[Jerabeth4]

I started seeing a new psychiatrist and counselor about two months ago to deal with my ADHD, anxiety and PTSD. I was diagnosed with both about two years ago and treatment was successful until I moved and had to change providers.

Anyway, when I started seeing my new psychiatrist, my diagnoses somehow changed to anxiety and paranoia. I am not sure how she made that leap, but she did. Instead of prescribing the Clonapin I was on before, she wanted to try Buspar and Geodon. I assumed she knew what she was doing, so I went with her advice, especially since she said it would treat the feeling of "always being one move away from an anxiety attack."

I have not noticed any change being on the geodon. Not only have I gained 14 pounds in less than a month, I still have flashbacks, I still have nightmares, and I am still always one second away from having an anxiety attack. The buspar does take the edge off and make it more bearable, but since she won't prescribe anything to treat my ADHD, my lack of attention span eventually counteracts the buspar.

To make matters worse, about a week after I started taking the Geodon, I started my period, which I have not had for three years because of the depo shot, and my period has not stopped for almost a month. I contacted my gynecologist and she stated that it is common for women who are on the depo to experience heavy, extended periods when they are on Geodon and recommended that I quit taking it because my lab values showed that I was becoming anemic.

I contacted my psychiatrist and she told me that it is a "side effect I will have to learn to live with." As you can imagine, I am not happy about this. There is a second psychiatrist in the office I go to, and I am wondering if I should ask about switching.

***History***
The reason she gave for the diagnosis of paranoia is a conversation we had about my ex-husband and my PTSD.

I am the victim of domestic violence. I pray for those mornings where I am groggy and stumbling to the coffee pot, hoping for enough energy to get my brain going 100%. This is because I hate the alternative.

Domestic violence survivors will really understand this. The alternative to a groggy morning is waking up to a screaming alarm clock after being jolted out of a surreal dream of being beaten on by someone twice your size. Waking up like this poses serious problems in your life. Not only are you stumbling to to the coffee pot, praying for energy. You are also trying to regain your bearings and bring yourself mentally and emotionally back to your new reality.

You have to fight emotions that are real. Regret, emotional pain, memories of physical pain, and the want to just crawl back into yourself. I am doing this while I get four kids ready for school, make them breakfast, force them into the shower one by one, and make sure they are out the door on time.

This is why my previous psychiatrist had me on clonapin. It works quick and it lets me get back to living. With my new psychiatrist, I am not living, I am surviving. I am struggling to function and I am in a dark place.

Any help or advice would be great help.

[PMAD]

Hi Jerobeth! I haven't had any experience with the 2 drugs you were given but I do take Klonopin,I think docs are trying to steer patients away from benzos these days so that's probably why your doc prescribed these instead,I hope you feel better quick!

[CharcoalGray]

Hi Jerabeth. I personally think Buspar is largely ineffective for treating anxiety. My pdoc has me on both Klonopin and Buspar. I take the Buspar just to make my pdoc happy, but the Klonopin is what helps with my anxiety and panic.

I agree with PMAD that your pdoc is either personally opposed to benzos, or it may be that the mental health facility as a whole doesn't prescribe them at all. I would suggest finding a new pdoc immediately. You have a RIGHT to effective treatment.

I used to go to a public mental health facility that stopped prescribing benzos altogether. I at first let them begin to taper me off of the Klonopin until the anxiety and panic got so bad that I finally switched pdocs, who is willing to treat me with Klonopin (1 mg 6 times daily), which is effective.

I'm sorry to hear what you're going through and wish you all the best!!!

[CharcoalGray]

By the way, Klonopin is considered the safest of all the benzos in terms of the risk for dependence. So more pdocs are open to prescribing klonopin as opposed to ativan (which I used to be on), valium, or xanax.

[TiredPilgrim]

I really think you need to change psychiatrists, as soon as possible. This one throws up several red flags.
1) She is basically dismissing your PTSD and previous traumatic experience by changing your diagnosis to paranoia. That feels so disrespectful. Any psychiatrist should respect your experience and help you through it, not basically dismiss it with a diagnosis of paranoia.
2) Your gyno told you that you are anemic, and you need to get off geodon, and your psychiatrist just told you to basically learn to live with it? Really? That's really unprofessional and shows a blatant disregard for your health. She should have taken your depo into consideration before even thinking of geodon.
3) Your previous diagnosis was working; it was effective. She should have taken that into consideration. Instead, she chose to change your diagnosis.

[Nammu]

Her reaction to a medical finding of anemic raises huge red flags to me. That is not an appropriate response. There are hundreds of other drugs to try telling someone to just live with a side effect so severe screams quack.

[Gus1234U]

YES... by all means, change docs ASAP, if you can~!

my new Pdoc, i have decided, is a sociopath. for all the reasons i won't go into here, i have been obsessing about my last (and 2nd) meeting with him, 3 weeks ago. at first i wanted to rant and complain in a letter (email), but my gut told me not to do that. after thinking all day every day since he tried to pound me into the dirt, i have hit upon an idea i think might work, for you too.

under the provisions of the Federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, i have the right to request accomodations for disability-related special needs. for me this will be a treatment plan that forbids him to stress me by questioning me in detail about stressors; forbids him from labeling me without my express consent (suicidal NOT); and forbids him from manipulating me by withholding my current meds.

this is a very strong act, legally precipitous, which he cannot decline. if necessary i can request his written consent within 30 days, or submit my request to his supervisor (he works at a public clinic). i have used this technique before, and it sure works~!

if you want help phrasing this request under the ADA, PM me and i'll be glad to help.

best wishes~

[Unrigged64072835]

You need to find another psychiatrist. I had to change psychiatrists and doctors one because they were both pointing fingers at the other one and not changing anything while I got sicker.

[still_crazy]

wow. I've had bad shrinks, too. I suggest getting a different one, if you can.

[Cyllya]

That is pretty ridiculous. Besides getting a new psychiatrist, I'd recommend writing a letter of complaint to your state's medical licensing board (mainly about how she thinks you just need to learn to live with long term bleeding and anemia).

[Sunflower123]

Please find another doctor immediately. The current one is either nuts or flat out incompetent. I am so sorry you're going through this. My pdoc prescribes Xanax and Klonopin because my anxiety is really that bad. I've been with him a long time and he knows I don't abuse it. Good luck finding another doctor.