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Anxiety (GAD-Agoraphobia) with OCD
I am a 20 year old female in the medical field who has been diagnosed with GAD/Agoraphobia. I obtained insurance in my job and decided to make them my PCG. I had a panic attack and obviously had to be seen. The doctor there has just diagnosed me with OCD. I have been feeling so depressed and dead. It was so bad that now i feel numb. I have been taking many different med's and last one I had was Lorazepam and Trazodone along with Prozac. Now i'm on Prozac, Trazodone and Hydroxizine. The doctor is my personal friend and she wants me to be checked into a mental health facility to be away from stress and obtain some talk therapy and medication which she states I need. I am terrified to leave my son alone. I am terrified of my current situation. I am an intelligent woman in everyone's eyes and this is putting me down. Anybody that has been feeling like this please help. Any advice would be helpful.
Also I could not get a referral to a specific specialist because I have to find one that deals with my "type." Since I have been already diagnosed and only need treatment. What a load of bull!
Also I could not get a referral to a specific specialist because I have to find one that deals with my "type." Since I have been already diagnosed and only need treatment. What a load of bull!
You are on the right track...you are diagnosed and are ready to begin treatment, that is great.
As for your treatment options...a lot of that depends on just how severe this is for you and how it is affecting your life. If your doc is your friend and she is recommending inpatient treatment, she probably has a good reason for that. Certainly, I understand your reluctance due to your child...so then sit down and talk to your friend/doc..ask her why she is specifically recommending inpatient vs outpatient. Her reasoning may be VERY valid.
If you still feel strongly that you aren't quite at the point where you need inpatient treatment, ask her about starting an aggressive outpatient therapy program. Maybe that will end up being all you need...but maybe after trying that for a while...you will come to realize that your doc had the right idea? I think sitting down and discussing all the pros and cons of each treatment modality is your best bet. And remember, your friend/doc has your best interests at heart....so she will surely want you to be confident in your decision.
Either way...you know you need to do SOMETHING...and that is the best first step. You're doing all of this to be able to live life more peacefully...which will benefit your child in the end, right?
Also, stop worrying about what others will think. You are receiving treatment to better yourself and get well. Either way you do it...you have to give it your all. If your depression is as severe as it sounds...that is most likely why your doc has suggested an inpatient stay. Which, of course, would be be the most aggressive and most thorough and well-rounded approach. Just keep an open mind about your choices, okay? If you DID choose inpatient, do you have a family member who would be able to care for your son? Remember, that you are doing this as much for him as you are for YOU.
Keep us posted, and good luck!
As for your treatment options...a lot of that depends on just how severe this is for you and how it is affecting your life. If your doc is your friend and she is recommending inpatient treatment, she probably has a good reason for that. Certainly, I understand your reluctance due to your child...so then sit down and talk to your friend/doc..ask her why she is specifically recommending inpatient vs outpatient. Her reasoning may be VERY valid.
If you still feel strongly that you aren't quite at the point where you need inpatient treatment, ask her about starting an aggressive outpatient therapy program. Maybe that will end up being all you need...but maybe after trying that for a while...you will come to realize that your doc had the right idea? I think sitting down and discussing all the pros and cons of each treatment modality is your best bet. And remember, your friend/doc has your best interests at heart....so she will surely want you to be confident in your decision.
Either way...you know you need to do SOMETHING...and that is the best first step. You're doing all of this to be able to live life more peacefully...which will benefit your child in the end, right?
Also, stop worrying about what others will think. You are receiving treatment to better yourself and get well. Either way you do it...you have to give it your all. If your depression is as severe as it sounds...that is most likely why your doc has suggested an inpatient stay. Which, of course, would be be the most aggressive and most thorough and well-rounded approach. Just keep an open mind about your choices, okay? If you DID choose inpatient, do you have a family member who would be able to care for your son? Remember, that you are doing this as much for him as you are for YOU.
Keep us posted, and good luck!
"The doctor is my personal friend and she wants me to be checked into a mental health facility to be away from stress and obtain some talk therapy and medication which she states I need."
If that's TRUE -and your feelings about yourself are accurate (which they can only be) then I would think again about "I am an intelligent woman in everyone's eyes and this is putting me down."
Conditions of mental stress -and the means of coping- are probably WORSE for intelligent people precisely because we ARE intelligent, questioning, evaluiating, finding patterns. You have a doctor who is also a personal friend?! Would that we ALL had such doctors! So unless your friend has some oddball desire to torment you, that friend would be the very FIRST person in whom I would confide my feelings about checking in to the mental facility. And where, of all places, might you expect to ultimately get connected to the right therapist and therapy, then in a place where you can freely express you feelings about what is right for you -treatment-wise- then a place where they do "menatl 24/7? Makes sense to me.
Put you down? Should anyone harbor such notions, they display their own ignorance. In the end, you will not only feel better, but have much more to bring to those within your care, on a "been there, done that," basis.
Please consider your friend's advice, and best wishes to you.
If that's TRUE -and your feelings about yourself are accurate (which they can only be) then I would think again about "I am an intelligent woman in everyone's eyes and this is putting me down."
Conditions of mental stress -and the means of coping- are probably WORSE for intelligent people precisely because we ARE intelligent, questioning, evaluiating, finding patterns. You have a doctor who is also a personal friend?! Would that we ALL had such doctors! So unless your friend has some oddball desire to torment you, that friend would be the very FIRST person in whom I would confide my feelings about checking in to the mental facility. And where, of all places, might you expect to ultimately get connected to the right therapist and therapy, then in a place where you can freely express you feelings about what is right for you -treatment-wise- then a place where they do "menatl 24/7? Makes sense to me.
Put you down? Should anyone harbor such notions, they display their own ignorance. In the end, you will not only feel better, but have much more to bring to those within your care, on a "been there, done that," basis.
Please consider your friend's advice, and best wishes to you.
I too used to be in the medical field and suffer from anxiety and hypochonria(OCD). I know that it feels like it will never get better at times, the only advice i can give is that it will get better over time especially with meds. As far as going in to a mental health facility, you might want to ask about just seeing a psychiatrist and trying CBT. A lot of people find that with CBT and meds combined they get a lot better. Try spending some time on this site helping others with their problems, i know for me that i find it very theraputic helping others and taking my mind of my personal situation. Just know that you are not alone in this, and the people on this site are very helpful and going through very similar problems.
Best wishes.
Best wishes.
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