Nobody will help me

[ThisShitsBananas]

I have bipolar and have been off my meds for 2 years now whilst pregnant and breastfeeding. I was signed off from the perinatal team as baby is now 1, to be handed over to the adult mental health team to resume my lithium. I’ve just found out from my GP that this psychiatrist, despite never having even spoken to me before had decided I don’t need my meds and that I can just manage it myself. The only person I’ve spoken to was a mental health nurse who phoned me and who I cried down the phone too and told him I don’t want to live like this anymore and I need my meds. I can’t get counselling because they want me to go to the eating disorders service first to deal with that but the eating disorders service aren’t interested because my eating disorder isn’t classed as severe enough for intervention. So that’s it. I’m very unwell but no one will help me. I’m just being left to it. I’ll probably end up dead at this rate. How the fuck is this happening?

Sorry to hear that. What about going to a&e,? See if you can be seen that way?

Mental health services are so horrifically underfunded and managed at the moment 😓

Can you speak to another GP at your practice? Or even a practice nurse?

(Are you in the UK?) if so, do you have the NHS app where you can access your medical notes and history? I’d do that and speak with the GP/Nurse about your history and tell them you need your medication. Don’t ask them. Tell them.

Keep phoning/contacting your GP. We shouldn’t have to, but in the NHS it seems we only get somewhere if we push and push. It’s easier said than done and I can 100% empathise with how let down and exhausted you must feel. I’m sorry 💐

This sounds like a really stressful situation for you.

This page on the Mind website could be helpful. It explains how you can get an assessment via social services adult team. They may then be able to refer into the mental health team.

www.mind.org.uk/information-support/legal-rights/health-and-social-care-rights/needs-assessments/

I would also find a mental health advocate, who can support you to get your voice heard. They will also be able to support you to complain about this if you are unable to access care.

You can Google mental health advocacy.

If you are in Wales, have a look at the The Mental Health (Wales) Measure.

This is appalling. MH services in this country are a joke.

So sorry, OP.

I have no real relevant knowledge but it doesn't sound right - you must be able to ask for a second opinion, surely? Could you approach a MH charity for support - maybe try the Mind helpline or something - they give advice about advocacy www.mind.org.uk/information-support/helplines/

Sorry to hear you’re having a difficult time. I don’t understand why the psychiatrist in the perinatal team didn’t review and restart your meds before discharging and referring you on given that’s the team you’ve been under for the year?

If discharged from perinatal recently, I’d ask the team psychiatrist to review still, if they say no then ask to speak to the clinical lead of the team. If clinical lead says no they won’t review then see if they’ll at least contact the adult Community mental health team again and insist on a handover of care.

If the adult CMHT team haven’t accepted the referral and have made the decision you don’t need medication without speaking to you then it’ll likely be based off what the perinatal team have said to them in the referral form and likely haven’t made it clear you need their active input. So many referrals come through (many inappropriate) that there has to be a screening process, I’m guessing the perinatal team haven’t highlighted your needs clearly in the referral so it’s been screened out/deemed you don’t need a review and meds.

If they won’t help, contact PALS. Good luck

The perinatal team no longer have a psychiatrist. The one I saw before baby was born was going i start my lithium for me after the birth but I ended up breastfeeding for 9 months and now they have no medic in the team so I had to be passed on.

I wish i had a solution but really just came on here to say that's awful and so unfair. Mh services are not at the level they should be here and it's too easy for people to get caught between two services and then get no support. I'd go back to the gp request a meeting with the psychiatrist to review your meds and explain that you've done your part following up with the ED service who felt you didn't require their support at the time so therefore you need to be seen by the adult mental health team.

I've seen this happen a lot with mental health and addictions services and usually where addictions services have declined to intervene, the mental health team has then engaged because addictions said no. So hopefully if you go back to them you should get support now.

Are there any charity organisations who can support you around the eating disorder while you wait on the mental health team getting involved again? Not sure whereabouts you are.

Just remember you are right to ask for support, you deserve support and you're right to keep pushing for it (even if you shouldn't have to) I hope it gets better for you OP