Rude doctor and ESA

[leebe18]

My GP claims that anixety depression and OCD are mild illnesses that we learn to cope with and that do NOT last for long, Although i have servere anxiety and depression, OCD, She refusses to acknowledge them as being very serious "schizophrenia and phycosis are worse and they are concidered serious "she says If that is true then why do people with OCD and depression commit suicide , She agreed to sign my sick cetificate for my ESA claim but only signed it to last 6 week!! As if by some miricle i will be cured by then!! If i didn't suffer with vertigo disorder she would have probably refussed me , :lac:

sorry for the rant But these GPs are so un-careing lately and clearly know nothing about mental illlness and how it effects people

[macc noodle]

Hi Leebee18

I think that you will find that the GPs are under pressure to encourage people suffering from mental health issues and claiming benefits to try and get back into the workplace. Also, they may be mindful of the fact that the Government is trying to reduce the number of people claiming the various sickness/disability benefits.

The sad fact of the matter is that too many people use mental health as a handy tool to enable them to claim benefits because it is easier to fake than more physical illnesses and they (the fraudulent ones) think that they will get away with it.

HOWEVER, at the risk of being pilloried and replied to in a negative way, I firmly believe that part of our recovery is being able to function within society on different levels and working is an essential part of that. I for one would have been lost over the years without a job to do as it gave me a framework to live within which eventually became my saviour - more so than any tablets that the doc gave me!

Hope you feel better and that you get a more sympathetic hearing next time you see the doctors - if you are in a large practice, you could always ask if they have a doctor whose speciality/interest is mental health and make an appointment to see them. I am very lucky in that we have such a GP at our practice and you always get a sympathetic hearing.

[Nattyburt]

Hello,

Unfortunately doctors are not particulary sympathetic regarding anxiety disorders, mine is the same. Although anxiety is not actually considered a mental illness because it is self taught and harmless to the sufferer (although it is bloody horrible), where as other mental illness are potentially dangerous to the sufferer as they are not actually aware of what they are doing or what is happening. And as for work, you need to get back in there, it really is a good diversion. The more time you stay away the less chance of you ever wanting to go back, its a vicious circle. I work in London and i absolutely hate to travel, i also get vertigo and feel sick most of the time, but i still manage to get there and back and i feel proud of myself for doing it. Anyway jeremy kyle gets boring after a while doesn't he.....................! Hope you are feeling ok

xxxx

[leebe18]

Thanks for all of the advice, i'll try my best I don't plan to stay on ESA forever its just till i get my life back on track I feel that after some therapy and teaching of ways to cope and manage my illness first would be the right thing to do, Then il be ready to get out there and back in the work place ,I really enjoyed my job as i worked as a gardner ,I know il beat this thing eventully :)