need advice - first appointment with psychiatrist

[Crazy4u]

I mentioned in a previous post that my ctb plan fell apart because I couldn't rehome my special needs dog. I started looking into temporary recovery options and supplements to keep my """ together for a few months.

I discovered that my insurance partially covers the costs of online mental health services. I booked a video appointment with a psychiatrist this weekend. I didn't consider therapy because it is too expensive and time consuming. I also don't like to talk about my feelings to anyone.

The main issues I need help with are:

- very low energy
- get distracted when I study and work
- sleep for a few hours only. Melatonin doesn't help
- calm down my nerves

My goal is to get helpful medication that doesn't cause addiction or severe side effects. Do you have any advice for me?

Thanks!

 

[Auto Immunity After]

I think you should be as honest as you can about how you are feeling. You just made a list here , give that list to the Dr. They can address each symptom individually and hopefully come up with positive solution which may include diet changes, exercises (I hate them) , sleeping pills and/or Anti-Depressants. Good Luck.

 

[Smart No More]

I'd like to find that holy grail myself. Sorry to read about your dog issue. I can relate a bit as I'm hanging around for my cat and my brother. My cat would have a very hard time living with anyone else and I feel guilty leaving her. You might find that cycling a mix of meds is the best way to avoid addiction. You may also need different drugs for energy & concentration and sleep & calm. There are psych meds that are touted to run that gamut but I'm not personally confident in psych meds. They do seem to help some people though. Mirtazepine was what a doctor suggested for these symptoms. I turned it down as my symptoms are a result of a physical issue rather than mental health and I'm facing issues with communicating it to them but maybe that's a route that's more suitable for you. Seems like most psych meds have a certain level of addiction/withdrawal symptoms and they often kind of poop out. Doctors tend to have a suck it and see approach with a lot of psych meds. It makes me uncomfortable tbh but again, it may be ok for yourself. I'm not trying to put you off. Just thinking out loud really. I guess ultimately you need to explain to them what you have to us in your OP. Truth is I don't really have any useful advice lol, I just kind of related to your post a bit and wanted to post a reply as a result. I hope you manage to find a good balance/solution and I'm sure your dog appreciates the effort you're putting in. :)

 

[Crazy4u]

I think you should be as honest as you can about how you are feeling. You just made a list here , give that list to the Dr. They can address each symptom individually and hopefully come up with positive solution which may include diet changes, exercises (I hate them) , sleeping pills and/or Anti-Depressants. Good Luck.

exercises, really?!

I plan to be honest about everything except suicide. I won't bring it up and I hope she doesn't.

Thank you

I'd like to find that holy grail myself. Sorry to read about your dog issue. I can relate a bit as I'm hangong around for my cat and my brother. My cat would have a very hard time living with anyone else and I feel guilty leaving her. You might find that cycling a mix of meds is the best way to avoid addiction. You may also need different drugs for energy & concentration and sleep & calm. There are psych meds that are touted to run that gamut but I'm not personally confident in psych meds. They do seem to help some people though. Mirtazepine was what a doctor suggested for these symptoms. I turned it down as my symptoms are a result of a physical issue rather than mental health and I'm facing issurs with communicating it to them but maybe that's a route that's more suitable for you. Seems like most psych meds have a certain level of addiction/withdrawal symptoms and they often kind of poop out. Doctors tend to have a suck it and see approach with a lot of psych meds. It makes me uncomfortable tbh but again, it may be ok for yourself. I'm not trying to put you off. Just thinking out loud really. I guess ultimately you need to explain to them what you have to us in your OP. Truth is I don't really have any useful advice lol, I just kind of related to your post a bit and wanted to post a reply as a result. I hope you manage to find a good balance/solution and I'm sure your dog appreciates the effort you're putting in. :)

You are not discouraging me in any way. I find your post helpful because I'm nervous about the video call. I'm uncomfortable with chemicals and side effects. In fact, I don't have a primary physician and avoid going to doctors because I don't trust them. My thought process is I don't have anything to lose. If I don't feel comfortable, I won't accept the medication or maybe find another psychiatrist.

I will read more about Mirtazepine before the appointment. I'm curious about the physical issue you are talking about but you don't have to say more details if you are not comfortable. Your point about rotating medications is helpful. Thank you

 

[JustAMatterOfTime]

That sounds specific enough for a first appointment, I've written out full pages and it hasn't helped much, just be prepared to have to wait for the pills to kick in and don't be discouraged if one doesn't work for you.

 

[Crazy4u]

Update: the appointment lasted 15 minutes. I was prescribed hydroxyzine and escitalopram. She recommended therapy but I don't want to

 

[Smart No More]

Update: the appointment lasted 15 minutes. I was prescribed hydroxyzine and escitalopram. She recommended therapy but I don't want to

Are you happy with the result? Did they seem receptive to your input?

I'm interested to see how you get on with those meds. Hope it works out for you.

 

[Angi]

I really hope the meds work for you! The addictive properties of psych meds have me super-scared, but anything for our loved dogs! Let us know when you see the effects!

 

[Crazy4u]

Are you happy with the result? Did they seem receptive to your input?

I'm interested to see how you get on with those meds. Hope it works out for you.

Thank you! I have mixed feeling about it. tbh, it was worse than expected but I will give it a try and stay with the same psychiatrist.

Pros: she gave me low dosage and didn't try to give me many medications. She doesn't believe in giving strong medications or many medications. she was not pushy about anything.

Cons: I thought she was in a hurry and tried to finish as fast as she could. I gave her very short answers to most questions and didn't speak much. She started talking about medication within the first 2-3 minutes of the appointment! I thought she was not thorough and she didn't ask for more details about specific things. It was like: what medications should we try. She suspects anxiety to be the main issue but I was not diagnosed with anything! I expected the first appointment to last 30 minutes.

I really hope the meds work for you! The addictive properties of psych meds have me super-scared, but anything for our loved dogs! Let us know when you see the effects!

Thank you. I hope so too! I feel so guilty about my dog. I'm like you. I don't feel comfortable about addiction, chemicals and side effects. Those (professionals) misdiagnose patients often.

 

[Smart No More]

Anxiety is such an easy cop out. It annoys me immensely. Anxiety is a natural response to things in life and whilst there's no doubt that some suffer immensely with it there is no benefit to attempting to completely eliminate it from people's lives by masking it with medication as the underlying issue still exists. It's such an unhealthy approach to things and it's fueled by conveinience, laziness and money. It's not fueled by your/our best intetests as the patient/s. The common understanding of drugs in general is so scewed that the medical system and the war on illicit drugs appears utterly insane to those that see it as it actually is.

Best of luck with your meds. I too am cautious of addiction to psych meds and the various side effects. They're so underestimated and need addressing. At least you're treading carefully at low doses. It does work for some so fingers crossed for you.

Sorry for going on about my concerns btw. It's a real bone of contention for me so I get a bit heated over it.

 

[Crazy4u]

Anxiety is such an easy cop out. It annoys me immensely. Anxiety is a natural response to things in life and whilst there's no doubt that some suffer immensely with it there is no benefit to attempting to completely eliminate it from people's lives by masking it with medication as the underlying issue still exists. It's such an unhealthy approach to things and it's fueled by conveinience, laziness and money. It's not fueled by your/our best intetests as the patient/s. The common understanding of drugs in general is so scewed that the medical system and the war on illicit drugs appears utterly insane to those that see it as it actually is.

Best of luck with your meds. I too am cautious of addiction to psych meds and the various side effects. They're so underestimated and need addressing. At least you're treading carefully at low doses. It does work for some so fingers crossed for you.

Sorry for going on about my concerns btw. It's a real bone of contention for me so I get a bit heated over it.

in my case, I want anxiety to be under control. It doesn't have to be eliminated.

the war on drugs in insane. I think some drugs like cannabis are safer than some prescribtion drugs.

It was nice to hear about your experience :)

 

[WhyBotherAnymore?]

I hope the meds work for you. It's a little disappointing that your appointment was so short. Perhaps having someone to talk everything through may be useful. Sometimes I find that just talking to someone and putting everything out there and seeking advice from someone impartial helps a lot :)

 

[Smart No More]

I'm not sure if I explained myself properly on the anxiety thing. I was trying to say that not everyone needs anxiety meds and it's got to the point where you can't express human emotion properly in front of a doc without being told you have anxiety. But yeah, I totally get that some people experience it in overwhelming amounts and do need medication. Best of luck with yours. I'm glad you're getting some help with it at leadt. It is really tricky to tackle long term using meds so some 'mindfulness' exercises may be useful for you. Not sure if you've considered it already but as mention cannabis maybe you could try some cbd/cbn. Non addictive and can be used long term with little loss of effect for many. Some claim to experience tollerence but for me cannabis is the only drug that I never developed and real tollerence to. In fact the opposite is probably true. I'd say stay away from thc though as that definitely triggers peoples anxiety. It is beneficial but you need to massively outdose it with the cbd/cbn. At the risk of being patronising (I don't know how much you already know), cbd is the natural 'antidote' to the psychoactive and paranoia/anxiety inducing effects of THC. CBD has been bread out of cannabis over many years but has now been bread back into many strains as the science and awareness of its benefits has gained traction over the last 10 years or so. That's why there's now cbd all over the place in chemists and online stores. That stuff however is often not actually from the right source. It's often from hemp or rhuderalis which is in the cannabis family but has a very limited profile of active chemicals. If you can find a sweetspot between thc and cbd and cbn ratios it's a bit of a holy grail for a lot of people that swesr it has got them off of opiod meds and benzos etc. If you do decide to try it out I'd say do research, start with purely cbd (ideally from a source that has a fuller profile) and then introduce very tiny amounts of thc and take it very slow cautiously to avoid going out of your comfort zone accidentally. I truly believe there's some efficacy to it all if you're in a position to experiment and use the right stuff.

 

[Angi]

She started talking about medication within the first 2-3 minutes of the appointment! I thought she was not thorough and she didn't ask for more details about specific things. It was like: what medications should we try. She suspects anxiety to be the main issue but I was not diagnosed with anything! I expected the first appointment to last 30 minutes.

In your position I would probably have felt like she did not care much. At the same time, giving you medication seems to be a psychiatrist's job, I am told their only job. (I have to rely on other people's stories there, I am generally scared of doctors, and never ever ventured into a psychiatrist's office.) If you would like someone to listen to you longer than just enough minutes to choose pills for you, you could give therapy a go after all. I do that, and I find it excrutiatingly painful, but very helpful at the same time. Availability of course depends on where you are, and whether the health care system there covers any of it. Since you have to go back to your psychiatrist anyway, and she already recommended it, maybe you can get a more detailed recommendation and see if you like it!

The stories about cannabis make it sound sooo useful. I am glad it works for many other people, unfortunately it just gives me anxiety and makes me unable to sleep, even the pure CBD stuff. No psych drug is for everyone, I guess, not even the plant based ones.

 

[Ethereal Knight]

you talked to a doctor for 15 minutes and they gave you two daily-use psychiatric drugs?

that's psychiatry in a nutshell

I suggest you watch the documentary called Medicating Normal. although it's not free, it's easily found it on torrent websites anyway. it's a good documentary.

 

[Crazy4u]

I hope the meds work for you. It's a little disappointing that your appointment was so short. Perhaps having someone to talk everything through may be useful. Sometimes I find that just talking to someone and putting everything out there and seeking advice from someone impartial helps a lot :)

thank you :) I lived my entire life keeping to myself and being private. I don't feel comfortable talking to a therapist. I rely on sanctioned suicide forums and their decent members to cope with life. It is my only safe place

I'm not sure if I explained myself properly on the anxiety thing. I was trying to say that not everyone needs anxiety meds and it's got to the point where you can't express human emotion properly in front of a doc without being told you have anxiety. But yeah, I totally get that some people experience it in overwhelming amounts and do need medication. Best of luck with yours. I'm glad you're getting some help with it at leadt. It is really tricky to tackle long term using meds so some 'mindfulness' exercises may be useful for you. Not sure if you've considered it already but as mention cannabis maybe you could try some cbd/cbn. Non addictive and can be used long term with little loss of effect for many. Some claim to experience tollerence but for me cannabis is the only drug that I never developed and real tollerence to. In fact the opposite is probably true. I'd say stay away from thc though as that definitely triggers peoples anxiety. It is beneficial but you need to massively outdose it with the cbd/cbn. At the risk of being patronising (I don't know how much you already know), cbd is the natural 'antidote' to the psychoactive and paranoia/anxiety inducing effects of THC. CBD has been bread out of cannabis over many years but has now been bread back into many strains as the science and awareness of its benefits has gained traction over the last 10 years or so. That's why there's now cbd all over the place in chemists and online stores. That stuff however is often not actually from the right source. It's often from hemp or rhuderalis which is in the cannabis family but has a very limited profile of active chemicals. If you can find a sweetspot between thc and cbd and cbn ratios it's a bit of a holy grail for a lot of people that swesr it has got them off of opiod meds and benzos etc. If you do decide to try it out I'd say do research, start with purely cbd (ideally from a source that has a fuller profile) and then introduce very tiny amounts of thc and take it very slow cautiously to avoid going out of your comfort zone accidentally. I truly believe there's some efficacy to it all if you're in a position to experiment and use the right stuff.

I understand everything you said. Many people feel anxious and it doesn't mean they have anxiety disorder. It could be temporary feelings, life problems, or personality. tbh, I don't think I have anxiety disorder I just feel anxious and stressed about many things. It is worse because I'm highly suicidal. Of course, I can't talk about suicide to the psychiatrist so I only open up about anxiety and depression issues!!!!!

I also understand your point about getting numb and not expressing normal emotions without being offered anxiety medication. I can't comment on it because I feel numb and I like it! I enjoy having no emotions

Cannabis is legal in my state but I didn't try it due to unfair DUI laws. Many people who have CPTSD reported positive results from CBD and cannabis so it might be helpful for me (I think my main issue is CPTSD but the psychiatrist has no idea).

I'm going to bookmark your comment to return to it in the future.

In your position I would probably have felt like she did not care much. At the same time, giving you medication seems to be a psychiatrist's job, I am told their only job. (I have to rely on other people's stories there, I am generally scared of doctors, and never ever ventured into a psychiatrist's office.) If you would like someone to listen to you longer than just enough minutes to choose pills for you, you could give therapy a go after all. I do that, and I find it excrutiatingly painful, but very helpful at the same time. Availability of course depends on where you are, and whether the health care system there covers any of it. Since you have to go back to your psychiatrist anyway, and she already recommended it, maybe you can get a more detailed recommendation and see if you like it!

The stories about cannabis make it sound sooo useful. I am glad it works for many other people, unfortunately it just gives me anxiety and makes me unable to sleep, even the pure CBD stuff. No psych drug is for everyone, I guess, not even the plant based ones.

I also can't imagine going to a psychiatrist in person. The appointment is virtual. I don't want anyone to listen to me. I was hoping the first appointment to include more evaluation leading to a diagnosis or maybe a good justification for the recommended medication. I (felt) the recommendation was just a high level guess about what I need.

 

[Smart No More]

I didn't mean feeling numb. I just meant displaying very normal emotions in front of docs has become somewhat taboo as it causes them to assume anxiety or 'mental health' issues when your feelings are actually a very normal and healthy reaction to your circumstances. I thinknyou ultimately understood what I was say but just wanted to mention that just for full clarity.

Keep us posted on how you get on with your meds. If numbness is whst you're looking for you may well get on very well. I've seen people that take psych meds describe a period of really noticing their mood improving after a 2 to 3 weeks of taking them so hopefully that will be the case for yourself. :)

 

[Crazy4u]

you talked to a doctor for 15 minutes and they gave you two daily-use psychiatric drugs?

that's psychiatry in a nutshell

I suggest you watch the documentary called Medicating Normal. although it's not free, it's easily found it on torrent websites anyway. it's a good documentary.

I expected 30-40 minutes for a first appointment. Yes, the drugs need to be used daily. I read horror stories about psychiatry on this forum and other forums. I might check out the documentary you recommended.

I think talking to a psychiatrist as a suicidal is interesting. If the medication works, great! I can live with my dog for a few months or years (If I get lucky). If the medication fails, I wouldn't feel as guilty about ctbing and rehoming my dog. I tried!

 

[dandan]

After 20 years of depression, look into hormones. I'm a man and testosterone was a solution for me. My doctor says women have same issues.... please check up hormones levels before useless pills....

 

[Crazy4u]

After 20 years of depression, look into hormones. I'm a man and testosterone was a solution for me. My doctor says women have same issues.... please check up hormones levels before useless pills....

this post is a good reminder to do some tests. hospitals and clinics are still overwhelmed with COVID. I haven't done a check up in a long time

 

[dandan]

this post is a good reminder to do some tests. hospitals and clinics are still overwhelmed with COVID. I haven't done a check up in a long time

Yes but believe me , I went through all meds I 20 years, all chemicals and even drugs buy looking for a solution... i was down, tired and in bed but sleepless...


Today I know testosterone might have side effects I the long run,
But I'm 39yo.. and I have to live at least whatever I can my best.... today a beautiful high-school rich girl died, probably 38, 39yo too... this life can be so short, hope you do find a solution through tests and not psychological useless talks, although now that I'm fine, I could use it once in a while LOL

 

[bleeeeeep]

my experiences with psychiatrists *have been similar.. quick appointments, for a very short period of time, and leaving with a prescription that you're not even sure you want. it's difficult especially if they don't fully evaluate you and instead just give you some medication expecting it to fix things straight away. sometimes, as someone else mentioned, the issues you are having can be exacerbated by thyroid issues/hormone levels/vitamin deficiencies so i think getting those checked out is a good idea.

in my experience, promethazine helped me sleep longer/better in the short term, and it's really not addictive at all compared to other medication that is meant to aid sleep. so if hydroxyzine doesn't do the job, maybe that could work. anyway, i hope you're able to make the progress you want to make in terms of receiving a diagnosis and everything else :)

 

[Crazy4u]

my experiences with psychiatrists has been similar.. quick appointments, for a very short period of time, and leaving with a prescription that you're not even sure you want. it's difficult especially if they don't fully evaluate you and instead just give you some medication expecting it to fix things straight away. sometimes, as someone else mentioned, the issues you are having can be exacerbated by thyroid issues/hormone levels/vitamin deficiencies so i think getting those checked out is a good idea.

in my experience, promethazine helped me sleep longer/better in the short term, and it's really not addictive at all compared to other medication that is meant to aid sleep. so if hydroxyzine doesn't do the job, maybe that could work. anyway, i hope you're able to make the progress you want to make in terms of receiving a diagnosis and everything else :)

I am surprised to hear about your experience. If this is how it works, why can't we buy meds over the counter? what is the point of prescriptions?!

I had vitamin deficincies in the past. I think I had a test 7-15 years ago!!!! can't remember. I spent years taking supplements like iron, multi vitamin, vitamin d, and vitamin b. They don't work. I really think physical tests are a great idea!

thanks for suggesting promethazine. I will keep it in mind. I hope hydroxyzine works because I am tired of being sleepy

 

[bleeeeeep]

I am surprised to hear about your experience. If this is how it works, why can't we buy meds over the counter? what is the point of prescriptions?!

my experience probably isn't universal, because i was only sent to a psychiatrist after a few years of therapy as an adolescent; maybe that explains the brevity of the sessions. even though reading people's experiences on here makes me think most psychiatrists are useless. but yes, sometimes i really do not understand it - it can feel like they take advantage of your situation by quickly piling you with x amount of medication that they don't properly explain the side effects/addictive qualities/withdrawal symptoms of. my psychiatrist was nice, at least i think she was, but it was like as soon as she made sure i hadn't killed myself as a result of the anti-depressant i was put on, i was discharged back into regular talking therapy.

also i'm currently trying the vitamin route and have to say i think you're right, they are such a waste of time and money, i feel the same as before. i hope the hydroxyzine works for you too! insomnia and other sleeping problems really are torturous