Hi! I'm really sorry you're stuck in a hard place, it's one of my issues with detention for suicidality. However you've been vague about what's actually bothering you, and if it's manic symptoms or psychotic symptoms, it can be crucially important to get help, even if that might involve a detention order. I agree it's a crap system, but manic symptoms at least are a psychiatric emergency. It sounds like you don't have an established relationship with a psychiatrist to reach out to?
Suicidality, I am with you, the system is very risk focused, it's all about protecting the doctors in the coroner's court, not about what you need, so the medical culture here at least is of you have any concerns, detain the person. Not what you want to hear, but the truth. You can tell them that there is evidence that in edge cases - where some drs wouldn't detain the patient but some would - the evidence is that detained patients are more likely to die (plus a whole host of other negative outcomes). One strategy is to say you refuse to do a risk assessment (that's what the questions about suicidality are called) as it's not evidence based and that male gender is as strong a predictive factor for suicide as suicidality.
The other question is... What kind of help do you want? The reality is there's very little out there for suicidality that a GP can't facilitate (MHCP and psychologist, Headspace). Eg our local ED offers 48hr crisis containment admission to help you self-regulate, and 4 follow-up BPD oriented phonecalls. That's basically it. Hospital comes in for the psychotic illnesses, and if that's you, my best advice would be to find a private psychiatrist and develop a strong trusting relationship with them and talk through what you mutually decide to do in these circumstances.
Sorry I'm not much help, but there literally isn't much outside of detention for serious mental illness, and if it's suicidality, yes detention orders are often used to protect the doctor, not you. And that there really isn't a lot on offer in the community for suicidality. People have mentioned my go-to options previously.
I wish you all the best. It's a crap situation.
