Susan Boyle admitted to acute mental health clinic.

[targetpractice]

I debated putting this in LBN, but didn't want to deal with the flack from the Susan Boyle contrarians...

Show aides had contacted police to say she was acting strangely at her London hotel.

Paramedics helped the "spaced-out" star through the lobby and into an ambulance just after 6pm.

A Met Police Inspector and a police doctor were called to assist. The ambulance, tailed by a police car, then took her to the Priory in Southgate, North London.

A source at the hotel said last night: "She'd been at the hotel for a few days, but since Saturday's final had been acting strangely, causing a bit of a stir.

"The staff were concerned - something wasn't right.

"When the paramedics and police arrived she agreed to go voluntarily. She didn't make a fuss. The paramedics calmly took her out through the main lobby and into the waiting ambulance.

"It was all done very calmly. They didn't want to stress or upset her. She didn't look well - she looked lost, not all there."

A source at the clinic said last night: "I was having a cigarette break when a whole load of ambulances arrived.

More from The Sun

This story is wonderful and tragic, and I hope we all learn something about society and ourselves from it.

[jesus_of_suburbia]

1. I feel for her. She needs help, and I wish all the best for her. n/t

[Captain Hilts]

2. Going from 'unknown' to THE most-viewed Youtube clip EVER must be a real shock.

Hang tough, Sue!

I hope Elaine Paige sends some flowers.

[Richardo]

3. Poor woman

:(

[RufusH]

4. Sad. I feel strongly that she was used from the get-go.

I hope she recovers from this and can go back to leading a nice, quiet, anonymous life.

[UndertheOcean]

5. This is on of the biggest terrors of my life , having to go through this

People at Mental Hospitals are heartless , and they only exist to hide away the broken people from the rest of society. So that it is not inconvenienced.

Maybe because she is a celebrity now , she will get real help. She is a sweet lady and deserves it .


A regular Joe is better off dying than ending up in one of those places in my opinion.

[foxfeet]

11. Sorry you've had whatever experiences you've had,

but people who work in "mental hospitals" are NOT universally heartless. Nobody does it for the money (ha!) or social prestige (ha, ha!). You don't do that kind of work unless you care about other people. Are there bad apples in the barrel? Absolutely, just like any other human endeavor. That does not mean that all or even most mental hospital workers are in any way cruel or evil.

[Tobin S.]

13. I'm a regular joe and I get excellent medical treatment for my schizoaffective disorder

When I was in the hospital I was treated with nothing but respect and kindness. I'm thinking you must have had a bad experience with the mental health profession, but maybe you just don't know what you are talking about.

[UndertheOcean]

16. No I don't , in most cases , that does not mean I am wrong.

They are part of the bureaucracy , filing inconvenient people away.

Glad it worked for you though.

[Tobin S.]

18. You don't know what you are talking about, but that doesn't make you wrong?

I know a good doctor, UtO.

I was on the ward for 7 days and then sent back out into the world, like most people on the psychiatric ward. You only have to be there for 3 days and that is after you have told them that you'd like to kill yourself. Where are all of those people getting filed away at? They go home and lead their lives as best as they know how.

I have 6 years of experience of dealing with mental health professionals. I can really tell you how it is from a patient's perspective. You've never been there. You don't know anything about it.

[UndertheOcean]

19. Actually , I was there for 1 day ,in 2008 , they wanted to keep me for 3 ....

And after seeing all the broken people ignored , manipulated , just forgotten , lost , I pleaded and begged for them to let me go , I am still surprised they obliged.

I did not have insurance at the time , maybe you had , not sure.

Maybe I am just a spoiled overgrown brat who has no tolerance for suffering.

Anyway , I would rather die than go back to a place like that.

[Tobin S.]

24. Okay

Let me make a few guesses here and you can tell me whether I know what I'm talking about or not as far as your experience goes.

I remember you from when you first signed up. You posted a lot dark, depressing threads. Then it seemed like you had taken up self medicating with drugs and alcohol. It seemed to me at the time like you could have benefitted from some professional intervention- and that's what I tried to get you to do when I saw one of those dark, depressing threads.

I also remember you saying that you are a Ph.D. candidate. That leads me to believe that you probably come from people who have a little money in the bank. When you went to the psych ward you probably were there with a lot of people who were from very different backgrounds than the one you were brought up in and live in now. Maybe a prostitute strung out on crack, or an old man suffering from dementia, a 20 year old waitress who had bipolar disorder, a heroin addict from the ghetto, a woman who only talked to peopole who weren't there, a 30-something trucker who wanted to blow his head off. This statement is what makes me think thiat, "Maybe I am just a spoiled overgrown brat who has no tolerance for suffering."

That's probably a little different atmosphere than that of a Ph.D. candidate. And one day is not enough to get to know anyone on that ward professionals and patients included.

You wrote: "And after seeing all the broken people ignored , manipulated , just forgotten , lost , I pleaded and begged for them to let me go..." Those people might have been getting more attention on that ward than they had at any point in their lives. Yeah, maybe they were broken, ignored, manipulated, forgotten and lost in their lives outside of the clinic and maybe that's why they were there and in the shape that they were in.

[foxfeet]

29. Well said, Tobin.

Thanks and good on ya.

[no name no slogan]

33. SECONDED, WHOLEHEARTEDLY!!!!!!!

Tobin knows his stuff, and speaks from real experience. He's been a big inspiration to many of us who post in the Mental Health group.

I have bipolar disorder, and like most bipolars, I have had to be hospitalized at some point in my life. I've been in two pysch wards in my life, for a total of three stays. The first stay, for a week, was at an inner-city hospital with a bunch of other people with mood disorders, most of them depressives. It was nothing fancy, but the staff were kind and humane, and made the best out of what the hospital had available.

The other two stays (one for ten days, one for eleven) were at a hospital attached to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. I was admitted through the emergency room both times and was also treated with the utmost respect and compassion by an amazingly attentive and professional staff. And although the hospital was part of the clinic, it had patients from all socio-economic backgrounds and walks of life, as it is also a major regional hospital for SE Minnesota.

Most people who talk negatively about psych wards are usually people who are in denial about their own situations, and believe the opinion of a few friends over that of trained medical professionals. These are the people who resist treatment and who often believe that they really don't have a problem-- although they're often committed for a 72-hour observation because they are a danger to themselves or others.

To me, the ward is a kind of sanctuary. When I'm there, I know I am safe. I know I will get fed. I know people will look after me, because chances are I'm there because I can no longer take care of myself. I know that I can say what I want to say without fear of judgement, and that the people there want me to get better and will do what they can to help me, too.

The hospital is no Club Med, but it beats the crap out of the alternative.

[UndertheOcean]

32. I guess you figured me out .

and I stand by what I said , because it came from the heart.

Actually , my family makes $12,000 a year max .... Being a geek helped me get a full tuition waiver and stipend for living expenses through Grad school , too bad I was not as smart in other aspects of life , the social and emotional .

1 day is enough , to see how those bullies working there act.

[mwooldri]

35. Ms. Boyle has been admitted to a private clinic, not NHS.

Don't get me wrong, NHS is good, fantastic even.

However private care is expected to be a step-up from NHS. (though the clinic Ms. Boyle has been admitted to does take NHS patients as well). I'm sure she will be looked over just fine.

UK wants to treat many people with mental illness in the community, rather than in mental hospitals.

[fizzgig]

36. i don't know what you've been through

and i am sorry for whatever hurt you've been caused, but the three days i spent in the psych ward saved my life. the staff there were some of the most kind, caring and compassionate people i have ever met. i had hit rock bottom and they helped me get started on my climb back up.

i met the psychiatrist there only once, but he showed more support than any doctor i'd seen up to that point.

i can say, without a doubt, that those individuals saved my life.

[targetpractice]

6. The elephant in the room...

...is that she is mentally disabled. And, unfortunately she's been plucked out of her sheltered environment.

I count myself among her first 10K fans on YouTube, and I am not disparaging her in any way... The biggest disservice Britains Got Talent producer have done to her is edit out her eccentric behavior from her earlier audition... If you watch very carefully, you will see that she's in her own world.

That's fine, but disclosure of her true self was not managed well by the show producers... And, I'm afraid that had hurt her and caused unrealistic expectations for her.

I know there are a bunch of important things going on in the world, but I feel for this woman deeply... And, I hope she resumes a happy existence soon.

[Captain Hilts]

7. I think Disney should hire her for voice for animated characters. Her voice is terrific and

she can sing a bit, too.

She IS talented and that she is somewhat disabled is also important. Be yourself, Sue.

[targetpractice]

12. I agree...

I feel so terrible analyzing someone who's not here to defend herself, but I'm gonna proceed anyway...

She seems like she performs in bursts... I read somewhere (I'll go look) that her priest said she's great until she has one of her unique moments... So, I think live theater is out of the question... Albums, studio recordings, commercials, etc. are probably the best options for her... I think.

[Captain Hilts]

14. Yes, I read her priest saying that too. She needs a controlled environment.

I think she's got a limited, but good, future.

She's obviously comfortable with liturgical music. She ought to do an album of Christmas songs. "Oh Holy Night" and some of those that really benefit from a good voice, as Renee Fleming did a few years back. I think people would go for something like that.

But she has a delightful speaking voice as well that could be used. Kind of a modern day Marnie Nixon.

[targetpractice]

26. We are on the same page!

Susan Boyle singing "O Holy Night" would be awesome!!

I'm not familiar with Marnie Nixon, but since you mentioned her... I'm off to Google...

[targetpractice]

27. re:Marni Nixon...

Wow!! I feel dumb now.

[Captain Hilts]

28. Don't. She's been off the pages for quite a while. But Boyle has a

good singing and speaking voice. Disney could certainly use her in many ways.

Imagine her voice narrating kids stuff.

[Orrex]

17. If that's true, then BGT is guilty of cruel exploitation

The poor woman!

Even from her first appearance I suspected that she wouldn't win, if only because it would undercut future seasons of the show (i.e., once the unlikely underdog appears, the contest is over).

Heck, I count myself among the first 10K people in the world begging everyone else to stop talking about her, but I certainly wished her no ill will.

I hope that she's able to find some kind of peaceful resolution to what she's been through.

[alarimer]

22. The music industry is a heartless beast.

It will chew her up and spit her out. It is better that she decide to have nothing to do with scum-sucking assholes in show business.

[BuelahWitch]

25. It also seems she doesn't have anyone close to act as a buffer between her and the sharks

Just leeches. Poor lady, I hope everything turns out ok for her.

[RandomThoughts]

8. I think her singing inspired some good thoughts.

There are some things that don't like that.

I hope she finds peace and stability and joy in the tough struggles it seems she is having. I have to think many good thoughts and prayers are also with her.

[Captain Hilts]

9. Yes. nt

[stray cat]

10. I'm sure she is exhausted and wiped out- she got to a chance to pursue her dream

I'm glad she got the opportunity - that shouldn't be taken away from her because she is disabled in any way. Now she is getting a well deserved break. I suspect she will be fine although her life will not be the same.

[latebloomer]

15. I was afraid after she lost that something like this would happen.

She seems very fragile emotionally.

Hope she gets back on her feet and can use her talent while establishing some degree of emotional balance.

[TK421]

20. Frankly, I'm surprised she lasted this long before she cracked

I don't blame her one bit...and am not surprised about this. The publicity hounds were there at the start, and never let her be. She probably got sick and tired of not having any privacy ( such a crime ) and if someone stuck a camera in my face as I was walking out my front door..guess what? I would shove that fucking camera right down their throat..and I would make it fit. Yes..I mean that!

[datasuspect]

21. what's cute about a mental health center?

[Metric System]

23. Oh, this is turning out exactly as I feared. Fame and all the attention and HATE that go along with

it is hard for anyone to take. Add in Susan's pre-existing mental health issues and this has been a recipe for disaster. There has been a real (and I feel undeserved) backlash against her in the UK because the media has covered her to the point of over-saturation. That's not her fault and I wish the public would have enough sense to take up their annoyance with the media and not her. I heard some in the audience booed her the other night after her performance. Ugh. I wish her nothing but the best.

[mentalsolstice]

30. Sad in a way.

But in another way, I hope her case will shine a spotlight on the disability community and some of their unique talents. Susan Boyle is beautifully talented, and I hope she has a chance to use her talent so that she can take care of herself.

However, I deplore our society if we take glee with her mental health issues and/or downfall.

I'm not a big fan of hers, and, generally, I can't stand reality TV (okay, I watch "Amazing Race", but it's because I love to travel).

What has happened to Brittney Spears and Lindsey Lohan could also happen to this 48 y.o. woman, and it wasn't a pretty site when it involved the younger ones.

We're a voyeuristic society. something I'm not proud of.

[no name no slogan]

31. It's from The Sun, which is a tabloid/scandal rag.

I would doubt the veracity of this story until it appeared in a credible source. The Sun should only be read for entertainment purposes only, not for news.

[mwooldri]

34. Is in plenty of other news sources: BBC, Daily Fail, etc.

The Sun does have some actual news in it, but yes, to be purchased if you dare for entertainment value only.

[Hanse]

37. Damn, I lost the pool.

I knew it'd be about two or three weeks before she had a complete burnout. But I'd figure it'd involve membership in a white supremacy cult, or humiliating pornographic pictures involving farmyard animals, rather than a nervous breakdown.

Oh well.

[cwydro]

38. That poor lady.

I hope she can pull it together.