clickaway
12-02-05, 19:48
Just thought I’d start a post about how much help you’ve had and how easy it was to find.
I’d like to know the experiences of others, as in my case I feel my doctor could have done more as regards practical help and suggesting places to go and people to see.
I’ve had panic attacks for about 10 years and at first was given tranquillisers or ‘over-the counter’ medication. Then along came Seroxat and that seemed to help me a lot. However a year ago, such medication (there is some that I’m not able to take) became ineffective, and my GP said there was not much more she could do for me.
The way I felt at the time gave me the impression that she was only able to sign sick notes and prescriptions! But in all fairness she got me an appointment with a psychiatrist (not really that useful) and referred me to an NHS therapist for anxiety management. That was in May 2004, yet it is only now in February 2005 that treatment is starting (for ‘task management’).
Fortunately, my employer arranged 12 weeks of counselling and three one-hour sessions with a consultant physician – at their expense. So I had 15 hours of time to talk to people to get some understanding and advice.
Again, by chance the trade union’s local welfare secretary had quite a bit of knowledge of how it feels to have anxiety disorder and she told me about No Panic.
Because I was waiting so long for the NHS, I could not see much light at the end of the tunnel – I just had panic attack after panic attack and knew I had to take some action. I just had to pick up the Yellow Pages and find a psychotherapist, and I had an introductory chat with him the very next day.
And of course, No Panic linked me through to this great site.
Now my point is, why didn’t my GP suggest what other help was out there? There ARE people out there who can help you, but how are you going to get to know? The voluntary sector provide great support and, if you can afford it, so can a psychotherapist. I did discover after several visits that my GP does have some info on self help groups as I asked the question and got a print out. That gave me the name of First Steps to Freedom who fulfil a similar role to No Panic.
Given the long NHS waiting times, complimentary support is vital. I also feel that GP’s should be much more pro-active when it comes to letting people know about what help is out there. They should have a rack of calling cards giving details of support groups for a number of issues that affect their patients – not just anxiety sufferers.
Just wondered if anybody wanted to share their experience and views on how we could receive better support.
Ray
I’d like to know the experiences of others, as in my case I feel my doctor could have done more as regards practical help and suggesting places to go and people to see.
I’ve had panic attacks for about 10 years and at first was given tranquillisers or ‘over-the counter’ medication. Then along came Seroxat and that seemed to help me a lot. However a year ago, such medication (there is some that I’m not able to take) became ineffective, and my GP said there was not much more she could do for me.
The way I felt at the time gave me the impression that she was only able to sign sick notes and prescriptions! But in all fairness she got me an appointment with a psychiatrist (not really that useful) and referred me to an NHS therapist for anxiety management. That was in May 2004, yet it is only now in February 2005 that treatment is starting (for ‘task management’).
Fortunately, my employer arranged 12 weeks of counselling and three one-hour sessions with a consultant physician – at their expense. So I had 15 hours of time to talk to people to get some understanding and advice.
Again, by chance the trade union’s local welfare secretary had quite a bit of knowledge of how it feels to have anxiety disorder and she told me about No Panic.
Because I was waiting so long for the NHS, I could not see much light at the end of the tunnel – I just had panic attack after panic attack and knew I had to take some action. I just had to pick up the Yellow Pages and find a psychotherapist, and I had an introductory chat with him the very next day.
And of course, No Panic linked me through to this great site.
Now my point is, why didn’t my GP suggest what other help was out there? There ARE people out there who can help you, but how are you going to get to know? The voluntary sector provide great support and, if you can afford it, so can a psychotherapist. I did discover after several visits that my GP does have some info on self help groups as I asked the question and got a print out. That gave me the name of First Steps to Freedom who fulfil a similar role to No Panic.
Given the long NHS waiting times, complimentary support is vital. I also feel that GP’s should be much more pro-active when it comes to letting people know about what help is out there. They should have a rack of calling cards giving details of support groups for a number of issues that affect their patients – not just anxiety sufferers.
Just wondered if anybody wanted to share their experience and views on how we could receive better support.
Ray