Hi Lika. I suppose I think of a consultation with a new provider as being an information-gathering session. The provider will ask you lots of questions to try to get the information he/she needs to diagnose you or understand the diagnosis you already have, if you have one. They also usually ask what meds you've taken in the past and which ones helped and which ones didn't help.

They should be polite and respectful towards you.

If I feel like I need to say something to a doctor that is complicated or that I'm afraid I might forget, I write it down. Sometimes I write quite a long bit and then condense it.

I know what you mean about feeling like you haven't explained everything right. If that does happen, you'll have the opportunity after the consultation to think about that you would have like to have said or explained and didn't and you can write that down and give that information to the provider at a later time.

Remember that you're sort of "interviewing" this provider to see if he/she seems to be someone you can work with. Your impressions are important. Maybe write those down too after the consult.

I hope it goes well for you. It *is* a bit of a tiring and anxiety-provoking process. I don't think that talking about ourselves and our history and problems for 45 minutes to a stranger is something that anyone would find easy.

I had an interview with a new provider about 3 months ago and it was tough. I was sweating afterwards. Now we're into the shorter visit, medication management phase. He is doing a terrific job for me, so I'm really glad that I sweated my way through the initial consult.

I hope that your new psychiatrist will turn out to be very helpful to you, too.