Multiple Diagnosis Labeling With Ptsd

[Jade-]

I have been diagnosed with PTSD, chronic anxiety and a dissociative disorder. But actually all I have is PTSD. That's good to know.

 

[momwithptsd]

I love this article, puts it all into perspective for me, and now I realize my T was right with diagnosing me with PTSD, it sounded like you were talking about me. She said that when I get depressed I am a "happy" depressed person, she said I most likely do that to try to hide it from people, which sounds like something I would do. I sometimes think that medicating me to feel numb would be nice, but in the long run, I suppose being not medicated is best.

Thank you for this article, it really makes sense to me.

 

[Srain]

I'm wondering if I'm reading this correctly.

Are you suggesting that in order to fully address PTSD, and if a person truly has it, they would have to go off all prescribed and other mind-altering chemicals to see if they truly fit the criteria and begin the process of healing?
That PTSD could in no way be exist as a Dx with another Mental Illness?

I'm just curious because I've wondered about this.

Rain

 

[anthony]

No, that is not what is being said. PTSD is known to be diagnosed with comorbid Axis I and Axis II disorders, however; that is what comorbid is... they are relevant only to the PTSD diagnosis, they did not and should not exist without it. If you suffered major depression prior to trauma, then you have a genetic / behavioural susceptibility to major depression and with or without PTSD, you will likely still have major depression. If not though... then just aim at PTSD and the trauma, as when you deal with that, all these other comorbid diagnosis disappear. Treat the cause, not the symptoms. Depression is a symptom to PTSD, even though given as a comorbid diagnosis...

Medication.... yes, at some point, after trauma therapy, you need to get rid of it all, which will be hell on earth for six months, but it will atleast allow you to test your own emotional stability correctly without additives, and gain more traction on your healing and whether you need them all, need one, or need none. If you don't try, you don't know. Most medication suppresses emotion... makes it irregular, so after trauma therapy, it is hard to correctly feel without going off medication to be able to feel and atleast try to work through the last issues.

 

[Powder]

I wonder what your take on this is: the Psychiatrist I was seeing in the 90's gave me this characteristic "pile of labels:" PTSD, generalized anxiety disorder, depression. He seemed off the mark to me...piling on medications as well until I was worse....hallicinating, cutting, hating every day, feeling terrible self-destructive impulses I had to quell. All these symptoms happened only AFTER being put on meds and more meds.
I felt the "therapy" was worse than the problem of PTSD, which I was coping with just fine, but wanted relief from for quality of life (panic attacks and difficulty falling asleep, depression during day, nightmares, social withdrawl, feeling of helplessness, one flashback). In my case....I left his therapy and quickly tapered off the meds I had left down to granules, and dealt with the withdrawls...even with w/d I was feeling and sleeping way better. I was not prepared by him for w/d until I called in the middle of the fevers, shakes, etc. He said coming down from the stuff he gave me was worse than coming off Heroine. HELLO! Would have been good to know. I don't mess around with this stuff and have a very anti or less-is-more stance on drugs overall. I take what I need for medical care and that's it.

Guess what??? A year after I took myself out of his care, I read in the paper that his license was yanked in State Superior Court in a major class action suit brought by the families of his young female patients who he sexually took advantage of. He was overmedicating, isolating, and then seducing his teenaged and early 20's female patients like me.

The positive of the situation was that I am proud of myself for recognizing that he was not quite right before he tried to get me into bed. I saw the overmedicating, overly prescriptive attitude, and multiple labeling as Anthony described as a warning although I never would have seen the sexual deviance coming. Now this is highly unusual, and every counseler I have seen (2) since, has indicated that this alone is pretty traumatic on its face. For someone with PTSD, it's already isolating and easy to think that you can deal with the problem on one's own anyway. It didn't help that this turned out correct for me when I first sought treatment. It hurt my ability to trust professionals for my care. But over the years, I've realized I just have to trust my instincts and try again. So far, so good. I will keep my eyes open with all doctors and therapists, and I am careful about meds. But I know that meds are very needed by those for whom they are found to be of benefit. It's something to try and see how they work on you. But I strongly feel that those who feel worse, and whose doctors don't care (read getting financial kick backs!) and want to add more meds rather than admit they might not be right in the first place or look at dosage, must take responsibility for changing Dr.s. I've seen way too many people just shrug and live with the pain of being over medicated. No, each of us is ultimately responsible for what we put in our body and what it does to our behavior and thinking.
That's my experience. I honor and respect that others will have had really different experiences and outcomes that worked for them.

If anyone has any observations about this set of experiences, I am open and appreciative to reading your insights on it.

Thanks, Muse

 

[Powder]

Sorry I'm so long-winded and wordy. My point is that in this particular case, the Dr. used the multiple labels in his paperwork in order to cover up his deliberate over medication of his victims (also patients) so unethically and criminally. So it can go beyond financial motives. His sick sexual agenda was his motive. Although the money was probably also part of it. He wanted power: money and sexual dominance over his patients. He targeted daughters of wealthy families...gave him a sense of domination, an evil genius. This was particularly disturbing. I need to read the rules before I go on posting. I doubt I am allowed to name names, and I wouldn't anyway. You could look the article up if I did and I don't want to slander the Dr. I should add that this is rare for this to happen. Don't be afraid of going to get help. This Dr. got caught within like a year of doing this. Only five or six families sued. May have been more people hurt, but it gives you an idea.

Muse

 

[anthony]

You can name names, its not slander, especially as police action and court was taken, thus it becomes public domain.

Yes, I agree that this would be rare. Physicians are in a position of power to vulnerable people... and they must maintain certain guidelines and ethics, which this person clearly crossed.

Yes, PTSD + GAD should never be diagnosed, because they are both Axis I anxiety disorders in the same cluster group, so its one or the other, but not both. Depression is a normal Comorbid disorder, and PTSD is classified as an anxiety disorder, and if depressed, that is a separate Axis I cluster, and helps legal issues later if you killed yourself, being prescribed an SSRI which is for the treatment of depression, unless one of two authorised for PTSD alone. So yes, depression is normal as an additional diagnosis for the prescription of medications. Some will take on mood or sleep disorders, even though they are symptoms of PTSD, if they the patient is requesting medication to help with that issue as well... covering their arse, so to speak, legally.

Some just add crap on and prescribe medication unbeknowst to the patient wanting or needing it, purely for profitable gain.

 

[Powder]

After what I went through on misapplied medication, I am waiting for the day when these harmful practices end. We have a host of good medicine and yet no ethics in the industry to dole it out correctly. Yesterday, a nurse friend told me that our hospital had to lay off 120 nurses and clerical workers to stay in the black during the terrible USA recession. Her son, who has a Master's in History and Economics, piped in to add that pharmaceutical companies, however, seem to be doing just fine. We can drug you, but sorry, no nurse will be taking care of you. :( The last time I was in hospital with complications from childbirth, August, 2009, a young nurse (looked about 20) asked me how the IV computer worked!!! She asked me, the patient! My god, I felt very unsure of myself handling that. I said, "Just leave it," and flagged in a more experienced nurse within minutes. And this is our best hospital in the whole area. Our system, economic, but especially health, has no excuses for being what it is other than greed. It's time we had a way to eliminate that out of it but I don't know how or what it would take. There are certainly some fat cats who could have me killed if I actually started to stir it. So I guess we have to gently prod our government reps until they can get it going. Meanwhile, for those who plan on staying in hospital anytime soon, may I suggest attendance at a nursing school for two years so that when you do, you can take care of yourself! Sad state of affairs.

Muse

 

[njray]

Still not clear sorry...
I was diagnosed with ADHD about 3 years ago. Then after a serious attack on my life to which i was severely injured a year ago I was diagnosed with PTSD. Does the PTSD "wipe out" the ADHD diagnosis? If i am diagnosed with ADHD and PTSD. Is that wrong. I have looked at the diagnosis through DSM-IV many overlapping symptoms but there is some difference all ADHD symptoms are not in PTSD and visa versa

 

[anthony]

No... it was pre-trauma. ADHD is often misdiagnosed for PTSD, ie. after the trauma, ie. hypervigilance, obsessive compulsive attributes, etc. If you suffered trauma, then got diagnosed with ADHD, it would likely be misdiagnosed. If you got diagnosed with ADHD first, then had your trauma, then got diagnosed with PTSD, then you have both, as even healing your trauma, the ADHD will still be present.

Yes, both do have over-lapping symptoms, so you may experience heightened symptoms in some areas.

 

[Brontie]

This article makes so much sense to me. Whatever I'm dealing with, I have been dealing with it my whole life. To begin with, as a child, I dissociated in order to protect myself. Of course I wasn't aware of doing this. When I became aware of it in my twenties the result was post traumatic stress. The PTS was further aggravated by the fact that I was married to a soldier who served twenty-two years in the British army during which time he was shot and also involved in a serious bombing in Northern Ireland.

In the beginning I was treated for depression but gradually over the years I received five or six diagnoses. I have also had five or six hospital stays. I accepted the meds they put me on for the first ten years then I refused to be medicated. I didn't know what was going on but the fact that I had been married twenty years and brought up three children was the only proof I needed that I was not going crazy. These last few years I have taken their diagnoses with a pinch of salt. Quite frankly, it's enough to put you off those mental health professionals.

 

[anthony]

That is very much the problem with childhood based trauma Brontie, in that often first round diagnosis are wrong and/or they stack them up into psychotic or dissociative or mood disorders, slap on some depression and load you up with meds. What is more factual, is that if you had childhood trauma, then you can wipe all those out, put PTSD first as the actual disorder you suffer, then if you have dissociative aspects beyond PTSD as a symptom, then you likely have a DDNOS or such area, which is perfectly normal for those due to childhood abuse.

The big thing though, is that if you work at the trauma, then you lessen the PTSD and all the other comorbid diagnoses you have been given are all irrelevant, as you will not fit the diagnostic criteria for them any further once you chip away at the core problem, being the trauma. Than its just that... labels, and all you are left with is, PTSD.