Posted by ace on February 26, 2003, at 22:41:35
In reply to Re: Take psych meds from a DOCTOR only » ace, posted by viridis on February 26, 2003, at 21:12:52
> You're very fortunate to have an open-minded GP. I'm sure there are others out there, and I realize that there are plenty of bad psychiatrists (I've seen some!). I'm just speaking in terms of probabilities, and my guess is that for a complex psychiatric problem, the chances of finding a psychiatrist competent to treat it are greater than the chances of finding a GP who's equipped to do so.
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> A GP is, by definition, a general practitioner, who has to see patients with all sorts of complaints. Unless a GP has a special interest in psychiatry, I can't see how they could possibly keep up with all the developments in this field, and cardiology, and urology, and oncology, and dermatology, and podiatry...and so on.
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> If I had a simple rash, I'd probably trust a GP to treat it; if I had melanoma I'd want to see a cancer specialist. If my blood pressure was just a bit high, a GP would probably be OK; if I had a serious heart condition, I'd want to see a cardiologist. There's no guarantee that any given specialist would be ideal, but that's where I'd focus my efforts, and move to others if necessary. I view psychiatry the same way -- it took me a while, but now I've found a very good, understanding psychiatrist who listens to what I say, has excellent intuition, and considers my ideas regarding treatment.
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> I might get lucky and find a GP who's willing to prescribe two benzos, a mood stabilizer, and an amphetamine (my current regimen, and very effective) long-term, but somehow I suspect the chances of a given GP doing so are low. Not impossible, but unless I got very lucky, I expect I'd still be in bad shape and going from GP to GP.
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> Like almost everything else, there are no absolutes here; every doctor is a gamble, and I think you just have to do your best to maximize the chances of finding appropriate treatment as quickly as possible. In my opinion, the chances are best with a psychiatrist.This is so interesting, because the complete opposite is true for me! Soon I will (probably) be on Nardil + Zyprexa + Klonopin under my GP. Now, keep in mind that I have studied psychopharmacology at uni. That is probably why he trusts me.
Unless you thoroughly research the drugs and know a little on organic chemistry you probably are better off at a shrink. But otherwise, go to the GP i say!
BTW, it's great you found a good psychiatrist. This eluded me. I have been hurt, misdiagnosed, misdrugged, disrespected by all but 1 psychiatrist. I have seen 10. The last one called me 'wierd' and refused to even contemplate a MAOI. Another one, after a 15 minute consultation, said I was an "unusual young man" I gave him a plethora of note to read about my illness. He read 2 pages and then, on the basis of his 15 min consultation and reading 2 pages, said I probably have a personality d/o. He didn't like me simply because I stood up for myself -- I told I didn't like SSRIs and let him know I was thoroughly educated. This must have annoyed him - goodness knows why. But both me & my GP were very angry and unhappy with the 'unusual young man' comment he made in his referral letter.
Psychiatrists--- NEVER again for me.
Ace.
poster:ace
thread:201988
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030224/msgs/204189.html