Start up query

[Tewilksxo]

Good Morning All!

I am just hoping for a little bit of help.

I have some history on my medical records with anxiety, assessments with the GP & Mental Health Reviews with the mental health nurse at my GP clinic. I was prescribed sertraline and took this for over a year. They also said I could have propanol but I chose not to go ahead with this. A private clinic also gave me a prescription for this which again I decided against.

I have checked my NHS records, and they have not officially diagnosed anxiety under health conditions - instead when you click on my health conditions a “mental health review” is registered, and looking into my notes they put “IMP: Anxiety and low mood” on the notes rather than officially diagnosing? I have been reading up on this, and apparently it is really rare for a GP to actually diagnose anxiety disorder and just treat the symptoms.

I have signed up with Medicann & I am about to share my medical records but just wanted an opinion on where I actually stand with this and whether I should push further with the GP for an official diagnosis before my consultation? It’s a really tricky thing as it is all within my notes and records, but only states mental health review on my health conditions.

Thank you so much for your help and insight in advance!

Xxx

 

[Tewilksxo]

Should be fine, it will be like a pre-screening, get the paperwork done, go over the ins and outs. Then a week or so later you have an appointment with someone who can write scrips and then, all being well, you get one and are medicated a couple of days later.

Who did you go with?

Thanks so much. I’ve gone with Medicann, only because they don’t have the 2 tried prescription requirement, I’ve done one NHS prescription & been offered another which I have turned down. Fingers crossed all goes well

 

[Hazy-Haze]

It will do. As long as you are straight and upfront, it's usually just protocol and then off you go. I wouldn't bother pushing the GP for an anxiety diagnosis. You are on Sertraline, that's a decent indicator of possible issues.

You could tell your doctor when you get one at Medicann, that you dislike the side effects of the Sertaline, like erectile dysfunction and you want to have sex with your partner, but Viagra isn't cutting it either, nor do you like having to stack medications to fix problems caused by the first. I know when I was on Sertraline that particular side effect was the entire reason i came off. Also you could say you decided not to go with propranolol because you were worried about the chances of blackout due to low blood pressure. I mean both those drugs are heavy hitters and I wouldn't take them. They give Propranalol (in the US, don't know about the UK) to snipers for a few months during training while they learn to control their blood pressure and stress. It has real world long term effects, but the chances of blackout due to low BP is a real thing. My nephew has taken it for about 5 years and he's had a couple of issues with it. When i got offered it I just weighed it up with the fact i was working as a driver at the time and was a firm no.

If you ever did CBT to try and deal with your anxiety or anything else, mention it. You can get CBT free on the NHS and i'd recommend you look into it as it is useful. But I think there is a limit on how many sessions per year. But it does count towards your two medications and treatments. So just something to ponder.

 

[Tewilksxo]

It will do. As long as you are straight and upfront, it's usually just protocol and then off you go. I wouldn't bother pushing the GP for an anxiety diagnosis. You are on Sertraline, that's a decent indicator of possible issues.

You could tell your doctor when you get one at Medicann, that you dislike the side effects of the Sertaline, like erectile dysfunction and you want to have sex with your partner, but Viagra isn't cutting it either, nor do you like having to stack medications to fix problems caused by the first. I know when I was on Sertraline that particular side effect was the entire reason i came off. Also you could say you decided not to go with propranolol because you were worried about the chances of blackout due to low blood pressure. I mean both those drugs are heavy hitters and I wouldn't take them. They give Propranalol (in the US, don't know about the UK) to snipers for a few months during training while they learn to control their blood pressure and stress. It has real world long term effects, but the chances of blackout due to low BP is a real thing. My nephew has taken it for about 5 years and he's had a couple of issues with it. When i got offered it I just weighed it up with the fact i was working as a driver at the time and was a firm no.

If you ever did CBT to try and deal with your anxiety or anything else, mention it. You can get CBT free on the NHS and i'd recommend you look into it as it is useful. But I think there is a limit on how many sessions per year. But it does count towards your two medications and treatments. So just something to ponder.

Thanks for such a detailed response… I had the call on Friday. It was very very generic and don’t feel like I got to truly explain the reasons for applying / go into details about my anxiety but I suppose this isn’t a terrible thing. The lady couldn’t access my records on the call so I’ve had to redo that and she said I should hear back within 48 hours so fingers crossed