Mental health treatment is not going well, where to go from here?

pokkii

Hey everyone, and thanks in advance for reading this post.

I have been diagnosed with Clinical Depression, Generalized Anxiety Disorder and OCD since I was a child and I'm currently stuck in a rut.
I'm 22 years old and have been on 4 different classes of medications: SSRIs, SNRIs, Antipsychotics and an MAOI. Out of all of these medications, I have only received mild improvement with 4 but have suffered some bad side effects as well as excessive weight gain which I have since almost dropped completely. I also suffer from bad insomnia for which my GP wont prescribe anymore medications.
Despite having had 2 suicide attempts in the past 3 years (one of which was serious) I have only seen the psychiatrist about twice in that time this is due primarily to the fact that they won't keep up with me unless I'm on medications and even then its only to ask about how the meds are affecting me and to rate my mood/sleep. I used to receive counseling when I was in college which I found somewhat helpful but have since graduated.

To be honest I'm feeling stuck here, each time I reschedule an appointment with the clinic it takes 6+ months for it to come, and each time they don't want anything to do with me unless I accept to go on whatever medications they feel like giving me that day. They also only seem to care about my depression and the only time I was offered counselling was when I was suicidal, I have never received treatment specifically for my anxiety disorders since I was a child although they affect me very negatively as well especially considering I have Clinical not Chronic Depression, as such I am not depressed all the time, but I can't remember the last time I wasn't anxious and I feel that anxiety is the cause of me constantly having to move my legs which is terribly annoying and exhausting. I was just wondering whether anyone has any advice on alternatives I could follow as my mental health is having a negative impact on my life and I really just want to get better.

Thank you so much in advance.

Penny Tration

Hey op,

We can't give medical advice, so I'll try to keep this fairly general.


Your experience in the kind of treatment you've received sound similar to my experience in the past.


Firstly, if you're not in counselling/therapy and refusing medication, there's very little a psychiatrist can do for you! They're pretty much the only treatment plans for mental illness (bar hospitalization), so if you're refusing meds and aren't in counselling, they're naturally going to give their time to someone who accepts the treatment offered.


What I'd suggest is to ask your GP for a referral to a counsellor or therapist. If cost is an issue, Google low cost ones in your area, there are absolutely loads of low cost ones.


If your psychiatrist recommends a medication, you should probably take it. Yes, they have unpleasant side effects, but you said yourself that they helped a little - that's the idea of them, to help you somewhat, so that you have the strength to work on the rest. So I'd talk to your psychiatrist about that. I had problems with 5 or 6 different SSRIs, and one eventually worked. There are many you can try til you find one that suits.


If money is no problem, I'd also suggest going privately to a psychiatrist. Unfortunately, waiting lists are big in public health.


But yeah, take the treatment offered by the psychiatrist, call them if you're experiencing bad side effects, ASK for counselling and see how you go from there.


With regards to suicidal ideation, if you feel that way again, please go to your nearest A&E if your GP isn't open.

pokkii

Penny Tration wrote: »

Hey op,

We can't give medical advice, so I'll try to keep this fairly general.


Your experience in the kind of treatment you've received sound similar to my experience in the past.


Firstly, if you're not in counselling/therapy and refusing medication, there's very little a psychiatrist can do for you! They're pretty much the only treatment plans for mental illness (bar hospitalization), so if you're refusing meds and aren't in counselling, they're naturally going to give their time to someone who accepts the treatment offered.


What I'd suggest is to ask your GP for a referral to a counsellor or therapist. If cost is an issue, Google low cost ones in your area, there are absolutely loads of low cost ones.


If your psychiatrist recommends a medication, you should probably take it. Yes, they have unpleasant side effects, but you said yourself that they helped a little - that's the idea of them, to help you somewhat, so that you have the strength to work on the rest. So I'd talk to your psychiatrist about that. I had problems with 5 or 6 different SSRIs, and one eventually worked. There are many you can try til you find one that suits.


If money is no problem, I'd also suggest going privately to a psychiatrist. Unfortunately, waiting lists are big in public health.


But yeah, take the treatment offered by the psychiatrist, call them if you're experiencing bad side effects, ASK for counselling and see how you go from there.


With regards to suicidal ideation, if you feel that way again, please go to your nearest A&E if your GP isn't open.

Hey thank you so much for you reply,

Of course you can't offer medical advice I understand that- I just need some advice on what steps to take as my problem is exactly this: My psychiatrist won't offer me counselling ONLY medications and if I refuse then they just discharge me. My really big problem with medications is worsening insomnia, often worsening anxiety and the weight gain, which I cannot tolerate as I become very obsessed with it, I love exercise and keeping fit and this issue is so bad when I first started gaining weight on medications I kept cutting myself and stabbing myself with needles hoping the fat would come out. I spoke about this with my psychiatrist and she recommended that I eat less - I got to a point I was only getting 100 calories a day because she kept telling me to eat less as according to her it was my fault I was gaining weight not the meds.

Unfortunately, I'm unemployed as you can imagine paying for this is not an option for me

I really empathise with your predicament. It can take years to find a medication or combination of medications that will minimise the impact of your mental health problems. You really have to trust your GP and Psychiatrist as they will try to find what works for you.
Your GP can refer you for psychotherapy or counselling. If you have a medical card you should make regular appointments with your GP. Anxiety can be debillatating so you need to discuss this and highlight it to your GP and Psychiatrist.
If you are feeling suicidal, contact Pieta House or ring the Samaritans.
Do you have a family member or friend that you can talk to? Believe me when I say that having a person to talk to has saved me many times over the years.

pokkii

Deleted User wrote: »

I really empathise with your predicament. It can take years to find a medication or combination of medications that will minimise the impact of your mental health problems. You really have to trust your GP and Psychiatrist as they will try to find what works for you.
Your GP can refer you for psychotherapy or counselling. If you have a medical card you should make regular appointments with your GP. Anxiety can be debillatating so you need to discuss this and highlight it to your GP and Psychiatrist.
If you are feeling suicidal, contact Pieta House or ring the Samaritans.
Do you have a family member or friend that you can talk to? Believe me when I say that having a person to talk to has saved me many times over the years.

Thank you so much for your reply!
To be honest I don't think I trust my Psychiatrist anymore. My GP actually listens to me, he asks about my sleep, my anxiety, how the meds affect me. If I try to talk about counselling or my anxiety to my psychiatrists they just shrug me off and say "Your case is very severe, counselling won't work for you" and "Once your depression gets better so will your anxiety". But this isn't true as I experience anxiety without depression, but they just won't listen to what I have to say and accuse me of being difficult.

I don't have anyone, I have a lot of friends but whenever I tried to talk to them they would block me, ignore my messages or tell me to exercise/go out or stop being sensitive. My parents don't believe in mental illness so discourage me to get treated and say that I'm just psychologically weak. To be honest, I feel like a burden because of this and would rather not try to talk to anyone else about it anymore, I'm tired of losing people I care for because of this.

Magicmatilda

So unfortunately the mental health services in this country leave a lot to be desired. there is barely any counselling services available. Thankfully however there are still a few free/donation based counselling services available. If you google donation based counselling or free counselling in your area you should find something. There is a great charity in Dublin 1 called Oasis Centre that I know of and as mentioned Pieta House, Aware and SoSad also offer services for free or very little. Keep contacting places and explaining your situation until you find a counsellor. There are services out there but you generally have to seek them out yourself unfortunately.

CaoimheSquee

Hi pokkii - im 35 and have suffered from depression for years and understand where you are at.

A psychiatrist (unless a really special one) really won't offer more than diagnosis and meds. I have always found it very difficult to talk with friends and family and in general it seems pretty unsuccessful. There is no objectivity and you end up holding things back.
The key here is finding a good therapist. A counsellor in the general sense of the term may NOT indeed be the best for you right now. Many go to counsellors for day to day stuff or blips they need a bit of help to get over. I have also trained to be a counsellor myself and certainly would only be able to deal with the "light" kind of stuff. A clinical psychologist might be of more benefit to you, but research all the various methods out there!

Your psychiatrist probably also feels getting you a little better on meds will put you in a better position to be successful with therapy.

I spent years paying out of my own wages for various different therapies and I can tell you I wasted hundreds, probably thousands over the years. The key is to find what helps you and to do it as often as you can.

Lots of places do a pay as much as you can fee. Search around on the net for somewhere near you. Check for an aware therapy group near you. Call mental health Ireland for therapist recommendations and advice. Also have a look at mymind.ie and turn2me.ie do online groups and support too.

This is your life and your happiness which you deserve every second of so do all the research and ask all the questions you can. Go with your gut too. If you find yourself not connecting with whoever you go then stop and move on.

Recovery takes time and with mental health is also means getting a few things right like a therapist that works for you (a must!), the right meds (your psychiatrist should be best equipped for this bit), exercise, eating healthy and keeping yourself occupied and fulfilled (as much as possible!). It is hard work but you can absolutely do this. Make a plan, make a list. Tick off one things a day and it will start to get brighter.

triona1

Sorry to say but if you won't take the medication that you are supposed to take no psyche of any kind will take your life into thier hands.Mods could this moved to lti depression please