[Otulissa]

I don't know what to expect. What kinds of things do they do/ask?
Im nervous about going, but even more afraid they wont be able to help me.

[BlessedRhiannon]

I imagine it varies by pdoc - mine asked me basic medical history questions, more detailed emotional/family history/personal history questions, then he asked me about what I was currently experiencing (anxiety and depression), how those manifest for me, what I want out of treatment, and we talked about options. My initial appointment was over an hour long, but it was just lots of information gathering on the pdoc's part and me asking questions of him and talking about options. Also, I had my therapist call him prior to my appointment, so she gave him her thoughts, some of my background, etc before I even met him.

Having my T call my pdoc first was so helpful for me. She was able to give him the basics on me and she was able to share with him the things that I wasn't able to in that first appointment.

[sewerrats]

First they will ask if anything is worrying you , like do you have money worries, relationship prob,s, has someone died, ect ect,. if so he wont be able to help you. Once you have got past that, he will ask what,s troubling you so away you go and tell him . He will make his mind up at the end of the session to if he will put you on meds, or therapy alone will do.

[herethennow]

For mine they asked symptoms.. history.. family background. It's more of getting to know you kind of session. I understand it's scary, it was scary for me too.. but do know that if you go, ultimately it's you trying to help yourself.

Can I ride in your pocket?

[Odee]

First sessions are usually longer, mine have always been an hour. They will ask questions about your symptoms, history, situation, and what you have tried in the past. They will suggest medications and talk about them. I wish every session was an hour long. :\

Also, you will be inquired about almost every psychiatric symptom for any psychiatric problem. So if you're just depressed and they are asking you questions that sound like they think you're bipolar or schizophrenic or asking about symptoms of panic, that's usual. They just want to check all the bases, it's not that they don't trust you.

[SingDanceRunLife]

Well for mine, since I had been in therapy for years before ever seeing a pdoc and had always just dealt with GPs (which I do not recommend at all unless it is your only option), I kind of knew what was going to happen. It also helped that it was my best friend at the time that gave me the name and number of the pdoc (because he saw him and highly recommended him), so I knew that I was going to be seeing an Indian dude that was really nice. Lol. Sounds strange, I know, but it is what it is.

Anyway, I brought in a printed out list of all my history and symptoms and meds I had been on and what worked in what ways and what didn't work etc. He was quite impressed and pleased because it made his job a lot easier. But he still went through all the standard questions like medical history and mental health history, family history (although I'm adopted, so that part of the conversation was real quick cause I don't know any family history). It's just so they can sort of get a feel for you and see what's going on, and you can get a feel for them as well. My appointment lasted about an hour, and at the end, he told me that I have Bipolar 2, explained what it was and what it meant, gave me a script for some meds and sent me on my way telling me to come back in a few weeks.

So, I highly suggest bringing something written that you can either tell them or give to them because it makes things a lot easier.

With my current pdoc, I actually don't remember my first session with her (but I was all sorts of crazy and all over the place back then), but I just had another "first" with her (ok, I'll explain: I took a semester off of school so I decided I needed a pdoc at home, so I switched for a semester, then went back to my one by my school when I went back to school, and now I'm back home, so I went back to her). She didn't remember too much history, so we went through that and it was very much a "get to know you" kind of thing, she could tell I was extremely hypomanic, so she wanted to address that and mainly asked questions about how long, what my symptoms were etc. But it was a bit different than a real first since she already knew my diagnosis and a number of the meds I have been on since she is the one that prescribed them. And I like her a lot more than my old pdoc. She's more human. And so far, every session with her since the initial has been about a half hour because she really wants to dig into things and make sure everything is going smoothly, and I really like that.