Guest guest Posted July 20, 2004 Report Share Posted July 20, 2004 LKS, I relate to your concerns about money and trips to the psychiatrist. My son's psych doctor sees patients in two different clinics. Her main clinic does not take our insurance and we had to pay for the first two visits out of pocket -- about $400 total. (a group of friends, knowing our situation, got together and pitched in towards it, God bless them, and took care of a big chunk of the burden) After the first two visits, she transferred him to the public clinic where she now sees him monthly and it is covered by our insurance. If you ask the receptionist, maybe you will find out that the doctor you've been referred to also has a public clinic he or she works at. The waiting list might be very long at a public clinic for a first time visit, but once he was seen at the private practice it was easy to get him in for follow up appointments. After a couple of good days last week we are back to some worse ones. His new thing is bugs. He is going to kill us all with the Raid if he doesn't get over it soon! (actually some better today, no spraying). He also had some accidental sightings of his dreaded little sister and has been in some tizzies over that. Of course it's my fault for not protecting him from seeing her. Poor little girl runs to get out of his sight so as not to hear him scream, but sometimes she's not fast enough or doesn't see him coming. Supposed to start CBT on Aug. 9. Hope it helps... I appreciate all the questions and answers that go back and forth. As a newbie to OCD it helps to read all the good replies. Also don't feel like I can contribute much yet. But I do appreciate all of you. Kim in IA mom of , almost 15, OCD diagnosis this past spring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 21, 2004 Report Share Posted July 21, 2004 LKS, I totally understand your frustration with OCD. I recently visited with my mother about my son's behavior. She told me it sounded " normal " for his age, but she couldn't possibly understand the drama involved. He seems to blow everything out of proportion. I guess it's like you said, their OCD makes their behavior issues seem so much more intense. I'm sorry to hear that you believe your son is on a road towards an OCD diagnosis too. I've often questioned that myself with my younger son. He presents his symptoms completely differently than his brother, but I really believe it's there. I'm not sure how things work with a psychiatrist. I assume that they just check in occassionally on effects of the medications. I wouldn't think it would require ongoing, frequent visits, like visiting the psychologist for behavior therapy. ??? I don't really know. My heart goes out to you and all. Stay strong. Corinna, TX Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 21, 2004 Report Share Posted July 21, 2004 Corrina, so many of your thoughts " dittoed " mine so I felt the need to respond. First of all, I too, am new to all this, so do not respond too often to the postings. Although, I do feel for, and pray for all those out there... My daughter is 8 and was diagnosed about 1 year ago with OCD (perhaps PANDAS). I feel like a lot of my friends and family think that I do not discipline my daughter enough. While I feel like I am disciplining her all the time. I feel like I am constantly " at battle " with her. Although, I have definitely learned to pick my battles. I know a lot of what she is going through is typical for her age, as I hear the same stories from my friends who have children her age. I just feel like everything that is typical with other children (being disrespectful, over-reacting, pouting...) is multiplied two fold because of her OCD. So, I feel like she does deserve some breaks here and there, but is that benefiting her or not? I always wonder in the back of my mind, is her behavior the fault of OCD, or my poor parenting skills!? My daughter also had her Zoloft prescribed through her pediatrician, versus a psychiatrist. This was done only because I could not get an appointment with a psychiatrist as quickly as I could with a psychologist (at the time of her OCD " flare up " ). I have had a lot of questions lately concerning her meds (she is also on Straterra for ADHD) so her pediatrician has recommended again that we see a psychiatrist. I called one that she had recommended; this one does not take insurance, and charges $200/hour. She needs to see my husband and I for an hour, and then my daughter for an hour. That is $400 for the initial consultation. I guess I could call around to see if I can find someone a little less expensive, but I am more comfortable going with someone that my pediatrician recommends. I am assuming that she will not need to continue to see the psychiatrist on an on-going basis, but just periodically to check in with concerning the meds. Am I right??? My daughter has a psychologist that she sees, and have just recently gone to, to begin CBT therapy. I do not feel my daughter got much out of the appointment, and is not working on what the doctor recommended. I am having a hard time enforcing the doctor's recommendations. By the way, for those of you who remember...I posted a couple of weeks ago, concerning my 5 year old son...He was doing weird deep breaths (like catching his breath) and I did not know if this was some sort of tic or if there was something physically wrong. Well, I took him to the pediatrician, and she pretty much confirmed that it was not physical, but probably anxiety related. So, yeah, I am glad he is OK physically. Although, this further backs up my hunch that he is on the same path as my daughter as far as OCD (as he has exhibited other OCD patterns). I have felt extremely overwhelmed lately with my children and their OCD quirks. It is just an emotionally exhausting life to have to constantly maintain and reassure their stability. But then, I spoke with a friend the other day about her godchild. Her godchild has small tumors all over her brain that cause consistent seizures. She is three years old and cannot communicate or walk very well. She has a very dim future ahead of her...So, I try to put my situation in perspective, it could obviously be worse... Wow, am I all over the place or what??? Just a lot on my mind... By the way, I think you are all wonderful and supportive out there...If you are ever in sdale, Arizona; let me know, you are always welcome in my home... LKS Behavior Hi to all again! Sometimes I feel guilty for coming here to ask so many questions, but I'm still in the learning phase of OCD. I want to offer support to others, rather than constantly expecting others to be there for me, I just don't have much experience to feel I have the wisdom to offer. I appreciate everyone's support and I apologize that I'm whining again. I've mentioned that my son's OCD is flaring up again this summer. I've also posted that it is related to his anxiety about middle school. He doesn't want to be perceived as " weird " anymore. (Fifth grade was a disaster for him. He was constantly picked on and made fun of.) Anyway, his behavior has been deplorable (if that's how you spell it)!! He can be down right beligerent and disrespectful. I don't know what to think. I'm absolutely in shock and concern! I'm thinking to myself, if this is how he is acting at 11 (almost 12), how is he going to be acting when he is a teenager? Can this be a part of the stress and anxiety his OCD produces or do I need to acknowledge my son is completely out of control behaviorally! I'm so confused! I've disciplined him by taking privileges. It seems the more he gets in trouble, the more irritable and rude he becomes, but I just can't sit back and let him talk to me and his brother this way. His psychologist believes I need to take him to a psychiatrist. Right now his medication (Lexapro) is prescribed through his pediatrician. His psychologist believes it might be the wrong medication. I am trying to find a psych that is on our insurance list. Also, he has been completely " obsessed " with a particular Star Wars computer game he bought recently. I was concerned about all the time he spent on the computer, but then so many of you thought he might be using the computer to distract himself from his OCD thoughts. That made sense, so I let up on the limits for computer time. That seemed to only make the situation worse. I don't understand why though. My husband and I decided to restrict him from the computer for a few days to see if there is any improvement in his behavior. I don't know if we are making the right decision or not, but it's worth a try. We're just grasping at straws at this point. Any other thoughts out there? Corinna,TX Our list archives, bookmarks, files, and chat feature may be accessed at: http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group// . Our list advisors are Gail B. , Ed.D., Tamar Chansky, Ph.D., Aureen Pinto Wagner, Ph.D., and Dan Geller, M.D. Our list moderators are Birkhan, Castle, Fowler, Kathy Hammes, Joye, Kathy Mac, Gail Pesses, and Kathy . Subscription issues or suggestions may be addressed to Louis Harkins, list owner, at louisharkins@... , louisharkins@... , louisharkins@... . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 26, 2004 Report Share Posted July 26, 2004 ----- Original Message ----- > so her pediatrician has recommended again that we see a psychiatrist. I > called one that she had recommended; this one does not take insurance, > and charges $200/hour. She needs to see my husband and I for an hour, > and then my daughter for an hour. That is $400 for the initial > consultation. I guess I could call around to see if I can find someone > a little less expensive, but I am more comfortable going with someone > that my pediatrician recommends. I am assuming that she will not need > to continue to see the psychiatrist on an on-going basis, but just > periodically to check in with concerning the meds. Am I right??? *****Yes, for some years now my child sees her pdoc 4X/year for med management. In the beginning (while trialing meds, titering up, and when meds needed to be changed) she saw him as often as monthly. However, though our pdoc has a similar rate per hour, these visits are frequently 15-20 minutes or so and we are charged accordingly. It's fine to tell a doctor that you are on a budget, sometimes they are willing to work out a payment plan. Kathy R. in Indiana Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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