Doctor won't give me diazepam ..aibu?

[lucyhar]

I've been getting diazepam off my doctor for around 4 years now for when I have to travel by plane.
I normally get 7 tablets a year.
My doctor has retired now and I'm travelling to Australia in may to see my aunt and uncle.
I've just got out of the doctors (new doc) and he refused any.
Now I understand people get addictive but I get 7 tablets a year!
I have a massive fear of flying,I've tried CBT,hypnotherapy,kalms,I did a fear of flying course and nothing.
Before I was prescribed diazepam I didn't go on holiday for 7 years.
They gave me my life back (without being dramatic)
Aibu to speak to the practice manager?

@MinisterforCheekyFuckery it's prescribed for anxiety ...and I have anxiety
How would anyone even know?
And I don't believe that every GP has suddenly stopped prescribing it.
People will just say they have a dentist phobia and get it for that.

This is an example of mental health not being treated seriously imo

There are plenty of examples of mental health not being taken seriously. This is an example of GP's not being willing to void their indemnity insurance. It really is that simple.

How would anyone even know?

The GP would know. That's the point. If they knowingly prescribe you Benzo's for air travel they are invalidating their indemnity insurance.

@MinisterforCheekyFuckery wouldn't the GP just note it up as a short term anxiety prescription?
Then it's at the patients discretion what they take it for?

if people are prescribed diazepam for anxiety about leaving the house why shouldn't I for travel

You really want to compare the 2? Not being able to leave the house is nothing like not being able to travel. Not being able to leave your house impacts on EVERY single aspect of your life. Not being able to travel is an inconvenience

Besides youre missing the point that GPs have pointed out. They've been told NOT to prescribe them because of various risks laid out by the Aviation Authority. Theyre not doing it to just annoy you

@Redglitter I should know I spent a year being unable to leave the house or go to the shop.
This just isn't about me being scared to get on a plane..that's a trigger for my long standing anxiety disorder coming to the service.
Diazepam stops this spiralling out of control.

Whatever you do OP please ignore idiotic posters who advise you to drink wine then take Phergan - FFS there can be an interaction

Also fwiw Phergan can have the effect of making people hyper - it does me & also my DS.

Anxiety is chronically debilitating OP I really feel your pain and hope you get sorted soon

There are plenty of examples of mental health not being taken seriously. This is an example of GP's not being willing to void their indemnity insurance. It really is that simple.

I mean the very fact that it voids the insurance.

referral to a psychiatrist from the GP. They might be happy to prescribe it or some other anxiety damping drug. Or the GP might give in when they realise they are going to cause a bigger bill with the referral.

Our local psychiatrists rarely prescribe themselves, they send a recommendation that the GP prescribes a drug. So it would still be the GP signing the prescription and taking the risk.

This referral would also be rejected by our local Psychiatry service.

It has nothing to do with the GP worrying about the bill. The GP is worried about being legally responsible for something that, in their professional judgement, is not defendable if something goes wrong.

As previous GP posters have pointed out, diazepam is now recognised as being risky in this setting, as it can sedate passengers so much they can't appropriately respond to an emergency. Plus, indemnity insurance doesn't cover me to treat patients abroad, which diazepam taken on a return journey would be. So I don't prescribe it. If you can afford a foreign holiday, you can afford a fear of flying course.

And I almost never prescribe diazepam for anxiety, either. It's a shit drug. If you're that anxious that you feel you need medication frequently, you need to be on a long-acting drug like an SSRI. (Or a beta-blocker for the physical symptoms of anxiety, if not contraindicated.)

BlewGoose you can demand a referral but you quite rightly wont get one - what a waste of everyone's time.
GP's are the gatekeepers of the NHS they will only refer if it's appropriate to do so. They also should prescribe according to guidelines which the OP's GP is correctly following.
OP you have some choices - don't go, go without BZD or see if a private GP is willing to prescribe against guidelines.

Whatever you do OP please ignore idiotic posters who advise you to drink wine then take Phergan - FFS there can be an interaction angry

Agreed, I was violently sick with one sip of red wine, after forgetting I'd taken my Pherergan. I'll never forget again.

@RightOcciputAnterior
1.ive had a fear of flying course
2.my anxiety is under control now until I have to travel so I won't be taking a long term anxiety med as it's not needed.
Although GPS are more than happy to prescribe anti depressants and beta blockers like smarties.

I should know I spent a year being unable to leave the house or go to the shop

Well in that case you should know the impact of both things are very different.

I get diazepam from my GP in order that i can do day to day things. Struggling to do basic things is nothing like struggling to get on a plane. My doctor prescribes it so i can try and get to doctors or hospital appointments or to just have a life.

Your comparison was ridiculous

OP you might want to get this thread deleted - some of these replies are just downright nasty regardless of whether the points are valid

@MinisterforCheekyFuckery wouldn't the GP just note it up as a short term anxiety prescription?

No, because that would be lying wouldn't it? You've said repeatedly that air travel is the only thing you use it for.

OP I'm the same as you. I get a prescription every year for around 8 x 2mgs for flights.

I'm due to go back for more soon so hope our docs still prescribe. I have been getting them for around 15 years.

2mg just brings me down to a normal(ish) heart rate, not one bit sleepy.

Not taking it leaves my heart jumping out of my chest, eyes tight shut, gripping the seat in total fear.

@Redglitter sorry but anxiety isn't a competition,your anxiety is effecting you one way and now mine is the other
Just because we have different ways how anxiety is affecting us makes you more worthy of diazepam

Plus, indemnity insurance doesn't cover me to treat patients abroad, which diazepam taken on a return journey would be

So you are saying, seriously, that if you prescribe a patient a drug, and they take it abroad, and something goes wrong, your indemnity insurance would refuse to cover you? So you tell every patient to whom you prescribe a drug not to leave the country for the duration? How does that work for you in the summer? Are insulin-maintained diabetics under your care unable to travel (to cite an example of people with long-term, chronic conditions requiring continuous treatment but with the potential for things to go wrong?) What about older patients taking statins?

I think that old Wikipedia standby "citation needed" applies.

@IdleBetty I wouldn't worry,I really don't believe every GP has stopped prescribing
I'm going to try a different GP
Hope yours is helpful and understanding

1) the use of any sort of CNS depressant during a flight will put the passenger at significant risk of not being able to act in a manor which could save their life in the event of a safety critical scenario (& there will be no-one else to do it for them - cabin crew are there to guide them & not do it for them)

However, a year or so ago we got some advice from the British Aviation Authority that we shouldn't be prescribing it, because of the dangers of sedation

Like others I'm wondering how this advice about "any sort of CNS depressant" squares with serving copious amounts of CNS depressant alcohol on flights, especially long haul.

Either they are a massive risk which shouldn't be served or they are a mild risk, which in the case of 2mg diazapam, can at least be risk assessed by a doctor.

People don't only travel for "jollys" they also travel for work or as the only way to see family.

@MinisterforCheekyFuckery not really because I have anxiety so it wouldn't be a lie would it?
I'm terrified the night before travel so is that anxiety?
Or not?
In my eyes it's anxiety triggered by travel
It's still anxiety?

Have you tried beta-blockers?

GPS are more than happy to prescribe anti depressants and beta blockers like smarties

The difference is that these medications are licensed for anxiety and recommended in guidelines for anxiety.

Suffering serious reactions to these drugs is rare in most people, and if somebody did suffer a reaction the GP's decision to prescribe would be supported by the licencing and guidelines.

the thought of phenegran scares me

Even though you can buy it over the counter in many chemists?