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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 8 of 8. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by emily99 on October 10, 2007, at 12:04:10
I'm still amazed that I was able to get in to see a therapist the next day after talking to my pdoc about wanting to go. I will be seeing her twice a week, and she's less than 5 minutes from where I live. I go again tomorrow. Yesterday was just info gathering. I'll let you know how I like her and what progress is made. PTSD seems to be the biggest challenge at this point. Thanks to all of you for your encouragement. I am hopeful for the first time in quite a while. I know it's going to be a lot of work, tho. I was dizzy when I got up to leave after telling her all the trauma I've had in my life.
Emily
Posted by B2chica on October 10, 2007, at 12:32:38
In reply to Therapy was great, posted by emily99 on October 10, 2007, at 12:04:10
sounds like you did GREAT work emily...
sounds like good T too.
(((((((hugs)))))))
Posted by happyflower on October 10, 2007, at 12:40:35
In reply to Re: Therapy was great, posted by B2chica on October 10, 2007, at 12:32:38
WOw! What a good first session! I often feel dizzy too, like my head is just a spinn' after a session. I ususally like to lay down for a half hour when I get home to just clear my head. Are you able to relax afterwards?
Posted by emily99 on October 10, 2007, at 16:01:12
In reply to Re: Therapy was great, posted by happyflower on October 10, 2007, at 12:40:35
Yes, I can relax when I get home, thankfully. I too, had to lay down for about an hour. We went over a LOT. I'm sure she had no idea of all she was about to hear, and it was work telling it. She started out with a family tree, and her paper was completely covered with this tragedy and that by the time we were done, and I forgot a few. I was totally flat with no emotion as I talked to her. Amazing to me how I can tell my story with no emotion as though it happened to someone else.
My pdoc is sure I have PTSD, but not so sure about bipolar. He asked me at the end of the session on Monday if I was SURE I was bipolar, so I didn't really have time to ask him about it. I just read a book on bipolar, and it seemed just like me. But then I don't know as much about PTSD and how close they may resemble each other.
Like we've all talked about before, the dx isn't that important, but I sure hope T knows how to focus on what makes me act the way I do and how to fix it.
It's reassuring that T's husband is a pdoc, and that they both know my pdoc.
I'm so glad you're all here to talk to.
Emily
Posted by Dory on October 10, 2007, at 20:35:21
In reply to Re: Therapy was great » happyflower, posted by emily99 on October 10, 2007, at 16:01:12
Hi emily
am i right in thinking you dx'd yourself as bp because you fit what you read about? That is a good place to start, but so many things can mimic the same sorts of symptoms... even straight-up vanilla neurosis. Mine was complex to dx because i developed a thyroid tumor and we couldn't be sure until that was fixed.
have you ever tried an AD, esp an SSRI? has anything happened? Is there BP in your family?
i'm not criticizing.. i'd just hate to see you go through bp treatment if you don't have it... trust me, you don't want it.
i am glad things went so well with your new T. Pace yourself though ok... there is a limit to wha a person can handle.. be careful until you know where that limit is. It's a great feeling to get something out that needed to come out.. when you are ready.
Posted by happyflower on October 10, 2007, at 20:48:34
In reply to Re: Therapy was great » happyflower, posted by emily99 on October 10, 2007, at 16:01:12
Hi Emily,
I am glad you have time to relax after your session. I know I need to when I am done. I used to suffer from PTSD a couple of years ago. My T knew EMDR for help with that. Do you know if your T does that? I really helped me a lot. I sounded a lot like you, talking very flatly about what happened to me, I still do , but I am beginning to show more emotion. I have a new T where i feel more comfortable with it. I think part of the flatness is the avoidence that PTSD causes sometimes. I could be wrong though.
I am glad you came to Babble, it can be usually helpful, so welcome aboard! ;-)
Posted by emily99 on October 11, 2007, at 9:17:41
In reply to Re: Therapy was great » emily99, posted by happyflower on October 10, 2007, at 20:48:34
Thanks to all of you for the great support! I see my T again today. Oh boy, twice a week! I agree about taking it easy. I tend to want to jump right in, though -- just wanting to get it over with.
When I was a kid, I stayed at my grandparent's ranch in Washington state every summer. One of my jobs when they were milking cows, was to clean out the trough of you-know-what. I feel like my therapy will be like sliding down that trough, and hopefully getting to the sunshine outside. (Sorry if that sounds gross, but it's what it feels like).
I have a few questions about abbreviations. What is AD, SSRI and EMDR? I think that EMDR is rapid eye movement, but I'm not sure.
It was my primary care physician who thought I had bipolar. Then I was "told" to get to a pdoc asap by my cardiologist, who thought I was having a breakdown (I was). My son has also been diagnosed with bipolar. So either it came from me or his dad, or both. I see strong indications that my mother had it, and my sister as well.
My mother died from Huntington's Disease, and my brother and sister also have it. It is a genetic disease, so I took a test and I don't have it. Bipolar and HD are very similar in that the nerve endings in the brain don't work properly. In HD, the nerve endings die. So it makes sense that I would have something similar.
I've had manic phases that ruined me financially. One example -- I used to own three businesses and just walked away from them. I completely wore myself out. If I had hung on to one of them, I would indeed be a wealthy woman by now. Instead, I spent every single penny I had building up the company.
Then there is all my life's trauma, in case you read My Story. That's where the PTSD diagnosis comes from. That dx is for sure.
Where do all of you go for the chat? I'd love to join in on that.
Emily
Posted by Poet on October 11, 2007, at 10:06:34
In reply to Therapy was great, posted by emily99 on October 10, 2007, at 12:04:10
Hi Emily,
I think your first session was much more than information gathering, it sounds like you really felt comfortable with her. Talking about trauma is major, I still deny things after five years.
Keep us posted.
Poet
This is the end of the thread.
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