View Full Version : How Helpful is your GP Poll
I'm sorry for posting this here - I don't know where else to put it.
I have suffered on and off for 15 years with anxiety/fatigue and depression. I have had a number of GPs, some of whom have been very supportive, and some who have been so arrogant that It's a wonder they haven't pushed anyone to taking their own life.
I feel INCREDIBLY strongly that people who are in such a vulnerable emotional state need to be able to report abusive/flippant or otherwise dismissive GPs. For legal reasons I have not been able to create a website naming and shaming, but it's something I would like to help with when I have the energy!
Steve
To truly see existence as it really is, would be the greatest gift!
chucklehound
13-07-06, 16:33
My GP is rubbish...She prescribed me Valium when I went in for an earache!
Take care
Chuckle
xxxx
scoobygirl2005
13-07-06, 16:37
My gp isn't very interested in my problems.
Scooby2005
x x
My doctor lives in the dark ages so nope he aint very good.
Mandy
xx
no surprises here in the answers you'll get!!!
i think the vast majority of people have had a bad experience.
what they need to do is come on here and see how we all help one another and then translate that into some form of care.
my gp referred me for cbt over 2 years ago and after admin cock-ups i finally got an assesment in december 05. so far so good except then i waited 3 months for a letter to give me an appointment only to find that the appointment was for yet another assesment!!!!!?????
i did not reply and today i received a letter saying my care had been terminated - CARE - is that what i've had??? omg, i do not need this s***, i feel better this year through finding forums like this, and i truly believe the nhs will never be able to give what nomorepanic does.
my advice - give them a wide berth and just make friends on here!!!
emmasxxxx
My first Doctor at the prctice i go to was very flippant and rather than do anything for me told me to go home and focus on positive thoughts which is all well and good but the panics i were having at that time were very frequent and i was about to crash and burn. Two weeks later i did crash and burn in so much that i couldn't work, was panic all the time and couldn't leave the house.
My second Doctor was a lot better than the first in that she put me on medication and referred me to a counsellor but i still felt i couldn't communicate well with her.
Then my third Doctor i came across while the other Doctor was away and she is wonderful and we just clicked straight away. I think it helps that she has issues herself so she understands as well as that she has support consultations where you can have 25 mins so she is aware of all issues and forms of treatment.
So personally i like my Doctor and pray she never leaves the practice!
Nicola:D
i moved house and had to move gps - i got on well at the other ones and they seemed quite happy dishing out the meds so i kept taking them.
when i moved to the new gps they were horrified with the amount of meds i was on and the amount i was taking to counteract the side effects of the others. gradually i reduced and have managed to get off most and now only take 2 anti deps a day and feel so much better.
although it took months to get referred to the mental health team and by that time i was literally climbing the walls - once in their hands everything moved quicker and referals happened immediatley. GPS should react quicker in my view.
darkangel
........life is for living not just for surviving
I have nothing but praise for my GP and the other GP's within the practice. They all seem very aware of anxiety/panic problems and I never feel I am wasting their time or 'being a nuisance'.
I am sorry some of you have had bad experiences and only wish all GPs had the patience that mine has
Clare x
polly daydream
13-07-06, 23:48
I have nothing but praise for my GP, she is very caring, understanding and supportive. Guess I am one of the lucky ones.
Best wishes,
Polly
My GP is a sufferer hersalf and understands all too well.
Wouldn't change for quids
phill
Don't believe everything you think.
marie ross
14-07-06, 09:18
Hi all,
When i first suffered with panic attacks i went to my doctor twice and she told me that 'a young girl like me should'nt be suffering from these symtoms' and sent me on my way.
By the time i built up enough confidence to go and see another doctor i had developed panic disorder, if only she had'nt dismissed me all those years ago.
Take care.
Marie XXX
I think there is still a terrible ignorance surrounding anxiety/depression within the general practice and primary care community. Granted, there are good people out there, who seem to be well informed, and compassionate, but there are still way too many patients who are left to fester until they hit a crisis point which either stops them from working, or functioning in other ways.
It's good to see that the majority of people have found a good GP... I just wonder if the results of this poll are due to people having searched and found a good GP rather than settling with the first GP that would take them on their list...
Steve
To truly see existence as it really is, would be the greatest gift!
PurpleRain
14-07-06, 18:21
Well my GP is fantastic now!...But only after my brother who is a psychiatrist gave her a call with his concerns about me!....Hmmmm funny that! [Sigh...]
Before that she would roll her eyes at me and tell me to think positively...errm hello [Duh!] as if i wasnt trying to!!!
There are some great GP's out there but i think most have little knowledge about how complex nervous illness can be!
Take care xx
I saw two doctors at my practice - the first wanted to give me betablockers, the second wanted to give me antidepressants - after only seeing me once!! I got no advice about self help or non medical ways to help, it just seemed they wanted to prescribe me drugs and that would be that! I ended up seeing a homeopathist who was also a GP and she was fantastic.
love Helen
My GP just told me to take my
two Beta Blockers which i had already
done anyway, and were not very helpful
at all
My doctor is amazing!
I went to see her about a physical complaint and was in such a state of anxiety she asked me about my anx when it all came flooding out.
I told her again and again I didn't have depression and I refused to take the meds. She did not give me a hard time, she listened and got me CBT within a couple of weeks.
I went a bit wacky and she phoned me on my mobile and spoke to me for ages (in the middle of her surgery) and persuaded me to get to hospital.
She accepted the limitations of her expertise and referred me for psychiatric help, yet she accepted there were things I could not talk to him about.
She always makes a point of talking to me when I see her, not just prescribing and saying 'bye'
She seemed to know that I needed someone to come in and take over and she did this to an extent. She would not sign me back to work even though I kept on asking her to, and really, I was not fit enough.
As you may have gathered, I can't sing her praises enough!
I seriously think I might owe my life to her.
Happyone
I am lucky in the fact that I have a very supportive and helpful GP. She even called round on an unofficial visit to see me this week as she was concerned about me.
I think having a doctor who understands and is supportive makes such a difference. The GP I had before was useless.
Karen
I changed doctors last year as mine kept telling me to 'breathe deeply and you'll be fine'. I was in pain with my back and neck with serious dizziness. I was so unwell I finally changed surgeries and doctors.
My new doctor is fantastic. He sent me for tests (results showed I have a physical problem with the bones in my neck and possible nerve damage - waiting for a neurologist to see me) and when I had to be signed off from work, and my life literally fell apart, he saw me every week and would sit and talk to me about how I was feeling. He spends up to 45 min with me if I need to talk about something. Sometimes I try to leave but he keeps asking me questions! He makes me see things more clearly when my depression is obscuring my thoughts. One day I went in to get my sick note renewed but he new my anxiety was bad just by looking at me so he asked me about it and we had a long chat about it.
The only critisism is that I think he should have referred me for CBT as soon as he knew I was self harming. But his reaction when I told him about the self harming was perfect. He was completely calm and there was no shock or alarm in his expression.
I am completely alone with no-one to talk to about my problems. At one point I was on the verge of killing myself last year. He told me to visit him when ever I needed to so when I feel the need to self harm I go and see him and normally just by talking through what ever has triggered the thoughts my need to self harm go's away.
I'm now trying to build a new life and he's desperate for me to make changes but at the moment I'm struggling with severe social phobia.
I wish I had changed doctors years ago.
I know I owe him my life. Without his support I would have taken my own life.
If anyone has a bad doctor then you have no choice but to see a different one and do it asap. Don't wait like I did. I kept hoping my doctor would wake up and help me - after all he was a nice person so I kept giving him another chance - kept hoping.
Forget it! move doctors now. I waited about 3 years...it was such a mistake.
Buntyxx
FreeFalling
26-04-08, 15:39
Hi,
My GP is not informed about PA's at all. When I had my first bout over 3 years ago he didn't really have a clue and just handed me an rx for Clonazepam 0.5mg. He told me to take two a day and I should feel better.:ohmy:
I've been taking them ever since ( I try to take 1.5 a day ).
Of course now I'm afraid to stop taking them:scared15: especially since the PA's seem to have come back.
I've had to inform myself about PA's and pass it on to my GP.
:weep: sad but true.
~Rebecca
my gp is wonderful im so glad to have her. when my health anx first started she told me even when i come to see her for other stuff to book a double app just so we can chat about how things are and if i have worrys that she can help with. my daughter also has very bad anx and she is 15 and when she is scared about something i can ring the surgury and she will ring back asap and talk to her about it and reasure her. she truly is an angel and is totaly understanding and helpful.
kellie.xxxxxxxxx
i think it helps that she was a suffer to when she was going through med school.
Hi Bunty
I am glad your gp is helping you. I know what it is like when there is no one else in your life for you to help as that is how it is for me and I have self harmed and contemplated suicide at times. I go to my gp and he is pretty useless,and just dishes out the medication which I wont take. In my area which is quite rural there are no other surgeries nearby, and the other gps at the surgery are pretty much the same as mine, so I dont really care for their help anymore.It makes me feel like I am not important enough for them to be concerned about me. I told the gp I felt suicidal and he told me to come back in 2 weeks time after dishing out more meds. I felt like going home and swallowing them all at that time. I am so glad that your gp is interested as I know it can make all the difference. I really hope things improve for you.
I recently moved GP's - my old surgery was in London and please dont interpret this as racist but I saw a different doctor everytime I went and not one of them spoke proper english - I really dont care what race someone is but you really do have to speak the same language as the patient to accurately assess them.
And I dont just mean english from a text--book, english as we all speak day to day. I found it incredibly difficult to describe my symtoms to any of the doctors I saw. They just couldnt understnd and empathise with me. BTW I would also expect that a patient who does not speak english should be seen by a doctor who speaks their languge or be provided with an interpreter for the same reasons as above.
I've now moved outside of London and looking at the doctors list on the wall - every single doctor is fantastic very understanding and efficient. and the surgery is well maintained and modern and you dont have to wait that long either.
It really is a postcode lottery I'm afraid - but you should remember GP's are employed my the NHS to provide a service and they make profit from it they have set standards of care and should be adhering to them. So if there is a problem complain to the relevant body.
my 1st GP was usless and made everything twice as bad but i have moved since and got a fantastic GP it does make a big big difference if you have a good GP. mine is really supportive and helpfull im very lucky but i do know what its like not to have a good GP. we shouldnt have to put up with it!!!
I wouldnt have got through my anxiety / depression without my GP. he is an absoulte gem.......I can leave a message for him and he's on the phone advising me within hours. If I need an apt he squeezes me in bless him. he is a credit to the NHS.
x
My Dr is awful and I miss my Dr in Australia who has treated me from birth.
The Drs in this country have no time for you and just tell you your fine, no explination.. I knew I had anxiety, told him and he still didn't help me.
I was trying for a baby at the time and I was getting quite ill, he told me that when I am pregnant i will feel better and have more things to worry about than my health!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I went back onto the medication my family Aussie Dr prescribed after I call him in Aus from the uk, he did tell me not to come off it but I wanted to see for myself and have a drug free pregnancy, that was the worst 6 months of my life, it felt like how I was when I was 18
I am mucher better again and I head back to aus in dec, my Dr wants to see me and send me to a psychiatrist for extra support,
I recently moved GP's - my old surgery was in London and please dont interpret this as racist but I saw a different doctor everytime I went and not one of them spoke proper english - I really dont care what race someone is but you really do have to speak the same language as the patient to accurately assess them.
And I dont just mean english from a text--book, english as we all speak day to day. I found it incredibly difficult to describe my symtoms to any of the doctors I saw. They just couldnt understnd and empathise with me. BTW I would also expect that a patient who does not speak english should be seen by a doctor who speaks their languge or be provided with an interpreter for the same reasons as above.
I've now moved outside of London and looking at the doctors list on the wall - every single doctor is fantastic very understanding and efficient. and the surgery is well maintained and modern and you dont have to wait that long either.
It really is a postcode lottery I'm afraid - but you should remember GP's are employed my the NHS to provide a service and they make profit from it they have set standards of care and should be adhering to them. So if there is a problem complain to the relevant body.
That's not being racist, I fully understand what you are saying:)
Hi Bunty
I am glad your gp is helping you. I know what it is like when there is no one else in your life for you to help as that is how it is for me and I have self harmed and contemplated suicide at times. I go to my gp and he is pretty useless,and just dishes out the medication which I wont take. In my area which is quite rural there are no other surgeries nearby, and the other gps at the surgery are pretty much the same as mine, so I dont really care for their help anymore.It makes me feel like I am not important enough for them to be concerned about me. I told the gp I felt suicidal and he told me to come back in 2 weeks time after dishing out more meds. I felt like going home and swallowing them all at that time. I am so glad that your gp is interested as I know it can make all the difference. I really hope things improve for you.
At that stage you should follow your Drs advice, meds helped me after 4 weeks of taking them. Life is so very precious, try everything before you give up hun:hugs:
bottleblond
12-11-08, 17:37
Hi there
I will move your thread to General Anxiety.
Lisa
NMP Administrator
The thing that winds me up is that now that anxiety is down on my medical record, they'll take that relatively seriously but they won't take anything else seriously...my GP makes me feel like I'm making up anything that isn't anxiety...and frankly makes me feel like I'm wasting her time.
It has got to the point that if it isn't physically visible, then I feel that I can't discuss it with a GP without them assuming it is a symptom of anxiety. (which seems rude as I'm not exactly a frequent flyer, I only turn up at the surgery around once a year or so!)
On the flip side, when I had the acute anxiety - they were brilliant, and the very best thing was being prescribed books! The GP worked in tandem with the local library and I was soon furnished with all the information I needed, plus one book that I even bought as I thought it was so good!
I had nervous breakdown several years ago and if i had stayed with my GP at the time i really am not sure that i would still be here today, her attitude to my illness was appalling and she very flippantly told me that if i was likely to think about taking my life then i should go to A&E, she was an Iranian and she came across as very cold and unsympathetic.. My husband was so concerned about me and the lack of help that i was getting that he decided to take me to see a GP privately... The doctor i have now is much better but i still think that the NHS are sadly lacking in the help that they have offer people with mental health issues...
I have just become comfortable about opening up to a GP who is wonderful and very supportive. But she is a registrar attached there for only a year (less now) and I'm getting increasingly anxious about her leaving. I don't want her too!! How silly.
ThreeBee23
19-01-09, 01:50
Once I waas actually diagnosed at an ER I have seen 2 GP since then and both of them have been very supportive.
signedoffwork
20-01-09, 20:18
My GP has been brilliant. He's very supportive, informed and offers different kinds of help with my depression (a combination of therapy and meds). He talks to me about my options and is very understanding. He's not dismissive and understands that depression is very real.
I give my GP five thumbs up!!!! :yesyes::yesyes::yesyes::yesyes::yesyes:
:roflmao:
signedoffwork
20-01-09, 20:19
Now, if the question had been, "How helpful is your therapist..." my answer wouldn't be so positive...
sunshine-lady
20-01-09, 21:09
My GP is wonderful. He is very understanding and supportive. He is aware of my agoraphobia and often phones and pops into see me when he is out on his rounds!
sheppeyescapee
21-01-09, 23:14
I recently changed GPs and they haven't been that much help really. I'm not sure how they could help though?
shotokansho
27-01-09, 17:55
My gp is fab and so is his wife, its a family practise. They are both supportive and very welcoming. They listen to me and ask lots of questions.
Doesn't stop me from feeling like i have wasted his time though, although it does help when they are nice.
purplehaze
27-01-09, 19:27
MOST GPs are only as good as the information that we give them and they are far from miricle workers. As far as mental health is concerned they really have limited knowledge but the more information we supply them with then the more able they are to help us.
Remember the doctor is just our first port of call and from there we can be refered to those who are equipt to help us.
Have notes when you go see your GP
Ask them to refer you to a mental health support team
If you feel your not getting the advice and support you need then see another GP in the practice or change your Dr
I have only ever seen one GP in the practice about my anxiety, but she has been great. See's me regular, phones often and is always very understanding.
My GP only seems to know about social anxiety, and relates everything I talk about back to that. I never really used to have specific problems with social anxiety, it was just many general things that caused me to have panic attacks. He prescribes me medicine that I think is helping some... (it's hard to tell how much), but I'm not sure he's very well informed on anxiety disorders, or other mental health problems.
bluegirl09
03-02-09, 21:05
My doctor is very good i think he and my mum saved my life to be honest he was very understanding and has kind words for me also he talks a lot of sense -plus when iw as very bad he told me i could ring the practice any time of the time and he would be staight on the phone too speak with me not many would do that im guessing tho i was pretty bad back then:blush:
How often do you reckon you 'should' go see your GP? I always feel guilty about going worrying that I'm taking up too much of their time. Plus you can't exactly say all you feel you need to in one 10 min slot.
bluegirl09
04-02-09, 13:53
I feel quite guilty going too see my gp i usually go about once a month i think there are more ill people maybe elderly people and babies young mums etc who are more needy but when i was very ill i still felt a bit like a should pull myself together but we all need help now and then though the nhs is over stretched- i did see a doctor who really couldnt be arsed it was like theres the anti -depressants NEXT but my dr now is caring and understanding .
I think my GP is really helpful. It was him who actually got me to admit my problems; when I went to see him about ibs-type symptoms, he encouraged me to talk more and I admitted about my anxiety and depression for the first time. And since then I've been going to see him regularly, and I feel he listens to me and empathises. He also speaks in a language I understand (rather than a stream of complex medical jargon), which makes me feel more relaxed when I'm talking to him :shades:
I also like the fact that he will gee me up (not in a rude way). Last week I saw him and had been so worried about side effects from medication I hadn't dared to take them. He was reassuring, and also like my personal trainer, encouraging me to change the way I think about taking the medication... and I've been taking them for about a week now!
My GP was absolutely AWFUL!!!
Time and time again he was force pills on me and once actually ashered me out of his office becuase he said I was beyond help for not wanting help.
I then swithed and swapped from GP to GP the rest were not as rude but tried to ship me off with tablets again.
Finally I found a doctor who understood and referred me to mental health nurse who Im seeing again on 25th who will hopefully put me on a CBt waiting course.
I voted the bottom option! I have no faith in doctors. I mean what do they do? just look up your symptoms what you tell them and give you whatever pills it says to on the screen.
If i fainted in the doctor surgery all they would do is ring an ambulance. their pointless apart from diagnosing small problems.
I clicked on not interested but feel i could have clicked on minimising my condition and being rude as well. My gp was once very rude back in 2001 when i couldn't get out of bed due to severe anxiety and I had never requested a home visit before. He shouted at me down the phone because I refused to go to the surgery and that really upset me. He has also minimised my condition by just packing me off with medication and not even suggesting referring me to the mental health team. It took a breakdown and a short term alcohol problem for the surgery to do anything about helping me and that was only by seeing one of his colleagues. I have not seen my gp since 2006 as i do not feel he is interested and i normally see a female doctor/nurse who are at least helpful and sympathetic to my medical problems.
Flying Badger
27-08-09, 00:46
I've seen three GPs about my anxiety / panic disorder over the years.
The first GP I saw seemed, at first, to only be interested in prescribing anti depressants. Very little talking, and no other support. I must say though, that when I eventually pressed him for help other than medication, he refered me for some CBT. He was also extremely supportive when my (then) employer began to harass me about my problems.
When he left the surgery, I saw another GP - she had been at the practise since the late 1970s. She openly laughed at me, asked me "well, what do you expect me to do about it" and cancelled my repeat prescription for Venlafaxine. The sudden cessation of Venlafaxine after 2 years caused massive withdrawal, and even a night in hospital after collapsing in town.
My current GP is difficult to figure out. She stopped my Citalopram prescriptions without my knowledge, but wrote me another when I went to see her. Currently, she refuses to prescribe any medication for me (I require fairly strong pain releif owing to what the pain clinic think is some kind of nerve disorder), which has led to a bit of a dispute. She openly accuses me of abusing opiod-based pain killers, and seems to be unable to see past that. Four months ago though, she did refer me back to the community mental health team, so at least I have access to some support (if you count waiting 9 weeks and counting for a follow up appointment, despite being told there is no waiting list!)
I do hear lots of stories of GPs simply "throwing" medication at people though. Weather they are unwilling to help, or just don't know how to, is another question.
Cheers
Gary
I've only ever seen one GP about anxiety and she's always very understanding; if a bit dismissive sometimes. She's always refused to put me on pills since I'm only eighteen and she doesn't know how much that would help me, but she's a genuinely really nice person and really seems to care - however telephone consulations in our surgery are literally unheard of!!
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