SusanofO
Posts: 5672
Joined: 12/19/2005 Status: offline
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If you're unhappy with your medication, and have given it the doctor recommended amount of time to work (or, if it's making you sick, or even more depressed, then even if you haven't given it that much time to see if it will work) - talk to your doctor again. If he refuses to let you try a different medication to see if that will work better instead, I'd find another doctor. I suffer from uni-polar, not bi-polar depression, but I do know that there are a vast number of medications one can try, for both types (possibly fewer for bi-polar, but still, I know there are several meds on the market for that.) When I first started having severe depression, I was amazed at a few doctors who refused to try a different medication, if I reported that one I was on wasn't working very well. Granted, this was back in 1980, when anti-depressants were just beginning to develop into the variety of types of meds we see on the market today. Still, the same thing can happen today, to a patient who is seeking medical advice or help. I finally became angry enough to tell one doctor that I was highly offended that he'd put my suffering behind his precious ego, as far as importance. I said that I didn't think that was what practicing good medicine was all about, and told him I was going to find another doctor. Then I did just that. Maybe your doctor is honestly trying to do the right thing, and if that is your impression, I'd give them a fair chance to figure out what will work for you. But - if you start feeling like they just aren't listening at all, there are lots of doctors out there. I think it's anyone's right to find one who takes their patient's feed-back seriously. So, I'd check your insurance policy to see which other doctors are on your "preferred providers" list (if there is that kind of stipulation on your insurance), and choose another doctor, if he or she refuses to listen to you. Otherwise, I'd check the Yellow Pages for a doctor referral service, or just listings of psychiatrists. Good luck. - Susan
< Message edited by SusanofO -- 3/27/2007 8:51:53 PM >
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"Hope is the thing with feathers, That perches in the soul, And sings the tune without the words, And never stops at all". - Emily Dickinson
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