[Martina]

I just had my first appointment with my new therapist today, and it went so well. I really like her personality and her approach to therapy.

No more digging into my past, no more psychobabble, but focusing on the here and now and what is effecting my life TODAY.

She is the only therapist in town who does Dialectical Behavioral Therapy. She just moved here.

She gave me homework - one small page on a few items, and she wanted me to come up with a Bucket List of 50 things I want to do before I die. I already had a 10 item list but 50 was pretty hard.

She is out-of-network on my insurance, but she agreed to her lowest sliding scale rate of $40 per session. That is very reasonable. We will overspend our Health Savings Account, but it is so worth it.

The only bit of bad news - she noticed that I was clearly speaking very fast and a little agitated/fidgety. She asked how I've been sleeping....and the answer is not well. She's going to have a little chat with my psych nurse tomorrow (they work in the same building) because my meds may need to be adjusted. But I've been feeling so GOOD! I wish we didn't have to be so darn scared about me going manic. I feel so happy right now, but I'm not sleeping. Please don't take me off that med. It's finally working. I'll just cut all the caffeine and try harder to sleep.

[PTSDlovemycats]

Awe that is AWESOME! I am SO happy for you! That is great. I really like the idea of having a bucket list. My Pdoc also does a bit of DBT with me as well. I have found it to be helpful at times. I hope that they don't tinker with your meds too much. Maybe mention cutting back on caffeine when they bring it up. All the best of luck to you on your new your new journey on the therapeutic road to better mental health. I hope it is a good one. You deserve it!

[sunrise]

Your new therapist sounds great, Martina. And her adjusted rate is really reasonable. Sounds like just what you were looking for.

RE the med: if my med hits me the wrong way, I can talk fast too. Once that happened in therapy, and my T commented that I sure was "perky" that day. That made me be more careful about taking the med with food to lessen its impact a bit, not take it right before therapy because I don't want to be that way in therapy, etc. Every med is a trade-off. If it makes you feel great, then maybe you can make other adjustments to make it work for you. I think it's worth talking to your prescriber about. She might be able to adjust the dose slightly so you still feel good but are able to sleep and not be too fidgety.

I like your homework with the bucket list. (One time my T assigned me to watch The Bucket List.) Good luck with your DBT!

[rainbow8]

Martina, it's nice to hear that you like your new T! We are all so different. I had a T who only wanted to focus on the here and now, and wanted something different. Now I see one who likes to delve into my past. I'm glad there are so many different kinds of Ts with different orientations!

You're lucky she gave you a sliding scale. She sounds really caring!!