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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 16 of 16. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by fairywings on December 16, 2005, at 20:03:51
how often do you all go to therapy?
does insurance allow only x number of appointments?
when the # of appts. runs out, what do you do? how do you pay?
i'm facing that next year, and we can't afford
$500 a month to go once a week, or even $250 every other week. i don't want to quit or have to cut back so drastically, i feel like i'll never get anywhere.
how do you handle it?
is this a concern for a lot of other ppl?fw
Posted by alexandra_k2 on December 16, 2005, at 20:21:09
In reply to number of appointments, posted by fairywings on December 16, 2005, at 20:03:51
> i feel like i'll never get anywhere.
thats what i thought too...
but you might be suprised.> how do you handle it?
i vaccilate between acceptance and rage
> is this a concern for a lot of other ppl?
when i'm raging... yup.
Posted by sleepygirl on December 16, 2005, at 22:54:40
In reply to number of appointments, posted by fairywings on December 16, 2005, at 20:03:51
oh yeah....I love the insurance when I have it (limited number of sessions), now my T is kind enough to reduce the fee a bit. It does add up for sure. I think of it as a necessity (I probably could live without it, but I don't want to yet). Financial circumstances could force me to do just that, but not yet.
Posted by LegWarmers on December 17, 2005, at 1:26:00
In reply to number of appointments, posted by fairywings on December 16, 2005, at 20:03:51
> does insurance allow only x number of appointments?yes
> when the # of appts. runs out, what do you do? how do you pay?
sometimes I fork it out and otehrtimes I dont go.
> i'm facing that next year, and we can't afford
> $500 a month to go once a week, or even $250 every other week. i don't want to quit or have to cut back so drastically, i feel like i'll never get anywhere.have you discussed this with him? He may accomadate some how.
> how do you handle it?
> is this a concern for a lot of other ppl?Its frustrating, there are times when I really want to go but I can't because I need the money for groceries, so I just dont go. I think its a common problem.
Posted by fairywings on December 17, 2005, at 15:55:06
In reply to Re: number of appointments » fairywings, posted by LegWarmers on December 17, 2005, at 1:26:00
thanks for responding. i will talk to him about it. too bad it's so hard to get mental health taken care of. hopefully it'll get better not worse, but .....well that's wishful thinking isn't it?
fw
Posted by Poet on December 17, 2005, at 16:20:43
In reply to number of appointments, posted by fairywings on December 16, 2005, at 20:03:51
Hi Fairywings,
My health insurance covers 35 sessions which is really good. Downside is the $1,000 deductable. If I saw a therapist who was considered a preferred provider I'd only pay a $500 deductable, but I'm sticking with my T.
Before and after the insurance covers sessions, I pay her out of pocket. She works on a sliding scale, and she knows how little I make, so she charges me $65 per session (half of the insurance billing rate.)
She also accepts credit cards. Before I had any mental health coverage I paid her that way. Nothing like seeing my credit card statement with her name on it to remind me of the high price I am paying in the quest for sanity.
Paying her is very much in my mind as I am behind in paying her. I've been putting aside money from my paultry paychecks so I can write her a check at the end of the month.
I hope you can work something out with your T.
Poet
Posted by fairywings on December 17, 2005, at 16:27:07
In reply to Re: number of appointments » fairywings, posted by Poet on December 17, 2005, at 16:20:43
> Hi Fairywings,
>
> My health insurance covers 35 sessions which is really good. Downside is the $1,000 deductable. If I saw a therapist who was considered a preferred provider I'd only pay a $500 deductable, but I'm sticking with my T.**OUCH! $1,000? That's steep.
> Before and after the insurance covers sessions, I pay her out of pocket. She works on a sliding scale, and she knows how little I make, so she charges me $65 per session (half of the insurance billing rate.)
**I don't think I'll get a reduction, but my husband said if I need to continue I can put it on the credit card. Will just have to cut WAY back.
> She also accepts credit cards. Before I had any mental health coverage I paid her that way. Nothing like seeing my credit card statement with her name on it to remind me of the high price I am paying in the quest for sanity.
>
> Paying her is very much in my mind as I am behind in paying her. I've been putting aside money from my paultry paychecks so I can write her a check at the end of the month.**Yeah, it stinks that it's so hard to get the help we feel we need in order to function as normally as possible. I feel like if I don't do this my family will suffer along w/me, but i feel selfish spending the $$.
> I hope you can work something out with your T.
>
**How did you bring it up with your T?
fw
Posted by alexandra_k2 on December 17, 2005, at 16:31:59
In reply to Re: number of appointments, posted by fairywings on December 17, 2005, at 15:55:06
> hopefully it'll get better not worse, but .....well that's wishful thinking isn't it?
maybe wishful thinking.
maybe true thinking too.
i can't access treatment.
sometimes i rage
sometimes i try and accept it
sometimes i think i have accepted itthe hardest thing...
was finding faith in myself
finding faith in my ability to work towards getting better
finding faith in my ability to form relationships with other people and ask / let them help me out when i need a little help
believing i could do it without a t...because sometimes i think that what we learn from therapists...
is that without them we will never get better
without them we will get worse
without them we will diebut that is rubbish.
sometimes...
i really believe that...sigh.
Posted by fairywings on December 17, 2005, at 20:05:35
In reply to Re: number of appointments » fairywings, posted by alexandra_k2 on December 17, 2005, at 16:31:59
hi alex,
it sucks when you can't get care. my brother can't either. i'm glad you've found faith in yourself, and you can reach out to others and ask for help when you need it. i guess those are 2 of my biggest problems.
i guess once you get into therapy, sometimes it's hard to think of doing w/o. i feel that way now because we're into stuff that really hurts, and i want him to help me through it. i can't be as completely vulnerable with anyone else except my husband, but he's not a T. so, i go and hope to be better b4 too long, but i see what you're saying.
fw
Posted by thuso on December 17, 2005, at 20:20:39
In reply to number of appointments, posted by fairywings on December 16, 2005, at 20:03:51
> does insurance allow only x number of appointments?
I have amazing insurance with my job. Unlimited visits (no preauthorization or referral needed) with only a $10 copay. :-) And my employer doesn't request any information about dx, # of visits, or anything else.
I had tried going for awhile while in school, but it was just toooooo expensive. Now that I have this insurance, I'm giving it another go.
Posted by fairywings on December 17, 2005, at 20:25:27
In reply to Re: number of appointments » fairywings, posted by thuso on December 17, 2005, at 20:20:39
Wow, would love to get a job where you work! That's great. I hope it really helps.
fw
Posted by tarabara on December 17, 2005, at 21:58:05
In reply to Re: number of appointments » fairywings, posted by sleepygirl on December 16, 2005, at 22:54:40
i go every week.
i think you should talk to your T about it. you seem to have a relationship with him. there are some financial assistance plans that can help a bit. i think one of them is the national institute of health.i would sell my car if i had to. i know i will not need this much therapy forever but it is worth every penny not to disrupt something that is working so well. i would do anything i could to not disrupt what you have going at the moment.
Posted by Racer on December 17, 2005, at 22:15:15
In reply to Re: number of appointments, posted by tarabara on December 17, 2005, at 21:58:05
Our insurance is actually pretty good, compared to a lot of other plans, and I live in a state with mental health parity laws.
Insurance covers 50 visits a year, which I believe covers both T and pdoc, which means that some of the years we have to pay out of pocket. Of course, neither my T nor pdoc take insurance, so we have to pay out of pocket and then get reimbursed. I don't know the deductible, which I'm ashamed to admit.
What I do know is that when we submit the claims, the insurance covers a different amount each time, and not much. So, it's a major drain on us, financially, at a time when I haven't worked at all for over two years. And I know that I can barely function at all even with therapy, so without is not an option.
Thankfully, my husband is very supportive, despite what this whole thing does to us financially, AND how difficult it is to be around me these days. Between the fertility stuff -- apparently testing is covered, even though treating ain't -- and the sludge being dredged up in therapy right now, I'm not exactly a bundle of fun.
For me, right now, therapy is not optional, so if insurance went away I would be up that foul creek without paddle OR canoe. I wish you the very best of luck, and hope that your T can help you find a way to continue. I agree with everyone who said above that it won't be this expensive forever.
Good luck.
Posted by fairywings on December 18, 2005, at 18:09:45
In reply to Re: number of appointments, posted by Racer on December 17, 2005, at 22:15:15
thank tb and racer, i guess i should ask him and see what he says. you're right it won't last forever. i'm hoping just this next year and i'll be done.
fw
Posted by PreemieNurse on December 18, 2005, at 21:40:45
In reply to number of appointments, posted by fairywings on December 16, 2005, at 20:03:51
> how often do you all go to therapy?
Once a week, every freaking Friday, rain or shine.
> does insurance allow only x number of appointments?
I think my actual insurance only allowed 20(?) visits a year.
> when the # of appts. runs out, what do you do? how do you pay?
I'm lucky enough to live in the same city as a large university teaching hospital that has a psychiatric clinic. I see a fourth year resident and he gives me quite a cut on my fees (only charges $15 a session). However, the resident that I seen before him did not do that. He charged me the full $200 a visit. My insurance DID pay a large amount of it, but that being said, I still owe the clinic a huge amount of money. It's over $1500 at this point and I haven't been able to make a payment in forever. After the first of the year though, that will change. Maybe I'll actually get it paid down. It's a huge guilt trigger.
Posted by Poet on December 19, 2005, at 8:53:00
In reply to Re: number of appointments » Poet, posted by fairywings on December 17, 2005, at 16:27:07
Hi Fairywings,
This last time I told her that the insurance coverage was running out and that I wanted to keep seeing her.
It's still awkward talking about what I can afford to pay her even though she's really understanding about it. I apologize every time I give her a check that she deserves more for putting up with me. When I give her the check at the end of this month I feel like it should have a dozen roses attached to it. I really am behind and she hasn't said a word. She's too good for me.
Good luck bringing this up with your T. I hope he will work something out where you pay as much as you can until the insurance kicks back in.
Poet
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