Mental Health "  - say its a mental health matter . 

.On  a lighter note be good and eat cake at least twice a week  to treat yourself

x

.

Thanks for that,

I do have some collated evidence I have kept over the years.  I will try that most certaintly, my aim is to create sub groups as I feel to conqure the NHS as a whole would be too much but to strat little may lead to bigger things.  I started my own self harm group 2-3 yrs ago, since then I have worked along side some influential people whom value my thoughts and agree.  In turn they allow these changes to be made.  I agree its not nation wide but its something.

Here is my email   emmaj112000@yahoo.co.uk

I will email you and look forward to further talks with you.

ps  i eat alot of cake thats why im so fat lol xx

tc and keep the faith xx

Its okay to do what you can Emma - the nation will have to wait for more and more people to take up responsibility for change ...We all usually only make modest changes ....

Maybe try starting a Birmingham Blog too Emma  - we need more like you to document and speak out independently . Too much gets castrated by the NHS meetings process and shaping services often has to be done through some pressure too ..

I feel you should also join the LINks ask Katy Bunn about that .. There is a real need to document and keep a record of self harmers feelings related service satisfaction and what works and is really needed ..

Okay be good ....Light sponges only

x

Ps. I do feel there is need to combine the interests of PD Users in Bham and take the argument for better community hubs to the PCT's ...There is a need for making sure a discussion gets underway about this ..

x

Again in the interests of NowPublic's values could you space your text maybe and make the original story have some para-spaces in it ....Its just what they like here to encourage discipline.

Naturally I am saying this while standing behind my teddy eating breakfast-cake ...

(winks)

Haha love your humour, yes the text issue has been noted and I shall try my best, a little new to it all but sure I will catch up.  I will email Katy today I may as well as I am meeting with the PCT some time next month and can casually raise the issue there.  Please tell be how to edit my origional stroy?  I have tried but it doesn't allow me through edit.

Well I think its a choc fudge cake day lol

take care xx

Your best bet will be Jane Collier at the PCT .....She a Pan Bham Commissioner .

But you can sharpen your work and the potential to get better provision by working with the LINKs and capturing information in a way that is independent and can be used effectively ..

Teddy is now very fat ... (teddy update )