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OT Doctors-Can anyone recommend a good psychiatrist(OCD/Anxiety)

Posted on 1/28/16 at 10:22 am
Posted by rcgoldenbites1013
New Orleans
Member since Dec 2015
62 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 10:22 am
I have a brother who suffers from severe anxiety/OCD. He wasn't born this way but instead had brain surgery about a decade ago to stop epileptic seizures. (Good news is that worked) He is now in his late 20's and would be considered slow. Able to work but not drive and lives at home with our mom. His anxiety causes very scary temporary suicidal panic attacks.The good news, if there is any is, he does not actually appear to have any real intent to harm himself as he is home alone hours a day and has never attempted actual harm. It seems to be more of an attention thing. For instance if you leave the house during an attack he will stop(Usually will call repeatedly) and restart when you come back. Not violent either just really stresses hard over many random things. Attacks normally happen between 5-10 P.M. (my guess is this is when the morning stress pill is wearing off) The attacks last anywhere between 20 minutes or 2-3 hours depending on if we can talk him into taking stress pill(Valum) or if we can convince him what he is stresses about is no big deal. The most common things that set him off are if his work hours drop below a certain level or if his bank account drops below a certain amount. The attacks don't happen daily more like bi-weekly but have been happening more often lately. It's really tough on my mom who lives with him as he is very mean verbally when it happens but completely apologetic when it subsides. He has been using the same Doctor at Ochsner for years and in my opinion its time for a second opinion. I know OCD/Anxiety is hard to treat so if anyone has a recommendation of a good Dr. i'd really appreciate it. Its really sad because 99% of the time he is a very happy kid and wants to get better but all of the different medicines the Dr's have tried have not worked.
Posted by ForeverLSU02
Albany
Member since Jun 2007
52147 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 10:23 am to
ETA: Just read your story and I feel bad now
This post was edited on 1/28/16 at 10:25 am
Posted by John88
Member since Sep 2015
6197 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 10:25 am to
Try Dr. Gordon Blundell in Mandeville...actually, I think he's in Madisonville now. I've known him for a long time. This guy is great. He helped me with a lot of OCD and all kinds of stuff. Very nice guy.
This post was edited on 1/28/16 at 10:27 am
Posted by Hog on the Hill
AR
Member since Jun 2009
13389 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 10:28 am to
I can't give advice about psychiatrists but you should read this:

Supporting a Family Member with Mental Illness
LINK
Posted by rcgoldenbites1013
New Orleans
Member since Dec 2015
62 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 10:43 am to
quote:

I can't give advice about psychiatrists but you should read this:


Thanks. We've read many of these. We are well past knowing there is as problem now we are more focused on getting him help to control the problem. It really is going to take a good Dr. to try something different.
Posted by thejudge
Westlake, LA
Member since Sep 2009
14036 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 11:23 am to
You should also have bloodwork done.

Check his total and free testosterone as well as his estrodiol levels.

Pull vitamin D levels as well.

Run a thyroid panel as well. A complete one, not just a TSH.

There have been instances where hormones are way off or there is a thyroid tumor causing all kinds of anxiety, etc
Posted by Hog on the Hill
AR
Member since Jun 2009
13389 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 11:25 am to
quote:

Thanks. We've read many of these. We are well past knowing there is as problem now we are more focused on getting him help to control the problem. It really is going to take a good Dr. to try something different.

Sounds like your brother is fortunate in the sense that he has a smart and supportive family to help him deal with this.

Good luck to you all
This post was edited on 1/28/16 at 11:27 am
Posted by ThinePreparedAni
In a sea of cognitive dissonance
Member since Mar 2013
11089 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 1:29 pm to
Consider cognitive behavioral therapy

Don't be turned off by the hippy-dippy appearance. Ton of sciences supporting this approach.

Below is an extensive reference on said science





LINK
Posted by Sev09
Nantucket
Member since Feb 2011
15554 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 1:37 pm to
Mindfulness Meditation is probably the best way to take care of any mental illness, but in your brothers case, I'm not sure if it's caused by a physical malady or not, so idk how far it can go.
Posted by MightyYat
New Orleans
Member since Jan 2009
24344 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 1:39 pm to
OP, do you know which meds he's on?
Posted by Hog on the Hill
AR
Member since Jun 2009
13389 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 1:39 pm to
quote:

Mindfulness Meditation is probably the best way to take care of any mental illness
I think that's going too far. Mindfulness meditation is probably not going to help someone suffering from psychotic delusions, right? Surely it has limitations.
This post was edited on 1/28/16 at 1:40 pm
Posted by ThinePreparedAni
In a sea of cognitive dissonance
Member since Mar 2013
11089 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 1:43 pm to
He can certainly get a second opinion from a psychiatrist to sort that out. I am not going to pretend to know the details of his situation

I posted the information as an adjunct/alternative due to

quote:

wants to get better but all of the different medicines the Dr's have tried have not worked


Check out the book posted if you want more info on the current science....
This post was edited on 1/28/16 at 1:48 pm
Posted by bigrob385series
B. Aura
Member since May 2014
2634 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 1:53 pm to
quote:

OP, do you know which meds he's on?
op said valium, which works for some people,but could be causing him to "crash" when it wears off.i'm no doctor but that's the effect it had on me years ago...high anxiety,anger,impending doom feelings.Good for you getting him a second opinion...what area are you in?
Posted by MightyYat
New Orleans
Member since Jan 2009
24344 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 1:57 pm to
OP, I see you logged out and won't pretend to know the details of your situation. However, using the info you provided, it seems like your brother had his surgery sometime around being 10yrs old. Do you know which surgery he had? Did they do a removal or did they just try to interrupt the impulse pathways in his brain? One of the main dangers when working on or removing the temporal lobe is the risk of severe personality changes. The problem is the change is permanent. The person is basically re-wired and they have no control over their emotions. They often times have severe panic attacks over nothing. I'm interested to know if your brother is on any anti-psychotic medications?
Posted by MightyYat
New Orleans
Member since Jan 2009
24344 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 1:58 pm to
quote:

op said valium, which works for some people,but could be causing him to "crash" when it wears off.i'm no doctor but that's the effect it had on me years ago...high anxiety,anger,impending doom feelings.Good for you getting him a second opinion...what area are you in?


Mental Health.
Posted by tiger91
In my own little world
Member since Nov 2005
36703 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 2:06 pm to
quote:

free testosterone


at the risk of hijacking, 2.5 in women is low ... would you leave that untreated??? Vit D level was on the low side as well and supplements have been started but can those 2 deficiences REALLY lead to increased anxiety?? If so, then I may have found my issue.
Posted by rcgoldenbites1013
New Orleans
Member since Dec 2015
62 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 2:07 pm to
Yat,

He had the surgery around 16, hes 28 now. The surgery removed a small damaged part of his brain that they determined was the root cause of the epilepsy.(Turned out to be correct as he has been seizure free for several years) He also had a shunt put in due to some additional issue.He is on a concoction of medications i will get the names for you.
Posted by MightyYat
New Orleans
Member since Jan 2009
24344 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 2:12 pm to
quote:

He had the surgery around 16, hes 28 now. The surgery removed a small damaged part of his brain that they determined was the root cause of the epilepsy.(Turned out to be correct as he has been seizure free for several years) He also had a shunt put in due to some additional issue.He is on a concoction of medications i will get the names for you.


I need to tread lightly here so please understand I'm not giving you any advice whatsoever. With that being said, I've seen a lot of patients have lifelong issues after the temporal lobe surgery. Is the shunt programmable?
Posted by bigrob385series
B. Aura
Member since May 2014
2634 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 2:19 pm to
quote:

Mental Health.
i was asking the op what his location was...his original post didn't say.
Posted by rcgoldenbites1013
New Orleans
Member since Dec 2015
62 posts
Posted on 1/28/16 at 2:21 pm to
quote:

I need to tread lightly here so please understand I'm not giving you any advice whatsoever. With that being said, I've seen a lot of patients have lifelong issues after the temporal lobe surgery. Is the shunt programmable?



Yat, i completely understand this is all free advice. Anything helps. I'm not sure about the shunt as far as i know is just a bypass to avoid pressure build up. It was unrelated to the brain surgery as he has had a shunt since he had minegitias (Spelling??) as a baby

This biggest thing for me is why do they always happen between certain hours and only with my mom. It seems like there has to be a drug that is time released that wont result in the crash. Also are there any injectable drugs for when he goes into these rages? once the attack starts he will not take medication.
This post was edited on 1/28/16 at 2:23 pm
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