So here I am again - Page 3

[Talula Fairie]

Regarding the question about how to get someone checked into the mental hospital: I find that the easiest way when I've needed help RIGHTNOW is to just go to the nearest ER and tell them you're suicidal. Your insurance company likely has a protocol for where to send you. An evaluator will show up, decide if you really need to go, then you get transferred there via ambulance. This can be expensive, however, especially if you don't have ambulance coverage or high ER co pays....but if it's a matter of a suicidal person getting help, it's more than worth it. Do note that this process generally takes 6-12+ hours from the time you go to the ER until you're done checking in at the hospital, so make sure you and your wife are prepared for a looooong wait.

Alternatively, you could mention to the doctor today that you think your wife is suicidal (if she doesn't admit to it herself) and likely he/she can assess the situation and tell you where to go if hospitalization is needed. Another option I think someone mentioned is to call your insurance company and say your wife is suicidal and needs to go to the hospital, they should tell you what to do.

On another note: I have to say, herbal supplements are great and help many people. So do things like diet, exercise, vitamins, yoga, meditation, chiropractic care, and the like. HOWEVER. When you have someone in an acute state (suicidal thoughts, delusions, extreme anxiety, insomnia, ect), THEY ARE NOT ENOUGH. Natural remedies have their place, but they are not strong enough to get someone out of an acute state, and even if they *might* be, it's really not a great idea to take that chance, imo. You're playing with fire. For serious psychological problems, psych meds are needed.

Also, do not mix herbal remedies with psych meds. They can often contradict eachother. Supplements like fish oil or vitamins are fine, though.

[WatermelonSnow]

Originally Posted by Talula Fairie

Regarding the question about how to get someone checked into the mental hospital: I find that the easiest way when I've needed help RIGHTNOW is to just go to the nearest ER and tell them you're suicidal. Your insurance company likely has a protocol for where to send you. An evaluator will show up, decide if you really need to go, then you get transferred there via ambulance. This can be expensive, however, especially if you don't have ambulance coverage or high ER co pays....but if it's a matter of a suicidal person getting help, it's more than worth it. Do note that this process generally takes 6-12+ hours from the time you go to the ER until you're done checking in at the hospital, so make sure you and your wife are prepared for a looooong wait.

Alternatively, you could mention to the doctor today that you think your wife is suicidal (if she doesn't admit to it herself) and likely he/she can assess the situation and tell you where to go if hospitalization is needed. Another option I think someone mentioned is to call your insurance company and say your wife is suicidal and needs to go to the hospital, they should tell you what to do.

On another note: I have to say, herbal supplements are great and help many people. So do things like diet, exercise, vitamins, yoga, meditation, chiropractic care, and the like. HOWEVER. When you have someone in an acute state (suicidal thoughts, delusions, extreme anxiety, insomnia, ect), THEY ARE NOT ENOUGH. Natural remedies have their place, but they are not strong enough to get someone out of an acute state, and even if they *might* be, it's really not a great idea to take that chance, imo. You're playing with fire. For serious psychological problems, psych meds are needed.

Also, do not mix herbal remedies with psych meds. They can often contradict eachother. Supplements like fish oil or vitamins are fine, though.

The psychiatrist I saw specifically warned against too much fish oil (more than 1000mg) in combination with some drugs because of blood thinning effects.

[Talula Fairie]

Originally Posted by WatermelonSnow

The psychiatrist I saw specifically warned against too much fish oil (more than 1000mg) in combination with some drugs because of blood thinning effects.

That's interesting. Do you know which drugs? I never found any interactions or side effects listed when I researched fish oil, but that was a few years back.

[JessicaS]

Originally Posted by Talula Fairie

That's interesting. Do you know which drugs? I never found any interactions or side effects listed when I researched fish oil, but that was a few years back.

Omega 3 fatty acids help thin the blood. They are supposed to help with blood clots and such.

Then there are meds that are blood thinners.

[Talula Fairie]

Originally Posted by abimommy

Omega 3 fatty acids help thin the blood. They are supposed to help with blood clots and such.

Then there are meds that are blood thinners.

But I don't know of any psych meds that are blood thinners. I was specifically talking about psych meds in reference to the fish oil not having interactions.

That's good information to know, though.

eta: I googled and while there are some medications that have interactions with omega fatty acids, no psych meds are listed.

http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/omega-3-000971.htm

[Bestbirths]

I recovered from postpartum depression with naturally compounded hormone replacement. I took naturally compounded 25mg of 5HTP, Armour Thyroid, naturally compounded projesterone and estrogen, and naturally compounded cortisol. I also recovered using the mantra "simple and sacred" removing everything that wasn't simple and sacred out of my life, and my mom and husband took care of my baby and four other children while I slept for six months. For nighttime mind racing, I took 3,000mg of glycine w/in 20 minutes of going to bed, and went to bed at the exact same time every night. I still pretty much go to bed at the exact same time every night from doing it for so long. The treatment was expensive, $400 or so a month. I got the RX's from a naturopath and an allergist that did provocation neutralisation (my allergist). I came home with the prescriptions and my husband didn't have the money for them. Then, three weeks later June 2001, Andrea Yates had my same condition and she killed her five children. That same day when that was on the news, my Mom went out and filled my prescriptions. After being on the hormones for four months, I happened to run into a respected retired midwive around these parts. She said when I dealt with the stress that preceeded the PPD, I would get better. Well, that was a lot, our family had suffered life changing forever types of trauma during the pregnancy, almost died from a hemmorage in childbirth, and was in a car accident when the baby was five weeks old where I could not hold her or wear her in a sling because of a back injury. She said to keep things "simple and sacred" and begin to deal with the past trauma, and I would get better, and be able to go off of the hormones. I pondered what she said, and began removing everything from our lives that was not "simple and sacred". Then a couple weeks into doing that, having made major stress reducing life changes, my husband called and asked me to turn on the TV, where we turned it on 9/11/2001 where we watched the Towers fall on live television. My symptoms doubled immeadiately even on medication, which was my first clue that the symptoms were, as the midwife said, related to stress.
My husband planned a trip to disneyworld the week after 9/11 because there would be no crowds. We spent one day at WDW and four days at the beach. I went off my meds cold turkey (I also agree with the ladies, don't ever go off the big psych drugs cold turkey, but for me, going off my natural hormones this way, worked out for me). I still had weeks left of hormones, but I wanted to try to see if I had NO stress, I mean NONE, turn the TV off, no negative or violent shows, news, or movies, quit going to church cause it was stressful, just lay in bed, go to the grocery store with my hair not brushed in my pj's, lower the bar, hell, set the bar on the ground, no stress, and if I kept everything "simple and sacred" while I dealt with the emotional trauma from the past, if I would get better. Vacation on the beach was the best time to try out this theory. BTW, we practically had WDW to ourselves and the kids got to ride buzz lightyear 28 times in a row. I was able to go off the hormones, stay off the hormones and recover. I never had to use prozac or any other drug. I am not saying that this will work for the OP's wife, but I will say that it worked for me and it is worth serious consideration to keep things "simple and sacred" and deal with past trauma as a strategy for this condition. It is worth noting all of the support I had, all my meals, all of the childcare, and cleaning, everything was done for me, the baby was only brought to me to nurse. At the time I remember wondering if my family would ever trust me again, because I had lost their trust. This trust was able to be regained and our relationships were able to heal.

[lisasaurus]

You really couldn't be in better hands than Shoshanna Bennett. Sounds like you and your wife are taking all the steps necessary, and I hope things start turning around soon!

We are here to support you!

[azgirl]

Please feel free to post as often as you need to! We are here to help. It sounds like you have found a great therapist for your wife. I had intense, almost psychotic PPD. One person in my life, who normally drives me crazy, had an extremely helpful attitude. She is normally a little pushy, annoying and a know-it-all BUT she was constantly telling me that I was just having hormonal and chemical imbalances from having a baby and it was going to get better and I was going to feel normal again. I mean, she beat me over the head with it. "This is NOT you", "you will feel better soon", "this is going to go away" over and over she said that stuff (and she believed it). Well, it helped me so much. It didn't cure me I needed meds and therapy for that. But it helped a lot. My husband wasn't so sure I would get better, maybe since I had convinced myself I was permanently screwed up, I convinced him too My point is, be her cheerleader. You are doing a fabulous job of watching out for her and supporting her; you aren't in denial about how serious this is. Just tell her that she WILL get better. As long as it doesn't mean you are ignoring the problem, and you aren't, it can't hurt to treat this as a curable illness.

My PPD was more of an insomnia/anxiety/suicidal PPD also. My psychiatrist prescribed Ativan (very similar to Klonopin) and it helped me a lot while the Zoloft kicked in. It didn't help me sleep, but it kept me from feeling crazy. I am not a Dr. but I am very uncomfortable with the drugs your wife's doc is prescribing. I have a friend who's doc prescribed all sorts of drugs without trying the "basics" first, and it turns out she didn't need them at all. I have a little bit of experience with a psychiatrist now and SSRIs and benzos (like the klonopin) are the drugs they try to start with. THEN they move on to other drugs. I would ask your wife's new therapist (who sounds wonderful) for another Dr. recommendation. Oh, my husband's therapist recommends meds and has his primary care doc prescribe them. I guess it isn't so weird. Anyway, I have such a bad vibe about your wife's doc...please consider a second opinion!

My psychiatrist is just out of school and "prescribes" fish oil to all his patients. Fish oil, especially EPA has been proven to help with depression and anxiety. He had specific brands and dosages based on EPA. I would ask about it. It may be worth it to see a younger doc who is aware of the latest research. My doctor also "prescribes" physical activity because it is proven to help also.


Please keep us posted, I am thinking about you and your wife!!