I'm a veteran of roughly 30 inpatient hospitalizations. One admission lasted an entire year. I've been through a lot of inpatient care for psychosis, mania, and trauma. Here are my insights:

I think the first thing we as patients have to accept is that our expectations need to be reasonable. The reason patients can't have exercise rooms, IPODs, head phones, televisions, etc is because somewhere in the past someone tried to hurt themselves or others with those items. It's not the hospital's fault if a patient tries to swallow a lithium battery from an IPOD. That ruins IPODs for everyone. Rules are ever expanding because patients are ever creative. A reasonable expectation is inpatient therapy. There should be MSWs or MS psychologists in a good enough supply that everyone gets a session everyday. The therapists can act as a liaison to staff and the psychiatrist, diffusing complaints. Interactions with psychiatrists can be abrupt. There may be 47 people on a unit and two psychiatrists. That would make anyone rushed. It's hard to coherently communicate with your Dr. while inpatient. Try writing your questions for him. You know you'll see him daily so you'll have opportunites to get your questions answered if you write them out and request he listen. Obviously if you are psychotic or severely manic, this strategy isn't going to work. However, as meds kick in, questions can be asked. Finally, a hostile patient will be taken less seriously than a calm one expressing a concern. Attitude is everything.

Bipolar 1 disorder with psychotic features, complex trauma (PTSD, psychosis, dissociation, and OCD)