Lost My Therapist

So this past Thursday I had an appointment with my therapist. I love her. I've always hated therapy but she was exceptional and helped me get my BPD Dx and has helped me in ways no one ever has.

Well, I found out that I can't see her anymore. She is based at my primary care doctors office and the way our healthcare system works is that you get 10 visits with the PCP therapist and then if you need more help you get transferred to the central psychiatry department. I got an exception and got to see her longer because I was in crisis with a manic episode and was waiting for a referral to go through to the bipolar clinic. Since I finally had my appointment at the BP clinic the healthcare system has cut me off from being able to see her again.

I can get a new therapist but I have to wait until my BPD diagnosis is officially logged into the healthcare system. Even though I've been diagnosed by an War psychiatrist and the BP psychiatrist he can't officially put my Dx in the system until after I see the clinic psychologist. He has to evaluate me to see if I am suffering from any other mental illnesses in conjunction with my BPD so they can put it into their system. My appointment is in 2 months (which is actually really fast) and then I have to have another appointment with the psychiatrist after he and the psychologist discuss my case. After thst they're I'll put everything into the computer and I can get on a waiting list for a therapist at the clinic. Best case scenario I can get an appointment with a therapist two or so months after that...so im looking at 4-5 months best case scenario to get a new therapist.

I'm kind of freaking out. I needed those sessions with my therapist. She helped me so much. Now I'm having medication issues which is making me fearful of what could happen if I don't have someone to talk to. There's nothing I can do, this is just the way out healthcare system works. I don't know what to do.

Thinking of you. Check out the Psychotherapy forum if you haven't already. Post your situation and you'll receive lots of support. Of course, keep posting here, too!

Thinking of you.

So sorry this has happened to you. I would be devastated if I could no longer see my T. Can you pay out of pocket to keep seeing her? 4 - 5 months is a long time. If you're not feeling good discuss it with your psychiatrist and hopefully a med tweek will help. Are you safe?

I'm so sorry you're going through this. How awful. Finding a therapist that you work well with is so hard to do so it is devastating to lose one. I hope that things work out for you. Can you go that many months without a therapist? That seems like a really long time.

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I am so sorry. What a mess. Our healthcare system and my insurance isn't perfect, but compared, I'm very grateful. I wish there was some advise I could provide but knowing nothing about how things work there, I'm at a loss. Keep posting when times get tough, we are listening. (((Hugs)))

Thanks everyone very much for the responses. ❤️❤️❤️

I get very frustrated with out healthcare system quite often. Unfortunately I can't pay out of pocket to see her. Therapists located at primary care offices are government employees so they're salaried and don't get paid per patient. So technically they can't see any patients that don't go through the healthcare system. It sucks.

I'm safe for now. Hoping that thigs go ok. I go back to the psychiatrists office to see his nurse in a few weeks.

I hope you find a new great T ! Yes our heath care system blows !

I actually live in Sweden. So I am dealing with a socialized healthcare system. I'd actually give anything to go back to the insurance I had when I lived in North Carolina. It wasn't perfect but at least I had some control over my healthcare. Here I have absolutely no control over anything. I don't get to pick my doctors or my therapist, nothing. Plus waiting lists to see doctors and such are insane. It's extremely frustrating. I would go far as to say I absolutely hate socialized healthcare. It's a disaster, and Sweden doesn't even have that big of a population.

(((((( AnxiousValkyrie ))))))

I, too, am sorry for what you are going through. I had hoped there would be a solution. It seems, if they previously allowed you to stay with the therapist because you were in crisis, they might also allow you to return to her if you end up having a tough time while getting your care sorted out now.

A neighbor of mine is from Sweden and is always putting down health care here in the U.S. The U.S. has some problems for sure; yet it sounds like the care in Sweden isn't as "ideal" as portrayed, perhaps?

I wish it were ideal, for your sake!

Hang in there!


WC

I'm sorry this is happening to you. Maybe you could journal and write the journal as if it's to your old therapist? Perhaps that would help vent the feelings you need to deal with during this time of transition and loss.

I definitely think the healthcare system here gets romanticized a lot in the US. The biggest problem is there is a lack of doctors and nurses and so many people in the system now as a result of the refugee crisis. My husband (who is Swedish) said the system had been better in the past but that the influx of immigrants has put major strain on the system and they can't keep up! So patient care seriously suffers. Plus some of the ways in which the system works in general is just dumb. You have to go through a lot of unnecessary crap to get to the right doctor a lot of times.

I started doing this as a way to chart my moods and reactions to my new meds. It is helping some.

There are Internet therapists you can talk to via Skype and the like if you can pay.