My experience with Burrell Behavioral Health has left me feeling repeatedly dismissed,…read moremisunderstood, and harmed rather than properly supported.
Burrell frequently changes providers, and each new provider seems to begin without taking enough time to thoroughly review my long medical and psychiatric history. Important conditions--including autism, lifelong ADHD, anxiety, PTSD, depression, neurological concerns, medication sensitivities, and difficulty communicating verbally when overwhelmed--have not been properly considered together. Instead, providers have repeatedly formed conclusions after limited contact.
In my experience, Burrell's prescribing providers do not adequately understand or appropriately accommodate autistic people and individuals with ADHD. Autistic communication, emotional regulation, burnout, executive-function difficulties, sensory overload, trauma responses, and stimulant effects can easily be misunderstood when providers do not perform a careful, autism-informed evaluation. When I became overwhelmed and had trouble speaking or organizing my thoughts, I needed patience, written communication, and time to explain myself--not judgment, interruptions, assumptions, or labels.
I was diagnosed with Bipolar I at Burrell, but that diagnosis has since been questioned or contradicted by multiple other doctors. I believe the diagnosis contributed to years of inappropriate polypharmacy and exposure to numerous psychiatric medications, some of which caused serious or lasting adverse effects. My concerns about side effects were not always answered or handled promptly. Medication changes sometimes felt abrupt and based on assumptions rather than a careful, individualized evaluation.
During a recent phone interaction, I was talked over and treated as though I was "addicted" when trying to explain concerns involving medications I had been prescribed and taken for many years, including Vyvanse and Klonopin, as well as concerns about Prozac. I was told that Vyvanse and Klonopin would never be prescribed or refilled by them again. Because I am autistic and was already experiencing severe burnout, anxiety, and speech difficulties, I struggled to explain myself verbally. Instead of slowing down and trying to understand me, the conversation felt accusatory and dismissive. I became overwhelmed and had to end the call.
Patients should not be labeled or judged for asking questions about medications that medical professionals originally prescribed to them--especially after many years of treatment. They deserve a careful review of their history, an explanation of clinical decisions, safe medication planning, disability accommodations, and respectful communication.
I have encountered a few caring therapists at Burrell, and I do not want to take away from the good work those individuals have done. However, my overall experience with the prescribing providers, including nurse practitioners and doctors, has been extremely concerning. I experienced frequent provider turnover, inadequate review of my records, questionable diagnoses, excessive medication use, poor follow-up regarding adverse effects, and communication that made me feel unheard and dehumanized.
From my experience, Burrell operates more like a high-volume business than a patient-centered mental-health service. Individual patients can get lost within the system while decisions affecting their diagnoses, medications, and lives are made without enough time or investigation.
I sincerely believe these practices--particularly the treatment of autistic and ADHD patients, diagnostic procedures, medication management, disability accommodations, and responses to reported side effects--deserve an independent and thorough investigation. Patients and families deserve accountability, transparency, safety, and meaningful change.
