Treatments and therapies - Beyond Blue Forums

I would like to get more sessions but my GP told me to wait for a month for the care plan review

replies: 7

Hi all, I got my mental health care plan from my GP in early October this year. And now I already have 6 amazing sessions with my Psychologist. Today I went to see my GP, hoping to get my care plan reviewed and get my 7th-10th sessions under mental h... View more

Hi all, I got my mental health care plan from my GP in early October this year. And now I already have 6 amazing sessions with my Psychologist. Today I went to see my GP, hoping to get my care plan reviewed and get my 7th-10th sessions under mental health care plan. However, my GP told me based on the medicare guideline, the care plan review has to be at least 60 days after the first referral date, so I was told to come back in December. To me, this time restriction is very weird, did anyone encounter this situation before? Is there really such a rule? I really hope to see my psychologist soon. Thanks!

Frustrated with the lack of Mental Health Services in the bush!

replies: 2

So I have BPD! Anyone would think it was Covid, as a lot of psychologists and psychiatrists avoid BPD patients! My psychologist is advising me to go to a mental health clinic for time out as she is of no help to me outside of hours. But since I was i... View more

So I have BPD! Anyone would think it was Covid, as a lot of psychologists and psychiatrists avoid BPD patients! My psychologist is advising me to go to a mental health clinic for time out as she is of no help to me outside of hours. But since I was in there for 2 weeks back in 2011, there is no way I am going back there! I hated it then! My psychiatrist travels from Sydney each month, but typical of rural areas, the waiting time between follow up appointments is 3+ months, and for new patients it is 10+ months. My follow up appointment isn’t until April. So really I have only got my GP to depend on somewhat, and generally GP’s don’t want to adjust or change medication without approval or instructions from your treating psychiatrist. To add to my frustration and anger over the lack of help, to use a psychiatrist online you have to go to your GP to get a referral for a Telehealth appointment with a psychiatrist online. To get into your GP can be 5-10 days waiting! So I am left to battle on by myself, and am running out of patients, let alone time, for all this shit! Psychologists these days won’t offer after hour care, and most psychiatrists are diagnose and treat. No psychiatrists I know of do somatic mindfulness or do psychotherapy like my old psychiatrist from Sydney did. Once my therapy ceased with him in 2013, due to his retirement, I have had no suitable replacement that does what he does! Has Australia become that backward when it comes to Mental Health and providing much needed psychotherapy and somatic therapies for personality disorders? Yes it has! I am totally over it and totally over the multiple steps we need to take, and the time it takes, just to get help. Is there any easier way to get help?

A telehealth GP told me mental problems are Aussies(locals) exclusive

replies: 4

Posted this on the multicultural section but seems like I should post here... I was asking about my insomnia and sleeping pills cuz I had severe sleeping problems along with depression, anxiety, social anxiety, PTSD and a bunch of stuff.... He was li... View more

Posted this on the multicultural section but seems like I should post here... I was asking about my insomnia and sleeping pills cuz I had severe sleeping problems along with depression, anxiety, social anxiety, PTSD and a bunch of stuff.... He was like: you Chinese study soooo hard dont push yourself too much I was like 'excuse me I have stress from study but I didn't tell you that at all how could you just assume that ???? and I am not studying hard thank you for your stereotype now I feel like shit' in my mind but I didn't tell him and he started to tell a bunch of stuff like I should manage my stress by myself, dont be like Aussies they take so many pills so they are having sleeping problems, there are a bunch of online tutorials of sleeping tricks, people who have insomnia are not busy enough :))))))))) How do I cope with this? I can manage my depression myself? Good to know.

Should I seek a new psychologist?

replies: 4

8 months ago I moved across the world, leaving my friends, some family and my job. I've been seeing my psychologist for 7 months now. I'd say there has been some symptomatic improvements but that isn't necessarily a result of the session. Years ago, ... View more

8 months ago I moved across the world, leaving my friends, some family and my job. I've been seeing my psychologist for 7 months now. I'd say there has been some symptomatic improvements but that isn't necessarily a result of the session. Years ago, I was diagnosed with depression and anxiety. Other than my current psychologist, I've never told a health professional before that I have suicidal thoughts. I don't really know how to explain my doubts. Despite the many sessions I've had with Dr H, I am unsure of how I feel when I am with them. I'm not sure I trust them but I don't know why. I don't feel that I can tell them everything. I feel embarrassed during the sessions and I hate that I cannot control my emotions when we discuss my trauma. I don't feel comfortable expressing myself, in fact I despise myself when I cry in front of them. If I cannot explain myself, they will make suggestions based on what they understand and regardless of whether or not it is correct, I will agree with what they have said. I do not feel that I can correct them. I feel inferior to them and worry that disagreeing will cause them distress and upset. I worry that I am wasting their time. Some times, I feel like their opinion is being pushed onto me (but that relates more to me not being able to disagree). On the other hand, they have been helpful with my anxiety (as much as they can considering my situation). They have identified over 10 schemas I have and on multiple occasions have pointed them out to me in discussions. They have no doubt helped me. Do you think I should seek out someone else to help me on my journey? I worry that I am just sabotaging myself with these worries; creating problems that aren't actually there. But I don't feel comfortable with bringing up these issues with Dr H. To me that looks like another red flag. Also, I don't know that I want to go over everything again with someone new. There is still a lot to be done; Dr H said this journey would take at least 1 if not 2 years to see some permeant improvements. I don't really know if advice can be given to me on this but I would wholeheartedly appreciate any feedback on what I have said. Thank you so much in advance. I apologise deeply if I haven't made much sense, I'm not at all good at articulating my thoughts.

Diagnosis confusion

replies: 6

Hey everyone, happy new year! Hope this is the right forum to post this on. I just had some concerns regarding my mental-health prognosis for anyone willing to read. So late 2019 I reached out to a clinical psychologist following a particularly nasty... View more

Hey everyone, happy new year! Hope this is the right forum to post this on. I just had some concerns regarding my mental-health prognosis for anyone willing to read. So late 2019 I reached out to a clinical psychologist following a particularly nasty episode of depression et al. After a couple of sessions I asked him if he thought I had a serious condition and he highlighted BPD as a possible diagnosis. Specially he labelled me as “a high-functioning Borderline with avoidant traits”. I was unsure and, after doing some research, booked a session with a local psychiatrist. She interrogated me for about 40min, after which I asked her if she agreed with the psychologists initial diagnosis. She said she did and gave me an info packet on BPD before shuffling me out the door without another word. She did not request that I book a follow-up appt and I wasn’t in a state to press the issue. Anyway, a year and a half later and I more-or-less feel that the glove fits, but there’s still doubt. Maybe it’s a little silly but no-one exactly gave me a card so I’m still unsure about how seriously I should take myself and my symptoms. The “high functioning” bit means I can somewhat get by most of the time and it would be easy to just repress, tell myself it was all a bad dream and sink back into the old numb/dissociated sense of identity I had before starting this mental health journey. What if I’m exaggerating? What if I’m really making all this up for some sick sense of self-validation? Am I just "making mountains out of mole-hills" and "thinking myself into it" like folks have always told me? blah blah the old wheel turns round. I’ve brought this up with the psych but he just tells me to “focus on recovery, not diagnosis” and refuses to provide any substantial clarification. Anyway that’s the story, and I guess I’d like to know whether I’m missing something here? Have I been effectively diagnosed with BPD? Is it okay to say I have it should I want/need to disclose in the future? Should I take the plunge and pursue DBT? I’m not exactly planning to go broadcasting it in the village square, and I'm not looking to find excuses for myself, but BPD is a serious diagnosis and it'd just be nice to have a little more certainty about it so I can be confident going forward and put those self-doubting thoughts to rest. Any advice would be appreciated, thanks

New Psychologist

replies: 1

Hi all, When going back to see a psychologist again and you feel like you have a thousand issues that are contributing to how your feeling, how do you choose which issues need to be talked about more urgently? Work, personal health battles, relations... View more

Hi all, When going back to see a psychologist again and you feel like you have a thousand issues that are contributing to how your feeling, how do you choose which issues need to be talked about more urgently? Work, personal health battles, relationships, using my imagination/day dreaming often to escape reality, past sexual and emotional abuse, stress and coping strategies, gambling habit. I feel like i dont know where to begin and that theres too few sessions to get through everything! I had my first session today and when asked where i want to start i just went with work but i feel like i could have started somewhere else more important like relationships or my personal health issues.

Major depression about to apply for DSP

replies: 3

Hi guys im new here. I’m stressing out because I am in the process of getting the letters from my doctors. My GP and clinical psychologist. I have an advocate who is trying to help but I feel out of control because my doctors are t responding to her ... View more

Hi guys im new here. I’m stressing out because I am in the process of getting the letters from my doctors. My GP and clinical psychologist. I have an advocate who is trying to help but I feel out of control because my doctors are t responding to her requests. She sent them emails and they never reply. She calls their offices and they do t call her back. Then my psychologist says that the template my advocate emailed her “looks like a 2 year old has written it up”. However the template is used by most advocates as I have received a few when I was looking for one that had time to help me. I paid $170 for a proper report but she won’t address the 2 questions about “treated and stabilised” as she thinks it’s lying as she believes people have gotten better. The other question about working more than 15 hours and able to after 2 years, she wrote “ can’t work part time or full time in the foreseeable future” she still didn’t mention the “2 years”. I can’t force her to write what the advocate wants her to write. Im afraid if Centrelink calls her and ask “is it stabilised?” and she says “there are people who do get better” and ruins it for me. Instead of helping my depression and anxiety she’s making it worse. Do they call the psychologist or just my GP? Im pissed off!

Advice on how to get medical evidence for DSP

replies: 1

Hey there Looking for some advice on how to get the medical evidence to show I have an intellectual disability and IQ less than 70. As from what I can see on the Centrelink website no other medical evidence is required. Thanks in advance

Unsatisfactory response from GP related to physical injury leading to distrust in her What to do

replies: 4

Following an injury I was asked by the doctor in ED to attend my local GP to get a referal for a specialist to review my injury. The GP ignored the letter from ED doctor and insisted the injury was minor and come back in 6 weeks to remove splint. She... View more

Following an injury I was asked by the doctor in ED to attend my local GP to get a referal for a specialist to review my injury. The GP ignored the letter from ED doctor and insisted the injury was minor and come back in 6 weeks to remove splint. She wouldn't look at my injured arm despite my repeated explanations that I was experiencing increased pain and swelling in areas not originally injured. A 2nd opinion from another GP led to referal to another GP in the same practise with unsatistactory results. after which I resorted to ED at the local hospital where I finally was referered to a specialist clinic and had further tests. 9 weeks post injury the original injury is healed as expected but I'm left with ongoing issues related to the original cast and made worse by the delays in getting the cast replaced. Ongoing pain & lack of sleep combined with the frustration of being able to carry out many normal activities had caused an escalation of MH issues. I no longer trust my GP so have noone to turn to. Should I make a complaint which will be stressful or just try to find a new GP at a different clinic which means they have no idea of my history.

Side effects

replies: 5

Hi all. I'm struggling and would appreciate some feedback. Upon the suggestion of my psychiatrist, I have just started a second line treatment in addition to my regular antidepressant. As per the rules I can't name it here but it's a supplement with ... View more

Hi all. I'm struggling and would appreciate some feedback. Upon the suggestion of my psychiatrist, I have just started a second line treatment in addition to my regular antidepressant. As per the rules I can't name it here but it's a supplement with good scientific evidence showing its effectiveness against depression. I trust his professional judgement in suggesting it to me. I started it six days ago and I've had varying results. On the plus I'm seeing signs of improved mood at times but it's still intermittent and unstable. I'm getting bad side effects though as in intermittent nausea and a more depressed mood with the nausea. The nausea is a common side effect but it is really getting me down. I feel noticeably less depressed, then the nausea kicks in and my mood plummets. It's very up and down. I really want this to work and there are good signs, but the nausea and accompanying depressed mood is vile. I really want the benefits to grow and the nausea and accompanying mood slump to ease. So far though no, even after halving the dose this morning. Is this normal? Will it pass? I need this treatment to work. The only antidepressant to work for me and without unacceptable side effects is the one I'm on but it needs augmenting, hence the supplement. I'm really worried. (I'm not having thoughts of self harm though. I'm quite safe.) Thank you

Treatments, health professionals and therapies

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I would like to get more sessions but my GP told me to wait for a month for the care plan review

replies: 7

Frustrated with the lack of Mental Health Services in the bush!

replies: 2

A telehealth GP told me mental problems are Aussies(locals) exclusive

replies: 4