Banning Lyon: Locked In A Psychiatric Hospital

Banning Lyon was 15 years old when he was locked up in a psychiatric hospital in Texas for close to a year.  His crime?  According to his school counselor, he was depressed and at risk for suicide. That was news to Banning Lyon who said he didn’t feel depressed. The school counselor convinced his mother that he needed to be in a psychiatric hospital.  And his mother thought that it would be just for an evaluation, perhaps a couple of weeks.  What neither of them knew was that at the time (in the 1980’s), school counselors were being paid with bribes and kickbacks in return for sending youths to psychiatric hospitals.

The reason that kids were being sent to psychiatric hospitals whether they needed to be there or not was because it represented a lot of money to the hospitals.  National Medical Enterprises, which owned psychiatric hospitals, was fined by the state of Texas.  And more than 60 of the children who were locked up sued the hospital and it was settled out of court.  At the time, it was one of the largest cases of healthcare fraud.

What was supposed to be an evaluation for a couple of weeks turned into close to a year for Banning Lyon. Interestingly, it was right around the time that his father’s insurance payments stopped because his father’s insurance company didn’t think it was necessary any longer.  Kids from the psychiatric hospital mysteriously became eligible to leave the facility once insurance payments ran out.

The greed of the hospitals and those who were given financial incentives ruined many lives.  The kids that were at the psychiatric hospital were cut off from the outside world so they couldn’t complain.  They were constantly monitored.  Some kids were strapped to wheelchairs or beds for extended periods of time.  Banning was forced to sit in a chair facing the wall, sometimes for up to 12 hours a day so that he could supposedly think about his problems.  Parent visits were supervised.  Kids were not allowed to talk to each other.  

By the time that Banning Lyon came back home, he could not assimilate into his environment. Public school was difficult.  Indeed it was the psychiatric hospital that made him depressed and suicidal.  He suffered from PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder).  He could not relate to people or forget the severe abuse he suffered.

Years later Banning Lyon started seeing a therapist. He also found a job in a field he loves.  He is a backpacking guide in Yosemite.  He also got married and has a child.  He has written a book called “The Chair and the Valley.”  It is inspiring. (see link below). The things that helped Banning Lyon heal include being with nature in Yosemite (which is where he works), forming a bond with his clients, writing his book, and working out feelings common from trauma such as shame, isolation, resentment, and anger.  He had to watch others being abused in the psychiatric hospital and that can be severely upsetting when you can’t protect someone else.

In 1992 the book, “Trauma and Recovery” was first published to help victims who have experienced trauma.  It describes domestic abuse and war veterans as well as other types of trauma experienced and a path to recovery.  It is still available today with updates.  It is written by Judith Lewis Herman M.D. (link below).

Trauma is experienced individually since abuse can happen in different ways with different responses.  But there are so many people who have experienced trauma and may not know how to recover.  Often people feel isolated since they may not feel that anyone would understand what they went through.  They may feel different from the rest of society and feel shame.  They may not want to talk about their trauma and hold it inside.  Anger and resentment can manifest into health issues. Finding a group that is supportive is helpful for survivors of trauma.

Banning Lyon has most likely helped many people with his story.  For more information visit:
https://banninglyon.com/

https://commonreads.com/2024/09/16/excerpt-from-the-chair-and-the-valley/

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/contributors/judith-l-herman-md