How It Is, & Thanks Shrink Rap!

Dinah, of the Shrink Rap blog, was true to her word and wrote a post regarding what I described in my previous post here, about my Psychiatry Bait-and-Switch experience, as I title it below. She titles her post, "Hey, What are YOU Doing Here?", and then talks about what her experiences as a psychiatrist have been at different facilities as well as in her own private practice have been in regards to the initial interview and the procedures for it, as well as what the standards are for it as laid out by the American Psychiatric Association (I think).

In the comments, one commenter/psychiatrist brings up sections of the American Medical Association's recommendations & guidelines for practices relating to issues regarding how a psychiatrist should conduct ones' self regarding splitting duties/fees, (at least it is implied that if you are splitting the duties that much, then isn't much of the fee for the session going to the person doing much of the work, thus splitting the fee?) . . . . as well as allowing ones' self, as the psychiatrist, to be used as a figurehead, not being in the patients best interest at all.

I thought those were VERY interesting and informative to read about. Both the post, including the standards from the APA, and in the comments, the further standards and guidelines especially directed towards psychiatrists, from the AMA . . . .

It's an interesting discussion, of which some has spilled over into the comments on my own post, entitled Psychiatry Bait-and-Switch, here on my own blog, from people who followed the link to that post from the Shrink Rap blog. Please feel free to join in the discussion there.

It is heartening to see that there are doctors out there who do not support behavior that is so fringe and will speak up to inform about the profession, and who are embarrassed on behalf of their fellow psychiatrists, and that there are those who care enough to post an informative post for me like that; Dinah, I really appreciate it.

I know it's my own choice about what to do about my own health care, and given everything going on with me, at present I feel that it's best that I'm under a psychiatrist's care, than none at all. That should tell you something, about the pressures I am under. How trapped I feel by circumstances beyond my control.

I added up all the medical expenses from March and expected medical expenses through the end of May and it adds up to $1800 or more, just shy of what we need to hit the deductible - I really don't want to go into surgery without it being met, but it's not like we have $1800 in 2.5 months to meet all these expenses, either, let alone the $2800 the MRI people want. So I'm shutting down, because I can't cope with the reality of the life that is in front of me.

I. Can't. Handle. It.

And.

I am in constant pain, that is wearing me down, and I don't know if I'll have the OOOMPH and the willpower to bull through and do the painful work needed to recover from another surgery, let alone continue with the work needed to continue with my current recovery. I'm feeling so burned out. OUT. OUT OUT OUT.

EMPATHY is NOWHERE TO BE FOUND, and I AM ALONE as if there was NO ONE. ALL. BLOODY. BY. MY. SELF. and it hurts.

I can't think my way out of this one. Money doesn't grow on trees, and recovery doesn't happen overnight.

So, as long as there's no more Energy Healer, and I can scrape up the dough from somewhere for both meds and visits to see her, I'll go to the psychiatrist unless something untoward happens, with constant revisions as time and experience go on, with her. My condition requires being in someone's care, right now. Those are big ifs, though. If I can't afford the care I need, then I'll just have to, well, say that mental health care is unaffordable, both the doctor visits, and the medication. Even if it is essential. Even if this is America, where you aren't supposed to be in danger because you can't afford health care. Who says? That's the way our system is.

I'm tempted to not post this, but I want to lay bare the real truth of how it is, so here's how it is.