Comments | little_details: Mental Health & Institutions in Holland

rikku_cheerio in little_details

Mental Health & Institutions in Holland

Jun 21, 2016 18:08

I'm trying to find information on how the Dutch do inpatient mental health care. I know here in the US, you can go to a hospital, say you're having suicidal ideations, and they'll admit you (generally speaking--I'm summarizing my sister's experience ( Read more... )

netherlands (misc), ~psychology & psychiatry: institutions

Comments 9

lied_ohne_worte June 22 2016, 07:01:27 UTC

Can't anwer your question, but another note: It does not seem that that medication is called "Paxil" in the Netherlands; US people tend to assume that their brand names for medications containing a certain active substance are universal, which they generally aren't. If I read Dutch Wikipedia correctly (I don't actually know Dutch, but I'm German and can generally read it), it's more likely sold under the name Seroxat ( ... )

rikku_cheerio June 22 2016, 21:17:10 UTC

Thank you, this helps!

linda_lupos June 22 2016, 12:12:49 UTC

I'm Dutch! I don't have direct experience with this kind of situations, but I can give some pointers ( ... )

linda_lupos June 22 2016, 12:13:48 UTC

(Gah, I hope this one doesn't get marked as spam, too ( ... )

rikku_cheerio June 22 2016, 21:16:01 UTC

Your comments are extremely helpful, thank you!

I should have mentioned in my original post that she's a Dutch native but has been living in the US for the last 20-someodd years and has dual citizenship, so she would probably think more like an American than not. This is also why I listed Paxil (this, truly, is a little detail).

linda_lupos June 23 2016, 14:11:21 UTC

Glad they helped!

Haha I had been wondering why you decided to write a Dutch character - we get so little attention usually (sob sob, lol). Emigrated Dutch native with dual citizenship makes sense! But do look into who ends up paying for the treatment; if she doesn't live in the Netherlands anymore she wouldn't automatically be insured anymore, I don't think, and that could end up being a bit of a can of worms. On the other hand, if she thinks more like an American (and after 20 years, I can imagine!), she probably wouldn't automatically assume that 'the government pays' anyway. It could add an extra layer of anxiety/stress for your character, now I think about it.

./disabled Dutchie who's incredibly glad with her health insurance and frequently looks at the American situation with worry.

cloudsinvenice June 22 2016, 20:45:17 UTC

If you search for "netherlands mental health" (without quote marks) you get more resources in English, including:

- how medical care and insurance work there: https://www.iamsterdam.com/en/local/live/medical-care-and-insurance

- a Dutch government website explaining where you can get mental health care: https://www.government.nl/topics/mental-health-services/question-and-answer/help-for-mental-health-problems (the bit about the differences between primary and secondary mental health care looks particularly useful ( ... )

rikku_cheerio June 22 2016, 21:18:06 UTC

Thank you for these links, they're very useful!

Tangentially... verrucaria June 22 2016, 22:49:18 UTC

I wonder how quickly your character stopped paroxetine. Stopping many antidepressants too abruptly can be a pretty miserable experience. Manufacturers don't like to call it withdrawal, so it's called "discontinuation syndrome" instead. Quitting SSRIs/SNRIs/TCAs cold-turkey can make you feel physically unwell, including so-called "brain zaps," which feel like static electricity in your head ( ... )