Seeing doctors when you don't leave the flat?

Hi @Mazarita,

Welcome to the Forums.

Sometimes a seemingly small thing like going to the doctor can be completely overwhelming. I know there are other people on the Forums who have felt this way before too.

@Jacques recently shared his experience going to the dentist for the first time in years in this thread.

@Jacques, @chookmojo, @Crazy_Bug_Lady do you have any suggestions for @Mazarita? How have you managed to take those difficult steps in getting out for the first time in a while? And how did you feel afterwards?

Mazarita, it’s great that you’ve been resourceful and identified the 24-hour doctor service as an alternative if you can’t get out there to your regular doctor. I guess it’s always ideal to see your regular service provider as they’ll know your history and be able to prescribe your medication easily. Have you tried giving the psych doctor you mentioned a call? Or do you have someone who could go with you to provide support?

Whatever you decide, I’m really glad that you’ve reached out to other people through the SANE Forums. The Forums are a great place to share experiences and ideas and I think you’ll find the community very supportive.

All the best,

Acacia

Hey there,

Social anxiety is what keeps me trapped inside from time to time (and has een recently rearing it's ugly head again) so here is my 2 cents worth.

* If at all possible find a doctor you like - ask for recommendations, shop around etc so you end up seeing a regualr person who doesn't set your teeth on edge or make you dread seeing them. This can be a lengthy process but in my experience has been worth perservering with, as I am now addressing health issues I have ignored for years at my 'just gimme a script' doctor, or taking whoever is avaiable at the bulk bill place.

* I know my boundaries, and I write them down. There are somethings I do not do, or will not discuss wtih certain professionals. I make sure I know my boundaries and they know them too, up front.

* I know what I want from the visit/session, and I write it down. If I am coming to renew a regularprescription, that is different form coming in to ask about trying a medication for the first time, and that is different from asking for a referral or advice on quitting smoking. Know what you want from your visit. I prepare notecards - If there is something I want to ask about I write a note card, if I am worried they will criticise me (eg for smoking, me weight etc) I write a notecard of my position - I don't try to plan for every possible conversational scenario, but I put down my bottom lines so in the moment I won't get distracted/scared/intimidated/diverted etc.

* Online appointment bookings - how I love these! I can make my appointment on a whim when I am feeling strong, or motivated or whatever.... and I don't have to talk to anyone. But to cancel I DO have to call, so that's good incentive to keep it booked. I also tend to book appointments or make my follow up calls from work, because I am already in a very task oriented headspace and I get much lower phone avoidance at work.

* I nab the first appointment of the day so I can in-and-out as fast as possible and don't get stuck in a waiting room full of strangers for ages. I do a lot better if I set things up for early morning and just get out of bed and GO, with little or no time to talk myself out of it. I make sure I have my clothes, wallet, medicarecard, metcard, keys etc all set up the night before so in the morning there is nothing to look for or organise that I can work myself up over.

* For me if I am REALLY struggling to get out the door then I am much more likely to make it if a trusted friend or similar comes picks me up in their car and phsyically hauls my butt to where I need to be and gets me home again afterwards. (Taking a cab is also helpful, and again I like to prebook online).

* The appointment will most likely be ALL that happens on that day (sometimes even filling the script is too much for that day), and may well take a couple of days to bounce back from, so I try to factor that in and be aware of its impact on my normal daily life so I don't find myself getting down because I have been less productive/social/whatever than I expected to be.

* Have someone you can call, just in case. Soetimes drs will dump something new and scary on us at a routine visit, and the most carefully crafted plan of execution can't factor in all the possibilities. It can be helpful if you have a friend/family memeber/carer/hotline even to call afterwards just in case they stun you with something and your already stretched resources can't cope in the moment.

* Some kind of nice self soothing treat afterwards as a reward doesn't go astray - you did a hard thing and that's impressive. I usually feel drained and a love to have a nap to restore myself. I find daytime naps very comforting.

Hope this helps, at least a little.

Hi @Mazarita

thankyou @Former-Member for mentioning my trip to the dentist, i was wondering what to say here, i forgot i even wrote about it.

i have to say @chookmojo said everything i could think of, one thing i do find when i have to go out to the doctor, when i enter the surgery i look only at the floor, it gives me a feeling of being isolated and not so overwhelmed, i lony look at the door when my name is called. consentrating on your breathing i find helps too, takes your mind off of where you are.

i wish you all the best @Mazarita and i hope it all works out for you.

Take Care

Jacques

Thanks for the replies @Former-Member, @chookmojo and @Jacques.

Part of the problem has also been that I need to find a new psych doctor because the one I was seeing has moved too far away from my home (2.5 hours round trip). Also, I have lost confidence in him partly because he has made it very clear he wants no calls between visits, not even in emergencies (the one time I did this in the past 3 years he was angry). Also, he is not a psychiatrist, but a GP specialising in mental health, and I am worried this will not carry enough 'clout' in case of any review of my disability support pension.

In any case, writing about this issue and receiving your replies has galvanised me to make contact with a psych clinic closer to home where I can get an appointment with a referral. I have now made an appointment for this Thursday with my 'physical' doctor to get a referral. Fingers crossed I'll make it out the door.

Thanks again for your kind consideration and support.

Well done Mazarita!! So good to hear you've taken the first step I'll be looking forward to hearing how it goes. Please keep us in the loop 🙂

Hi again,

Well, I made it to my GP today and got a referral to a new psychiatrist, as well as some other physical health checks that have been overdue for a year to eighteen months (that's how long it's taken me to make it to this appointment).

Next step is getting the appointment with the psychiatrist, which has some little administrative complications at this stage, but should be resolved by sometime tomorrow. I'm pretty nervous about seeing a new psychiatrist mainly because I live in fear of having my Disability Support Pension cut off - you never know how a new psychiatrist is going to view you. I've seen some who have been pretty unsympathetic in my time. Anyone got any perspective on this fear of the power that psychiatrists have over you and how to deal with it?

Mazarita

A journal of daily progress: I managed to get out of the flat again today. In fact I walked a good 35 minutes along the highway to get to a dentist appointment.

As I went, a couple of jets flew low overhead on the descent to the airport. I looked through the fence at a construction site where once there was a caravan park. Cars were an anonymous stream. I passed a few people, without eye contact. An easygoing time enjoying the feeling of movement.

The dentist appointment went well, a filling. Friendly banter with the dentist and assistant. Then I walked around the corner for another medical test the GP wanted me to have done. Another nice woman did the ultrasound, results all good. Then got picked up by Max (not his real name) as he was coming home from work. Grateful for the lift because I was wearing new boots on the walk and gave myself painful blisters. I was hobbling by the time I got to the second appointment, lol.

We had some drinks in front of the telly tonight and I missed the food party here. No worries, will keep an eye out for it in future. 🙂

I hope fellow forum members (contributors and moderators) don't mind me continuing to use this discussion thread I started as a place to 'journal' my daily progress in dealing with the fact that I've mostly lived inside my flat for about the past 8 years. I can't seem to find the motivation to do this writing 'offline' and yet I find it helpful to actually write down what's going on with me day to day. If this is inappropriate to the forums, I imagine someone will let me know.

Today I've not left the flat again. Reading and responding to the SANE forums got me over the worst part of my day - the hours after first waking - it lifted my spirits to engage here. Offline, I struggle to do the most basic of daily tasks. Getting dressed is a victory (I have managed that today). I even did a very small amount of housework, another achievement. And I checked the mail, woohoo! I may get to visit my friend around the corner again later this evening to watch 'Under The Dome', not a show I'm into but it will be good just to spend time with her, if it happens.

Wishing all an enjoyable evening.

Glad you are posting here and that it helps. I think its great that you can see the positives in your day thats great. All those small/big things make progress for us! I've been so flat lately too, everything is a mission! just looking forward to school holidays so we can hibernate at home for a bit!

LJ