Well, my appointment wasn't at all what I expected. I expected the CMHT woman to start by saying 'you might like to try bla bla medication' or 'you need to give fluoxitine another go' or similar but this did not happen.
Firstly she said 'how are you finding your medication?' and I replied 'I'm not on medication'. She thought I was taking the fluoxtine still. So then I told her my story - about how insomnia and anxiety took me to the Drs, and the saga of taking diazepam then zopiclone until I scared myself about getting addicted to zopiclone and taking herbal tablets then trying hypnotherapy, etc but how the problem comes and goes. I told her about my failed attempt at taking fluoxitine. She seemed to accept that without question.
So then she asks me about my worries and stuff. I talk about worry about the sleep, about the DSs, about DH working so hard, etc. So she says 'well you are basically a worrier and your tank of anxieties is overflowing so we've got to find a way to keep it level'. She suggested I find out more about mindfulness and CBT (nothing offered on the NHS by the way - just imformation for me to investigate via the internet). She seemed really big on mindfulness but I don't really know what it is, yet. So I need to do some research. She said 'basically you are in a phase in your life when you've got so much on and so many things to do you have wound yourself up too high and you need to learn to wind yourself down again a notch'. She thought I'd always been a worrier, which is true, but somehow it had got out of control. There was no mention of medication at all really. We talked about hypnosis too and she said she used Paul McKenna to help her sleep! Weird or what?
So I will see her again in two weeks. Not sure what to think really. She suggested a weekend retreat course that does mindfulness which appearntly costs about £50! Not sure what that's all about.
So hey ho. Tired now. Looking forward to a relaxing evening with DH and an early night as I'm off to Birmingham tomorrow to meet a friend.
GetDown your CPN seems a bit negative. Surely the place you seek help from is irrelevant so long as it solves the issues in hand! You can have the private side working alongside the NHS, can't you? They are not opposites in my opinion.
So let's have good night's sleep tonight everyone