How do you all afford psychology/psychiatry sessions?

[MisterM]

I know there are 10 sessions covered under Medicare where you only pay a smaller fee but every time I have been the 10 sessions run out so fast. I am unemployed, even recently working casual I wasn't earning much. How do some of you people afford to go weekly/fortnightly. When I was working full time I was going every week/fortnight and spent over $3,000 in a year on seeing my psychologist. It's just too damn expensive, how can sessions cost $200 approx per 50 mins, what justifies such a high fee?
I don't get it.

[White_Rose]

The Medicare safety net provisions are automatic. Every year I have been eligible the increased rebates simply turn up in my bank account. Yes there are different levels. People on pensions pay about $500 before the safety net cuts in. I'm not sure about those who are eligible for a health care card but suspect it is the same as pensioners. This is another safety net level but I am have never worked it out. Medicare always work it out and kick in the rebate.

I think it also varies for families which are treated as one unit. Single people need to accrue about $1200 out of pocket. But of course the easiest way to find out is to phone.

Incidentally there is also a safety net for medication. For single people it means you need about 60 prescription per annum. After that the prescriptions are free. Again not sure about families. Your pharmacist will put in your claim and you need to remind them at times. If you get all your medications at one pharmacy then it's easy. If you get meds from several pharmacies you need to get a statement from each one and give it to your usual pharmacy to claim. You get a card entitling you to free meds but must produce the card each time. You can go to any pharmacy to get this.

Unless you take huge amounts of meds it is unlikely this will kick in before about Oct/Nov. I had this one year and was amazed. Never heard of it before. I was trialling heaps of meds to find one that suited me.

Mary

[The_Possum]

Safety net isn't automatic in your first year.

This happened to us when my son was chronically ill. I didn't call them and by the time the 'system' worked it out, we were 5 months passed when we had reached it. And they don't backpay. They just send a letter in the mail to say you might be eligible, fill this form in. Then they pay you from the date the form arrives. So their system isn't very timely.

This was in 2016 and it's happened to several of my friends.

Medicare recommend that even if you haven't reached the safety net but believe you have will, you should call and advise them so its flagged in the system.

I would make a simple phone call rather than rely on it. It's not going to hurt and like I said I've been burnt as have several others.

Peace x

[Quercus]

Thank you Possum and Mary!

This is really helpful information. The kind of stuff that people considering how to afford treatment need to know about 😊

[SunriseBoy]

Reading through some of the posts here, there is a powerful theme of helplessness.

Like everyone I got a story that has brought me to the particular place I am. It's very lonely and uncomfortable. However, it is my choices that got me to this place, and I have to own that. I did it and I have to take the crapola that comes with it.

So many want someone else to take responsibility for their "stuff". Uh uh!

As much as I would love to have someone take all this stuff away from me, I feel it can't be done. It's your stuff, and you have to take responsibility and ownership of it.

[Mathy]

Hello SunriseBoy and welcome to the BB forum 🙂

Very interesting first post.

I can’t think of anyone of the many people I know, who have a mental health problem, that actually “chose” to have a mental health problem. Sometimes, stuff happens.

I’m very sorry to read that you have “stuff” you need to deal with. Would you like some help on how to deal with it?

Please do let me know, I will be happy to chat with you about your issues, cheers M:)

[blondguy]

Hi SunriseBoy

As Mathy mentioned above...There isnt one person on the forums that has chosen to have a mental health issue

Im sorry too that you are in a dark place at the moment. You are not alone here. Mathy and many other gentle people can be here for you if you need our support

It can be done

My Best

Paul

[ScreamingTiger]

I find 10 sessions a year pretty limiting. If you look at the US or Europe etc. most therapy lasts way longer than this. One way health professionals try to mitigate this is by recommending books and resources, or even skills training and handouts, apps or guides. In a lot of cases (definitely not all), these will be a great help to guide your own recovery / management of symptoms.

[blondguy]

Hey ScreamingTiger

Good on you for posting and thankyou for being a part of the forums too!

There is free mental health care available. I have used it a few times when I was flat broke.

Ask your GP to connect you with a mental health worker from the public sector. You may not get the counselor you want but you will get support from an expert.

If you have any questions please feel comfortable to ask. I have had years of anxiety attacks followed by depression and these MHW are super caring.

Please let us know your thoughts when you can. We have a lot of support that we can provide 🙂

You are not alone here

My kindest thoughts

Paul

[LisaMorris]

Before the Medicare rebate for psychology, you had to pay the entire fee! I talked to a psychologist friend about the cost for Psychological Therapy, and hadn't realised a whole bunch of things. I remember realising this as a kid with my parents' income, who had their own small business. People often don't realise the outgoing expenses that professionals and small business owners have. For Clinical Psychologists, they have to do 6-9 years of full-time study (unpaid) to be able to practice as a Clinical Psychologist, 20-30% of every payment goes to the taxman, at least 10% of each payment goes toward paying for reception, the therapist has to pay for their room, carparking, any other admin costs. They have to do a certain amount of training each year to remain qualified and the trainings are expensive, and they have to take the days off (without any income coming in) They have have to pay hefty insurance fees to cover them and their practice, and registration fees to both the Australian Psychological Society and AHPRA. If they have questionnaires or tests, they have to pay big prices for those. One of the tests cost $2000! I truly didn't get any of this before talking with my friend, and now I'm so much more aware of those things when I visit even my chiropractor. Psychologists are generally NOT wealthy people.

I also learned that many cannot afford to 'bulk bill' as they just couldn't cover their costs - especially if they work in a city. Psychologist rebates are $124.50 for 50 minutes. Psychiatrist rebates are $224.60 for 45+ minutes - so the rebate alone is close to double. Food for thought.

Ten sessions is NOWHERE near enough for complex trauma or Personality Disorders. That really has to change.

[geoff]

Hello LisaMorris, thanks for posting your comment.

I agree, 10 sessions are not enough for someone struggling with any type of depression, because there is a chance it may still linger on or you could have a relapse, however as Paul says ' 'There is free mental health care available', just copy and paste this in your search bar.

You may have trouble talking to the same person, but there will be times when you can't talk to your psychologist, so it's the same situation.

In another light what about seeing a dentist especially on the weekend when you have a cracked tooth or desperately needing a tradesman over the Xmas period, no chance at all, these aren't to do with Mental Illness which is tragically serious, but do they all fall in the basket of being urgent, because I've been involved with all of these.

Just a question.

Geoff.