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  • The Psychiatrist

    So, as I promised, the story of the psychiatrist.

    One thing N did for me (as I mentioned in "The Weirdest Doctor" was refer me to the local County Mental Health Center. She got the county wrong, but that's fine. I live on the county border, so that happens a lot. I was told by everyone I HAD to go to this facility for mental health treatment, because Medicaid would cover nothing else.

    That was hell from the start. I was referred because a sleep study revealed Zoloft was delaying my REM sleep so dramatically that I never actually got any real sleep. And she told me "I'm actually just going to refer you to a psychiatrist rather than prescribe you a new medication." And I had immediately stopped Zoloft, so I was on no psych meds whatsoever.

    I get to CMHC, and I'm told I need to have a blood test done. Major hurdle, as I had somehow suddenly developed a moderate fear of needles about two years ago, and I'm not on any meds to counter that. I get it done. Then I have to talk to their nurse. Their nurse calls me once, never again. My parents deleted the message. (They don't support the idea of mental health treatment.) I manage to get this worked out with the psychologist.

    It's been three months.

    Then I'm told it's another three month wait before I can see the psychiatrist.

    At month 5 of waiting, I call their help line and beg them to approve an admittance to a mental hospital because at least they'd "do something for me." I'm told I'm not crazy enough.

    Finally I get to see the psychiatrist. He and I talk for a while. He told me my parents are toxic, and I refused to believe the idea. I wasn't ready. He told me to pick between Effexor and Wellbutrin, and refused to give me more information on either drug, saying they were both equivalent and either would work. I'd read up a little bit on Wellbutrin for a friend of mine who might have had Schizoid, and because I knew SOMETHING about Wellbutrin and nothing about Effexor, I chose Wellbutrin.

    Next visit I've lost about twenty pounds. (It's been another three months.) Wellbutrin has a quirky side effect of killing the appetite of emotional eaters from what I can figure. I didn't get it so bad that I had to remind myself to eat logistically, and food lost all appeal to me, but I do eat fewer meals in smaller portions.

    He raved about that, and I had to keep trying to get his attention to tell him that my temper has gotten dramatically worse, and though I didn't realize it, I was describing classic anxiety symptoms. Something my psychologist (in their building) had diagnosed me with. Which was in his file. In front of him. He waved it off.

    I broke down crying to my psychologist, who told me to talk to his nurse. His nurse calls me and says that while she strongly reccomended he put me on Klonopin, he doubled my Wellbutrin dose instead.

    Me: None of those neurotransmitters do anything for anxiety...
    Her: I know. Hang on for two more weeks, then call back and tell me that nothing happened, and I"ll talk to him again.

    I did that, and I got the Klonopin.

    Visit three, and I'd just had a panic attack on a small theme park ride that I'd been on hundreds of times. It's one of the premiere rides at Michigan's adventure (think ship), and I'd been tracking my panic attacks since before I started taking Klonopin. I put this chart in front of him, with when I started Klonopin marked.

    I tried to explain that Klonopin wasn't working, that I was still having frequent panic attacks, regular ambient anxiety, especially surrounding my relationships. I had been told I needed empirical evidence to talk to this guy, and this was it.

    So I was not expecting this:

    Him: So I'm going to take you off the Klonopin.
    Me: And replace it with?
    Him: Nothing.
    Me: ... I waited six months to get on a medication of any sort. I didn't get treated for my anxiety disorder even though it's on my file for another three. I'm reporting some pretty severe anxiety. And now you're telling me you're going to do... nothing?

    He doubled the Klonopin and sent me on my way. I wasn't too pleased with this either--the Klonopin had given me a "nightmare parade" side effect where I had 9 nightmares in 14 days--but I couldn't complain to his nurse over nothing. I could over something.

    And as I was walking out of the office I thought: "Screw this guy. Screw everything." And so I got the form to report him to the clinic. I'm still debating on reporting him to the state, and the only reason I haven't yet is that I still need a psychiatrist, and I haven't met my new one yet. (I managed to talk Medicaid into letting me see an "out of network" one. And found one that would take me.)

    I see them in a little over a month.

  • #2
    Two words: Report him. It sounds to me like he really doesn't understand how the drugs work, especially if his solution is to double-up on a med you're already having some nasty side-effects from.

    I've been on a few different psych meds over the years, starting with Zoloft. Total horror show that was for me. Most recently I've been on mertazapine, and that's helped with the combination of depression and anxiety. I used to be on Effexor and supplemented it with Ativan when my anxiety got unmanageable.

    My fingers are crossed that your new psychiatrist is a million times better!

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    • #3
      Me too! Thankfully I've only had one more nightmare since the Klonopin dosage was altered, and I've gotten to the point where I can take it as prescribed (it screwed with my reaction times and thinking so much in that first month that I could only take it at night; attempting to take it during the day would turn me into a zombie, but I think any drug in its class will do that to me). The only reason the new nightmare is even notable is I only really get a nightmare every few years. My dreams are generally awful, but to have them actually bother me (and get classified as nightmare)... it takes something special.

      The big issue is that I called every single psychiatrist in a four county radius that my insurance will cover, excluding one city that driving in gives me panic attacks. This new psychiatrist was the last one on the list. I was about ready to go through the list again and start begging when this psychiatrist said they were actually accepting new patients.

      Now, however, I have a second new option. I've been accepted to a general hospital with a psychiatry wing, which my insurance would cover. The psychiatry wing will only take patients who have been accepted to the hospital. So I have a backup. I can probably report this guy now. But I want to meet the new psychiatrist first. Because I do want to report him, I just want to feel comfortable that it's not going to backfire on me because if I absolutely have to I know how to work around him now. (Deal with his asshattery, complain to his nurse, go through the cycle again.) Plus, my doctor at the general hospital and the new psychiatrist are only seeing me on the contingency that I see a therapist, so I have to be very careful I don't burn bridges. (As literally, Medicaid only wants any psychology/psychiatry services to go through that building.) That's the debate. Essentially, I want my ass very covered before I go report him.

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      • #4
        Bad and/or don't-give-a-care medics are a hazard in any field. In the mental health area, such attitudes will eventually kill someone, either directly or indirectly. Report him, for all our sakes.

        Comment


        • #5
          I understand that you want to protect your ass in the event things don't work out, but think in this term... you don't TRUST this guy. He is apparently not listening to you, which is kinda key in a mental health professional, especially if there are unwanted side effects, like increased feelings of rage, anger, thoughts of death, or increased fear/anxiety. Or if the meds are doing anything at all.

          A family member went through something similar, because it really is hard to find a good psychiatrist. You have to understand that most people don't "get" anxiety disorders. They haven't had a panic attack or had family members who have them on a regular basis. To them, it's just anxiety. Something that everyone has, from time to time. They don't get that it doesn't happen "from time to time" for some people. They don't get that it happens so often that a person's life can be eaten up with trying to avoid the things that trigger it.

          I get the feeling this psychiatrist doesn't "get" it, either. To him it's not a real disorder. In his world it's just something you have to get over, rather than being treated for.

          For the sake of others, he should be reported. That kind of mentality is not helpful to treating anyone!
          If I make no sense, I apologize. I'm constantly interrupted by an actual toddler.

          Comment


          • #6
            What a nightmare. We have such a lack of mental health services. I hope you get good help.

            Comment


            • #7
              Quoth raudf View Post
              I understand that you want to protect your ass in the event things don't work out, but think in this term... you don't TRUST this guy. In his world it's just something you have to get over, rather than being treated for.

              [snip]

              For the sake of others, he should be reported. That kind of mentality is not helpful to treating anyone!
              Not a mental health example (although DH has severe mental health issues also, bpd, anxiety, depression, etc) but do not go to any doctor you don't trust and doesn't listen. You know your body and mind best and any doctor worth their salt will trust that.

              DH had a cough, a nasty one, that just wouldn't go away. It started after a particularly nasty cold. I got the cough too but mine was gone within a month.

              We went to see a doctor, who turned out to be a locum-in-training at our local surgery. The doctor in question listened to the symptoms, read DH's file and then confidently proclaimed that the cough was "psychosomatic" because of Dh's anxiety, and if he could "just relax" it would go away. He didn't physically examine DH except to take his temperature.

              We left feeling angry and ignored.

              Fast forward a week, and a trip to the hospital when DH nearly collapsed with breathing difficulties. Two nebuliser treatments, oxygen and a specialist appointment a week later diagnosed Adult Onset Asthma.

              The GP should have recognised the symptoms in a heartbeat. But he had this stupid idea in his head that he already knew what was wrong, and no amount of us explaining why that wasn't the problem was going to sway him.

              As for MH medications, there are dozens out there, DH has tried seven different kinds and is having a MEd review in a few weeks as the current batch aren't effective enough.

              Incidentally Klonopin (clonazepam) made his anger worse also. But Venlafaxine works...a little. He's on the maximum possible dose of 325mg.

              Comment


              • #8
                Quoth Golden Phoenix View Post
                Incidentally Klonopin (clonazepam) made his anger worse also. But Venlafaxine works...a little. He's on the maximum possible dose of 325mg.
                Venlafaxine is Effexor. It wouldn't do anything for her anxiety; it's an anti-depressant.

                I've taken both Effexor and Wellbutrin. Wellbutrin made all my body hair fall out, but it did help my depression, and I did lose some weight on it. Effexor gave me such horrible migraines I had to stop it.

                Six months of therapy and I don't need medication anymore. So I hope Cooper can get some meds long enough to get therapy, and then maybe get weaned off later.

                I've taken Klonopin too. It works great; never gave me nightmares. But Cooper, if you're taking it daily, don't stop it suddenly. It can cause seizures if stopped suddenly. You have to taper it off, and that damn doctor should have known that.
                Last edited by Sapphire Silk; 08-27-2015, 10:59 PM. Reason: oops wrong word
                They say that God only gives us what we can handle. Apparently, God thinks I'm a bad ass.

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                • #9
                  That's weird, I was prescribed venlafaxine for my GAD, it worked great, maybe it's an off label use?

                  Dh is currently prescribed two medications that are theoretically for something he doesn't have, a beta blocker for migraines and an antipsychotic for BPD.

                  That's the trouble with mental health meds though, what works for one person won't be right for someone else. Fluoxetine (another antidepressant) worked OK for my anxiety but knocked me out, fluoxetine for DH did absolutely nothing, not even the sedative effects.

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