First psychiatrist visit tomorrow

[faraway_beach]

I've consulted a therapist a few times. She said she's always booked because she's the only way to get to see the psychiatrist. I have the impression that the psych will not talk about my day, the way the therapist does, but rather will try to see if I fit a class that might be helped by prescription drugs; I think the reason the psych is popular is that she can prescribe and the therapist cannot.

I feel oddly resistant to the idea of script meds. I say "oddly" because I've been considering trying to get other psychoactive drugs such as psilocybin mushrooms. I don't know why I would trust non-standardized off-market drugs more than the official, FDA-tested ones, but there it is.

I've seen people complain about pharma meds horrible side effects, but natural psychoactives can have bad trips, too. Has anyone tried both and can compare?

 

[WhiteDespair]

Ironically, Zyprexa worked for me. I got it as an AE for SN and it actually did its job. It cut the chatter in my head substantially and removed a whole mess of CtB ideation.

My Psychiatrist does check on my day/week/month/whatever and I did go to him the week after Thanksgiving when I had a bit of a bad spell over the holiday.

 

[faraway_beach]

Ironically, Zyprexa worked for me. I got it as an AE for SN and it actually did its job. It cut the chatter in my head substantially and removed a whole mess of CtB ideation.

My Psychiatrist does check on my day/week/month/whatever and I did go to him the week after Thanksgiving when I had a bit of a bad spell over the holiday.

You got it to help you die and it's helping you live? Unintended good consequences! Thanks for your input, I think it's important to hear about good experiences.

 

[bpdteacher]

Hi, I'm from the UK so not sure if this is relevant to you, but I actually found my appointment to the psychiatrist a good thing. He asked good questions and listened to me completely, and ultimately from it I got my diagnosis of BPD. While I'm not as bothered about the label per se it did help to get me onto waiting lists for more appropriate therapies more quickly. Regarding medication my psychiatrist told me there isn't any for BPD and my doctor had me on anti-depressants anyway. I've not had a useful experience of them and am starting to look into micro-dosing, which is not legal here I don't think. I would see what they offer you regarding medication but make sure you're informed of the side-effects of anything before you take it. You never know-it does work for some people. Good luck!

 

[needtogo]

I would personally say that you should try options other than psychiatric medication if possible. Be very weary of the side effects. I've tried both and the non fda approved ones helped me immensely. The prescription ones sent me to hell. At least, the wrong one did. Remeron worked really great for me, until I was convinced by a new doc I should get off of it. Then they gave me lexapro, which shut down my sexual system, ironically my anxiety before was erectile dysfunction. so obviously you can see why I'm hesitant on psych meds. If you are worried about sexual side effects, remeron is really the only antidepressant to not do much at all. If you're worried about sleep, it sedates you pretty heavily and increases your appetite. Can't give you much more info on other drugs.

 

[Deleted member 1465]

If you do a search on 'antidepressants ' there have been some interesting threads recently.

 

[terry_a_davis]

I've consulted a therapist a few times. She said she's always booked because she's the only way to get to see the psychiatrist. I have the impression that the psych will not talk about my day, the way the therapist does, but rather will try to see if I fit a class that might be helped by prescription drugs; I think the reason the psych is popular is that she can prescribe and the therapist cannot.

I feel oddly resistant to the idea of script meds. I say "oddly" because I've been considering trying to get other psychoactive drugs such as psilocybin mushrooms. I don't know why I would trust non-standardized off-market drugs more than the official, FDA-tested ones, but there it is.

I've seen people complain about pharma meds horrible side effects, but natural psychoactives can have bad trips, too. Has anyone tried both and can compare?

Do you have an idea of what your illness is? I've taken anti-psychotics for schizophrenia and they got rid of all my symptoms. I gained some weight and slept more but overall i'm glad i'd taken them.

About the psychoactive recreational drugs i took lsd years ago and it was horrifying, i never took it again. Many others take it without problems. I've also taken mdma which was great but i don't think it will solve problems longterm apart from may be ptsd.

 

[faraway_beach]

Hi, I'm from the UK so not sure if this is relevant to you, but I actually found my appointment to the psychiatrist a good thing. He asked good questions and listened to me completely, and ultimately from it I got my diagnosis of BPD. While I'm not as bothered about the label per se it did help to get me onto waiting lists for more appropriate therapies more quickly. Regarding medication my psychiatrist told me there isn't any for BPD and my doctor had me on anti-depressants anyway. I've not had a useful experience of them and am starting to look into micro-dosing, which is not legal here I don't think. I would see what they offer you regarding medication but make sure you're informed of the side-effects of anything before you take it. You never know-it does work for some people. Good luck!

This is true, just because she recommends something doesn't mean I have to take it. I've never heard a doctor do a good job of explaining side effects, though. And then they wonder why the patients second-guess them by looking things up online.. I shouldn't be so pessimistic before I even consult the doctor!

I would personally say that you should try options other than psychiatric medication if possible. Be very weary of the side effects. I've tried both and the non fda approved ones helped me immensely. The prescription ones sent me to hell. At least, the wrong one did. Remeron worked really great for me, until I was convinced by a new doc I should get off of it. Then they gave me lexapro, which shut down my sexual system, ironically my anxiety before was erectile dysfunction. so obviously you can see why I'm hesitant on psych meds. If you are worried about sexual side effects, remeron is really the only antidepressant to not do much at all. If you're worried about sleep, it sedates you pretty heavily and increases your appetite. Can't give you much more info on other drugs.

Yes, possible side effects worry me. The thing about pharma is that they usually want you to take it as a maintenance med, if I understand correctly, and I'm wary of taking so much of anything. Non-approved ones seem to be just one dose to see if it helps or not.

If you do a search on 'antidepressants ' there have been some interesting threads recently.

Those are probably the ones that are worrying me!

Do you have an idea of what your illness is? I've taken anti-psychotics for schizophrenia and they got rid of all my symptoms. I gained some weight and slept more but overall i'm glad i'd taken them.

About the psychoactive recreational drugs i took lsd years ago and it was horrifying, i never took it again. Many others take it without problems. I've also taken mdma which was great but i don't think it will solve problems longterm apart from may be ptsd.

The therapist thinks I'm depressed. But I've been diagnosed with a nasty cancer and I've just lost my father, so I think that if I'm sad, there's a reason for it.


Thanks for all the replies!

 

[terry_a_davis]

This is true, just because she recommends something doesn't mean I have to take it. I've never heard a doctor do a good job of explaining side effects, though. And then they wonder why the patients second-guess them by looking things up online.. I shouldn't be so pessimistic before I even consult the doctor!


Yes, possible side effects worry me. The thing about pharma is that they usually want you to take it as a maintenance med, if I understand correctly, and I'm wary of taking so much of anything. Non-approved ones seem to be just one dose to see if it helps or not.


Those are probably the ones that are worrying me!


The therapist thinks I'm depressed. But I've been diagnosed with a nasty cancer and I've just lost my father, so I think that if I'm sad, there's a reason for it.


Thanks for all the replies!

I'm very sorry to hear about your diagnosis and your father passing. When i hear things like that it makes me realise my problems are nothing. I wish you all the best.

 

[faraway_beach]

I'm very sorry to hear about your diagnosis and your father passing. When i hear things like that it makes me realise my problems are nothing. I wish you all the best.

Thank you. I feel that my problems are mild compared to other people on here. It's pretty futile comparing, I think. Each person has to decide for him/herself what's bearable.

 

[faraway_beach]

She kept me waiting about half an hour, then the visit took half an hour. She offered me a script for either Cymbalta (duloxetine) or Abilify (aripiprazole). I think my problem is anxiety, she thinks it's anxiety and depression. As expected, she down-played possible side effects and said they would stop on discontinuing the drug, that there would be no problems from discontinuing. I would have to take the drug every day for a month to see if it does anything.

She knows I'm going to look them up online.