Sufferer I Am Here Because I Need Help.. After 3 Years Of Ptsd Dx Told No Ptsd Instead Bi Polar ??

[Sleepless]

Hello. I am in my fifties, have not worked since an attempted robbery situation in 2010.

Since that time I was shifted from one therapist to another , by workman's comp attorney, and by running out of money.. I stopped seeing anyone for about a year and got pretty housebound. So, I recently stuck my head out and started seeing a therapist, through a low income program. After 9 visits she asked if I would be interested in seeing the Dr. there, for trying some medication and I agreed. When I got home I looked it up and saw it was a bipolar medication, so I asked my therapist about it. She told me she does not think I have PTSD at all but that I am bi polar ....

So , here I am trying to figure out if I belong here or not !! Would appreciate any feedback I can get at this point. Plus I am being evaluated for social security disability on Saturday...possible early retirement since I have not been able to function well enough to work I have been barely able to survive..

Thanks for any comments I feel so lost right now...and confused and ...angry.

 

[Kas_Can_Fly]

I don't have a lot to say except welcome and that some bipolar meds work very well for PTSD and can stabilise a lot of swinging moods, anxiety issues and depression. Also many people with PTSD have bipolar so maybe she thinks both but doesn't want to tag you with too many labels? But as someone who has been badly misdiagnosed in the past, if you feel they're wrong seek a second and third opinion. If you were already diagnosed with PTSD maybe ask the doctor who diagnosed with Bipolar why they think not PTSD as you cannot wrap your head around it. Don't settle for second best, if they aren't the people for you look around, see if there are more options. Good luck.

 

[macca]

Hmm. PTSD is often misdiagnosed as Bipolar - maybe you need another opinion? Is that an option? Especially since there is a traumatic incident in your background. Has she done any assessment?

 

[digger]

Seems a bit off that she didn't tell you while you were there that she thought you were bi polar. I would make an appointment with her in person asap with the questions you would like answered about it and what her reasons are for the new diagnosis. If she sticks with it and you are still not happy with the diagnosis after her explanations for it, then seek a second opinion if possible.

 

[Sleepless]

Thanks so much for responding to my post. After I researched the drug Lamictal, I felt concerned about the suicidal side effects , like one in 500 ! Also a lot of rashes - even the Stevens Johnson was mentioned.. But mostly the concern is that I have been feeling more stable and wanting to try ... hate the idea of losing ground.

So the whole session last visit focused on her trying to undo my fear of the medication, ending with me promising to call my pharmacist and discuss if this was risky for me...and then if not to start taking it.
So I did that and I did take one that night ... it was stressful...watching for the rash .. it just didn't seem worth it . So when I went back I told her this and then she stated that the Dr. had dropped me as a patient for not taking the med and that furthermore She would only be able to see me one more time. So I felt pretty much ganged up on... She ended the visit giving me a one week ultimatum to decide if I would like to come back for the final visit ...and it seemed like if I would go along with the Dr and her and start taking the med that there might be a way to continue with them ?...But after being treated like that I'm not sure I even want to.

I was so surprised by all this and felt well, punished for not taking the med. Also the fact that she used the entire session lecturing me about how I should listen to the doctor and do what my Doctor said and how I am not a doctor and I should listen to my doctor... But neither of them told me anything about changing my dx , and if I hadn't asked I don't know if they ever would have....so I felt left out of the loop there completely. I only saw the Dr. one single time-- and for exactly 15 minutes. I did not feel like he was my doctor or that he knew me at all. ...so in any case I was thinking I could go back and say I would give it a try and see if they would keep me. But I just feel kinda weird about the whole thing now.

I have had a very hard time processing all this and I don't know what to do....I am getting evaluated by the social security doctor on

Saturday...however they won't serve as a second opinion from what I hear I anticipate they will most likely say I am perfectly fine so as to disqualify me completely from benefits...From what i have been told that is usually how it goes and then you have to appeal to get anywhere. ALL THIS IS MORE STRESS.

Just getting better is so much work alone I had a horrible panic attack...and this has gotten me very down when I was hopeful.

Anyway thank you for listening to me ramble on and on here. God Bless You All, Kim

 

[Justpassintime]

Just because someone has a degree or a title, doesn't mean they are good at their job. These people sound like wing nuts. I have had people drop me for refusing meds that does happen, but not like you describe.

While I am not bi-polar nor have I ever been diagnosed with it, I can see the confusion on the blurry lines - my ptsd can "cycle" after a trigger, it's very predictable in duration and stages and I use the word "cycle" because to ME that's what it is. I have other symptoms of bi-polar that are present but I am pretty confident I do not have that. Truth be told honestly? I have had so may psych titles it's ridiculous but when you add them all ujp, you get one thing chronic post traumatic stress disorder. Having said that labels are not what matters, your desire to recover is what matters. The mental health maze is difficult under the best of circumstances - I have been patted on the head and told with my level of damaging childhood experience I can't expect to get any more better and that this was as good as I was going to be.

Make your battle cry, "Okay so you are not going to help me, I WILL find someone who will." - think it, say it, write it down to remind yourself there ARE places that can and you are committed to yourself. The wing nuts in the field can wear you down, but learn to raise your fist and say F YOU and move on (you know not in their face, but attitude wise).

 

[Deleted member 1860]

Dropping you because you refuse a certain medication? While it's not unheard of, I believe it is unethical. In any other branch of medicine this does not happen. You aren't labeled as non-compliant for rejecting the blood pressure pill that decreases your sex drive and instead want to try something else (for example). But, for some reason, in psychiatry, you can have pills forced on you and if you don't comply, out you go. If this is a low income program, I'm guessing it's state funded. Please report them on ethical grounds as they're giving low income people no other option other than to have pills forced upon them or go without care.

My psychiatrist knows I've refused medication in the past. But he also knows I'll come to him when things are really bad and I need it. Then again I also pay him out of pocket and not with my benefits, so he has no reason to fire me. It's sad, but money talks.

 

[dnp]

Sounds suspicious to me. For a year I worked on a program targeted towards low-income. There are many really amazing wonderful people working in that field but there were some very shady characters as well doing anything to get their hands on money even when it meant taking advantage of the clients to their detriment. This doesn't just happen in low-income programs of course, but some people feel like if they are working in a low-income program they can get away with more because they feel the clients have no choice.

I am wondering if the doctor is getting paid by the drug manufacturer, or whether the drug manufacturer is donating to the program. Also if the therapist is getting a referral fee from the doctor.

 

[Sleepless]

Thank you ALL so very much. I am just so glad for the support and on a feeling level.. I have been dealing with trust issues, and I remember now, that at some point I decided to trust myself. Although I feel very guilty as if everything wrong has always gotta be me..

I have been feeling numb and unable to articulate this powerless low grade panic slowly rising since last Friday. I suppose being low income matters a lot, so how bout no income?! That is my current predicament unfortunately. I have been grateful to have been able to see a therapist at all, since I lost my good insurance and my good doctors ....lot of loss over the past three years.

I am so glad to not have to be all alone ...thanks so much. Love you guys, Kim

 

[DMerish]

My youngest son went through something similar. Basically, he figured out that administrators of the programs that are supposed to be helpful aren't. He ended up going to a few private doctors that diagnosed him properly, got meds that did help and therapy, and got pissed and sued the agency(s). Ran up a lot of debt with the private docs, filed for bankruptcy, then sued the agency(s) and won his suit and won. Got happy from standing up to the jerks and not backing down. Used the money to buy a fixer-upper and flipped it, then another, now he's on his third. He's doing a whole lot better now.

 

[Seymour]

I got tired of the meds and quit them. caused more problems than they solved. I do get this small ssi thing. not much. I guess I'm pretty intimidated by the whole process I just shut down. hope all goes well for you.

 

[intothelight]

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