Psychologist left me today- I need too much support

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I don't know what to say. My psychologist left today. Like told me he can't see me anymore. Because I need too much support. What am I supposed to do?

It was already a really bad day to start with- depression. My mind was so cloudy I could barely speak. Then he told me that. He's from a specialist clinic for aspergers. If I have too many needs that a specialist clinic can't handle, what am I supposed to do? I have another psychologist who I wanted to stop seeing, because she is wildly inconsistent (taking a month off at a time, "weekly" appointments can be for or ten days apart. There is no reliability.)

I just don't know what to do. I feel abandoned. Like no one can help me. And I need help. I'm so down and and so constantly anxious. I have a main psychiatrist, who I see somewhat regularly. Next is Monday. But she referred me to this clinic because she can't help. Now they can't help. I dont see any options left.

Does anyone have any possibilities or next steps?

You are definitely not alone in your feelings. I, myself, had come to the point where seeking mental help was useless. They're just not capable of assessing, monitoring and counseling people with multiple disorders. Since they would have to "care plan" for each disorder separately, their work hours would increase but not their paychecks. Add to the fact that having multiple mental illnesses create new definitions and categories simply because of the way they interact within a person, mental health workers are simply out of their league in dealing with us complicated folk.

On a sadder note, every day, truckloads of people with multiple mental illness disorders are handcuffed and carted off to jails because this society continues to fail such people and, instead, let law enforcement deal with them - sometimes with fatal results.

Ask your psychiatrist on Monday to refer you to another provider. Easy. She will probably want you to describe why, so be kinda sorta ready to describe what the prior provider said and did to end his professional relationship with you.

It's good, I think, that you have a psychiatrist. I believe psychiatrists (medical doctors who can prescribe) are the only help to be found for mental health.

Psychoanalysis is a waste of time.

I agree with the poster who said to ask your psychiatrist to refer you to another counselor, but can I ask what the issues are that they are having such a problem with?

It is actually quite common to only see psychologist's once a month unless it is part of some intensive therapy in Canada. There is simply too much demand and the psychologists cost a lot of money to see on a weekly basis. In Canada we have what is called "peer support worker" who are those with mental illnesses of their own, who have some training whom you can see on a more regular basis to supplement the mental health support of higher paid/more scarce mental health professionals like psychologists or psychiatrists. Does your country have peer support workers as well? Is that an option for you?

I think its the anxiety they are having trouble with. I'm having trouble leaving the house, doing things when my flat mate are around, that sort of thing. Not going to Uni. Luckily I don't take classes, its just research I can do from home.

The more I think about it, the more I think I need a support worker, but I'm not sure those exist here (Australia). Or if they do, if I qualify for one because I'm an international student (from the US). But then it scares me to need one. I don't want to be "that bad" that I need a support worker. Even though its getting harder to communicate and function...

Roommates are difficult. I tried once and I can't do it. If you can change the things that are making you anxious that might help a bit.

If you do end up back in the states there are peer led support groups.

http://www.nami.org/Find-Support/NAMI-P ... Connection

Thanks guys. I just feel like giving up at this point though. I feel defeated and abandoned. Like all these health things have won. I lost the battle and I have nothing left to fight with. I don't know anymore.

I'm trying my usual things to get out of this place, but none of it is working. I know I have no other option but to keep trying, but its tiring.

I find it hard to keep going on. I know my health issues are not going to go away and I will have to face them every day. It is hard to watch people enjoying their lives effortlessly while I struggle.
I keep hope that they are still coming up with better medications which may one day make me somewhat close to normal.

Anxiety is either improving because you are working on it by exposing yourself to anxiety provoking situations or it is getting worse because you are avoiding what makes you anxious. The more you avoid any given anxiety provoking situation the worse your anxiety will be the next time you encounter the same situation. Are you struggling with social anxiety? What type of anxiety keeps you from leaving the house?

I both agree and disagree with you Noca. While it is true that one should not avoid a situation because it is anxiety causing, it is also true that some situations are not worth the fight. What I mean is that to a certain extent a person has to construct their life so it is as anxiety free as possible. For example, for me living with roommates is a situation that I cannot become used to no matter how much I expose myself to it. I think there has to be a balance between productive exposure and detrimental exposure.

Well you definitely have a finite amount of mental energy to put towards overcoming any mental illness and you definitely need a safe place to recharge, even more so for autists.

But as for leaving your house, say walking to my mailbox causes me anxiety. Each time I chose to avoid walking to my mailbox, my anxiety will be worse the next time. Each time I force myself to walk to the mailbox and endure my anxiety, the next time it will be easier. It may never get to the point that I don't feel any anxiety at all during that situation and there may be days where I am so mentally exhausted for whatever reason that enduring the anxiety that day may not be worth it.

I both agree and disagree. I know, at least for me, the the more I avoid doing something, like getting the mail or leaving the house, it gets harder. More anxious thoughts pop up. But at the same time, there are some things that are just too hard at the moment. Like going into Uni for a full day. I know I will need a lot of recovery time. I'm picking my battles.

I guess the graded approach would work, exposure therapy. If I can do something small that requires maybe a couple hours recovery time, thats good. I can recover. But if I did something immediately that required two days recovery, it wasn't worth it. I need to build up. Then the thing that required 4 hours recovery might only need two hours, in a little while. Then I can do the next harder thing.

But the roommate thing- not feasible at the moment to live alone. I want to so bad. But I can't.

Partly saying this outloud to solidify this thought in me. Translate it into my own words...

In the states, the doctor has to legally send you a letter stating you are being dropped from the practice AND the reason why. The letters are sent so you have to sign for them.

The doctor/therapist is also required to give a list of providers for you to contact.

I don't know what went down between you two, but any chance if you agree to a patient contract, the psychologist might take you back? That is common where I live.

Also, for me to get my bipolar medications, I have to have a therapist if the psychiatrist doesn't do talk therapy. That is the deal with my insurance. I see the therapist every month and the shrink four times a year.

Mental health providers can cut you loose at anytime, but should give you at least three follow up provider names.