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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
[email protected]Shown: posts 1 to 4 of 4. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Renee N on July 4, 2000, at 2:06:50
I have considered leaving my pdoc for another before, but kept procrastinating (ADHD). I took the TOVA test with a psychologist in his office at his suggestion back in March. It was $200 out of the pocket. I forgot my next appointment with the pdoc. He said before I took the test that he wanted to see me every 3 weeks for a while. When I missed my appopntment and went in to apologize and reschedule, he said he would tell the receptionist to get me in very soon, probably within the week. She never called. I finally called her and she said he never told her anything. She wrote stuff down, but again didn't call me. I finally called her back and she couldn't get me in until June 29. That day finally came. When I got home from work, my daughter told me that the pdoc's office had called and wanted me to call them back. When I called, someone(not the usual receptionist) told me that the doctor's contract with my behavior health plan was "Pending". She said if I kept my appointment that day it would be self-pay, but if I rescheduled, they would probably have things settled by then. She said it was the behavioral health plan's fault, not the pdoc's. I told her I was irritated that they only told me on the day of the appointment. I asked when they found out about it. She said the insurance lady had left early because she was sick, and she didn't know when they were informed. I asked how much it would be as a self-pay. She had to find out. She came back and said that I was scheduled for longer than usual (I usually have 15 minute med checks which more often than not are cut short by the antsy pdoc getting up and heading me toward the door). If I came in as scheduled it would cost $80, but if I waited until 5:45 he could see me for a shorter time and would "only" charge me $60. My usual copay is $25. I said I was unhappy with the situation and would be changing pdocs. Then I told her that I might run out of my prescriptions before I could get in to see someone else, and I asked if that would be a problem. She said it probably would, because he would want to see me first. Never mind that that never stopped him before. (Never mind that both ADDerall(a stimulant) and Effexor XR can pose withdrawal problems!!!) I was so angry.
Five minutes after we hung up, she called. I didn't answer and listened to her message on my answering machine. She repeated that it wasn't their fault. She said they were just informed that day...yeah, right. She said they talked to some other patients with the same plan, and they talked to their "caseworkers" at the behavioral health plan and they arranged it so they could go there and have it covered. She even went so far as to suggest that if I called and asked to be able to continue to see my pdoc, that it would help them out. Like I want to do that!
I called the behavioral health plan. It took the guy some time to find the current and correct info, with much prompting from me. He said that in February they told my pdoc that they wanted to do a review. His office never responded, so their contract was cancelled at the end of March! Some how I don't quite believe that the pdoc's office was just informed of this on June 29th, the day of my appointment!!!
I am going to go off my meds. If I have problems, I'll call someone else. I had already gotten a referral from my primary physician. Too bad I never followed through. I am angry at myself for not acting on my gut feelings when my pdoc didn't get back to me when I was concerned about my blood pressure,rushed me out of his office after 7 minutes, didn't meet me back at his office to give me a prescription as promised on New Year's Eve( his receptionist told me to go there, and they were closed, but he was there.), etc. Damn!
I went from 225 to 150mg. Effexor XR 4 days ago. I thought this would be okay, because I once went from 300 to 225 with no problem. Well today I felt like I was going to faint and/or vomit. I was sweating bullets. I took another 37.5 mg. and felt better. I will go down more gradually. I had planned on going very, very slow at the end 37.5 mg and down only taking a few more "grains" out each day and going to every other day.
My meds have never really helped with my ADHD symptoms. The AD helped me be less upset about the ADHD. I figure I will just learn to accept the ADHD and do what I can behaviorally. I don't think the meds are worth what they might be doing to my heart and liver if they don't even help me remember my pdoc appointments!
Thanks for being here and letting me vent. I am not a happy camper!!! Love you guys, Renee N
Posted by JohnL on July 4, 2000, at 7:53:36
In reply to Dumping my pdoc (fast)and meds (slow) (very long), posted by Renee N on July 4, 2000, at 2:06:50
Renee,
Sorry to hear your story. I can sure relate.
I firmly believe the most successful pdocs and the ones most cherished by their patients are the ones who are in love with what they do. They are passionate with their work and get a special thrill from the challenge of achieving total recovery in their patients. It's more than a job to them. They passionately love it. I think too many pdocs are in the profession for the wrong reasons. It shows in sour experiences like yours and mine. We suffer as a result.
What to do now? Here are some options that could be considered:
1) Search high and low for that passionate pdoc. Yellow pages, hospital references, clinic references, other patients, anything you can think of. Be creative. Think like a detective. Bang on a lot of doors. Ring a lot of phones. Ask pdocs who they refer difficult patients to.
2) To find one I've had personal experience with and meets all the desired qualities of professional passion, expertise, and specialty at achieving full recovery fast, go to www.drjensen.com. You could read his book, arrange a consultation, or both. I did both. He is truly outstanding. If you choose his services, your primary phsycian will be directly involved. He/she will be the actual one to write the prescriptions and monitor things, as you follow the unique roadmap Jensen provides for your unique situation. He's really good.
3) What medications can you try without a doctor's assistance? Reboxetine. Prozac. Zoloft. Provigil. Adrafinil. St Johnswort. SAMe. These are all just as likely to work as anything else. No more so and no less so. But you don't need to depend on a physician to get them. They are available from overseas mailorder legally.I don't endorse self medication. But I don't endorse the care of doctors like yours either. I've had a few just like yours. It's a personal decision, primarily influenced by one's understanding of medications, safety, titration, etc.
I'm sure everyone here is getting sick of me saying it over and over, but for your depressive and ADHD symptoms you could try Adrafinil. I think you could like it far better than Adderall or Effexor, though you might keep one or the other on board in reduced dosages. I only suggest this possibility because: It is appropriate for your symptoms; it's inexpensive; available with or without a physician; few if any side effects; and it's been wonderful to me, where Effexor and Adderall were not. Obviously I have a personal bias in its favor. :-) YMMV.
JohnL
Posted by Renee N on July 4, 2000, at 15:07:11
In reply to Re: Dumping my pdoc (fast)and meds (slow) (very long), posted by JohnL on July 4, 2000, at 7:53:36
Thanks, John. I was going to ask my pdoc if I could try Provigil. I was also going to ask about Aricept which is used for Alzheimer's(sp?). If I have trouble off the meds, I might try Adrafinil. How much does it cost? What is the usual dosage. Where do you order it? And how long does it take to get it once you've ordered?
I am glad things are going well for you. I have read many of your posts and have respect and awe for your knowledge of psychotropic drugs and their actions on the brain. I was a psych major, but I knew psychopharmacology was a course I had much interest in, but it would have been a stretch intellectually. I am not good at science especially biology. That's okay, since I've got "friends" like you! I forget if you're from the States or Canada, happy holiday, whichever it is!! Renee N
Posted by Angela5 on July 4, 2000, at 17:40:46
In reply to Re: Dumping my pdoc (fast)and meds (slow) (very long), posted by JohnL on July 4, 2000, at 7:53:36
> > 2) To find one I've had personal experience with and meets all the desired qualities of professional passion, expertise, and specialty at achieving full recovery fast, go to www.drjensen.com. You could read his book, arrange a consultation, or both. I did both. He is truly outstanding. If you choose his services, your primary phsycian will be directly involved. He/she will be the actual one to write the prescriptions and monitor things, as you follow the unique roadmap Jensen provides for your unique situation. He's really good.
John -Do you live in his area, or how did you work that out? I had sent him an email, and he said that he could not treat someone remotely, that it had to be face-to-face. I'm just wondering how this works/what you did, i.e. did you go to visit him first, etc.
Thanks,
Angela
This is the end of the thread.
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