medication

[prose2]

so the psychologist i have now told me i should find a psychiatrist or someone who can prescribe me medication and she said i can go to my regular doctor because it’s easier to get an appoitment. but i feel like going to the regular doctor for mental health situations are risky bc it isn’t their like main field. is going to my primary care doctor for medication a good idea or should i just keep trying to look for a psychartist??

[Eowyn7]

My personal opinion, I don't think it makes much difference for most people. If you've got anxiety/depression they will probably prescribe an antidepressant. If it doesn't work for you or has side effects, they'll try another. Pretty much the same thing a psychiatrist would do.

If you think you might have something more serious or unusual other than just anxiety/depression or none of the first couple medications helps you, then you could do the psychiatrist. I had a primary care doc who gave me antidepressants and it was fine.

[prose2 in reply to Eowyn7]

okay thank u sm and yeah it would just be easier to go through my regular doctor bc of money and insurance situations too.

[BonnieSue]

Hi prose2,

I personally have found a psychiatrist to be best. It depends on how capable you think your primary care doc is and how run-of-the-mill you believe your problems to be. As a health care professional I have long learned to be picky about who I entrust with my health and particularly my mental health. I personally have been far better off with psychiatrists and their additional education and experience.

They are the experts in correctly diagnosing you and prescribing appropriately effective medication for this field whereas a primary almost always has a much, much smaller number of drugs s/he has knowledge of. If you have any other health problems the psych meds can be selected to cover those problems, too.

By all means get yourself started trying medication with your primary doc...but if nothing really works well for you after trying a few drugs, or you become used to a drug after awhile or you think your problems become more complicated than your primary doc can handle, start to ask around for a good psychiatrist to entrust your mental health with. You can ask your primary or any other doc for a recommendation or very thoroughly check out some docs on psychologytoday.com. Take care!

[prose2 in reply to BonnieSue]

thank you so much that helped a lot. i think i’m gonna contact my regular doctor just to start

[BonnieSue in reply to prose2]

Sure! That will be the fastest way to begin, and maybe that's all you'll need. It's hard to say at this point.

[Imakook]

Yeah...Hi Prose2 -

My first antidepressants were prescribed by my primary care doc. I was taking them (Lexapro) for at least year & they worked quite well.

In time though I noticed they were not working. At that point, I kept taking the old meds until I got in with a psychiatrist.

I've gone to her and I also see a therapist in the same clinic.

I needed lots of changes, but the psychiatrist really knows what she's doing. My therapist is awesome as well!

Good luck & keep us posted. It will definitely get much better for you. Remember to be patient. It's so easy to become frustrated, but try to be positive.

I'm so glad I did what I had to so I could begin recovering.

Colleen

[prose2 in reply to Imakook]

that means a lot thank you. and wish the best for you

[NCAQuilter]

I think I'd go with BonnieSue. I do think a good Dr can get you started until you can find a psychiatrist that suits you. And, I believe getting started is better done sooner than later.

[prose2 in reply to NCAQuilter]

ur right, i don’t want things to get worse. thank you

[Imakook]

Absolutely! Thank heaven that I listened to my inner "rational" voice. My primary doc is more than capable to know what I need!