‘She was treated worse than a criminal: Mother claims her autistic daughter, 20, took her own life ‘after eight months in a psychiatric unit six hours from their home without daylight or exercise’
- Lindsey Bridges, 43, said Lauren was ‘massively failed by mental health system’
- The 20-year-old was an inpatient at six psychiatric units in four years, she added
- Lindsey claimed her daughter was ‘locked away’, not seeing daylight ‘for weeks’
- She paid tribute to the ‘straight A student’ with a ‘beautiful smile and kind heart’
- Anyone seeking help can call Samaritans free on 116 123 or visit Samaritans.org
A mother has claimed her autistic daughter took her own life after spending eight months in a psychiatric unit six hours from her home without daylight or exercise.
Lindsey Bridges, 43, from Bournemouth, said 20-year-old Lauren was ‘massively failed by the mental health system’ after being an inpatient at six separate psychiatric units between October 2018 and February this year.
She added that Lauren, who passed away two months ago, ‘suffered terribly from separation anxiety’ and her mental health ‘declined rapidly’ while at a hospital in Manchester six hours away from her home last June.
Paying tribute to the ‘straight A student’ with a ‘beautiful smile, kind heart and pure courage’, Lindsey said: ‘It broke her and our little family.
‘She wasn’t just my daughter, she was my best friend.’
Lindsey Bridges, 43, from Bournemouth, said her 20-year-old daughter Lauren (both pictured above) was ‘massively failed by the mental health system’ after being an inpatient at six separate psychiatric units between October 2018 and February this year
Paying tribute to the ‘straight A student’ (pictured) with a ‘beautiful smile, kind heart and pure courage’, Lindsey said: ‘It broke her and our little family’
Lindsey, who is an integrated urgent care health advisor, also told the Mirror: ‘Being an inpatient has robbed me of my daughter, my son of his sister, my parents of their granddaughter and most importantly it has taken away Lauren’s life.
‘I’m absolutely broken because of this, I’m lost without her. When she went went into hospital I made a promise to her. I promised I’d never give up fighting for her, no matter what.
‘We often spoke about how we would change the world once she was well enough to help me. She hated the system and how it was failing everyone around her.’
She said her daughter was ‘locked away’, often not seeing daylight or being offered exercise ‘for weeks on end’, alongside ‘little or no therapy or therapeutic activities to stimulate her.’
Her comments came as she launched a petition calling for a raft of changes to the mental health care system, including specialist suicide prevention and self-harm teams for vulnerable young people and autistic patients.
She also proposed for no children or adults with autism to be sent to a psychiatric hospital out of the area of their family home, and for therapeutic activities and therapy to be provided on a daily basis.
Linsey wrote: ‘Lauren was left alone, far from home, with no therapy and no therapeutic activities, in an environment that was causing more harm than good.
‘I believe if my proposals were already in place, my daughter would still be alive.’
Lindsey added that Lauren (both pictured), who passed away two months ago, ‘suffered terribly from separation anxiety’ and her mental health ‘declined rapidly’ while at a hospital in Manchester six hours away from her home last June
A spokesperson for Dorset HealthCare, which runs the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS), said: ‘While we cannot comment on individual circumstances, we can say that we do endeavour to support all patients who are being cared for by our mental health services and in the community so they can lead safe and fulfilling lives.
‘Where patients or their families feel they have not received the support they expect we work with them and do our best to address their concerns
‘Out-of-area placements are always used only as a last resort by services, either when we are at full capacity or when a person has very complex needs and requires specialist care not available within Dorset.
‘We have always been committed to reducing the need for out-of-area placements, in line with the NHS Long Term Plan, and over the past few years we have undertaken an extensive programme of work to achieve this.’
Anyone seeking help can call Samaritans free on 116 123 or visit Samaritans.org
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