UGH!!!! I have no one else to commplain to about this...
 

so guess who gets to hear about it? :p

But seriously, I don't know what to do. I got a call from my psych. office this week, which I assumed was a call to confirm my appt next week. So I called back only to find out that my psych that I've been SEEING FOR ALMOST TEN YEARS, has 'unexpectedly left the association'.

:crying::crying::crying:

Oh, crappola!

She is the only dr. I've had in the last decade to treat my bipolar disorder and eating disorder and I already feel totally lost. The desk girl didn't even sound disturbed when I burst into tears. Just said, "Well, we can set you up with so-and-so on the 24th."

I don't even know why I'm posting this here besides the hope that SOMEONE can sympathize. I fee like I just got dumped and w/o the breakup fight. And now I have to talk to someone brand new who doesn't even know me????? ARGH!!! This alone makes me want to dive off into the deep end, except I've got to be responsible right now and have a lot riding on my stability.

I don't understand why this happened? Why would a dr. leave so suddenly? We talked about everything all this time and I knew she was frustrated with some things but never thought she would up and leave just like that?

What do I do??? :crying:

Oh goodness. :( I can definitely understand why that would be upsetting. A relationship with a good therapist is pretty intimate, right? They know a lot about you . . . really personal things . . . and it takes time to build up a foundation of trust. So, it would be really hard to have to start over with someone new. I'm so sorry. :crying:

Can you get a more personal recommendation from her for another psych that she thinks would work well for you? Or are you just left with whoever the office recommends?

That really stinks. (((HUGS))) In the meantime, feel free to use us for your therapy . . . you won't get professional opinions, but you'll get a lot of love and probably a few laughs. :wub: :wub: :wub:

Oh no :( I'm so sorry - that totally stinks! It is pretty odd that she just left without warning. Are you still able to contact her (personal number maybe)? If not, I guess the only thing to do is to try out the one they are trying to set you up with and see how it goes. I know that is super stressful though and NOT what you want to do :(

Yeah, the vibe I was getting from the staff was "you get who you get." NOW I know why some dr's get stalkers who track them down, because I want to use my internet skills to find her and ask her why the heck she left?! I seriously considered doing this, then took the moment to reflect and realized that is how those scary news stories start.

Honestly, if I didn't JUST start homeschooling my dd I would probably use this as an excuse to give up and go nuts. GAH!

TEN. YEARS. So confused! :(

NOpe. No personal number. I have an appt. with a nurse practitioner later this month. A 'nurse practitioner'??? That's who I get? If I offend someone's career here I am very, very sorry, but I need an expert! What does 'nurse practitioner' even mean? Hopefully I am about to be humbled, but I can't imagine at this moment that she will understand how to handle my issues.

(this too shall pass, this too shall pass, this too shall pass...)

If it's any consolation . . . I've been to a few really awesome nurse practitioners. They weren't for mental health issues, but I felt like they were able to take a little more time with me than an actual doctor sometimes is. Obviously, for the long run, you wouldn't want to be seeing a nurse practitioner. But, it might be a good place to start and get a good recommendation for a long-term doc.

It IS a consolation. Thank you. I hate to feel so assuming, but I hear the words 'nurse practitioner' and all I can picture is the gal who comes in to take my dd's temperature and stuff when I take her the dr. KWIM? This is just all so very, very weird for me. So weird that I can't see her again. I have been talking with her every 3 months (or less) since Eden was about 2 years old or something crazy like that. Just like that? It's done? I don't get it!

I thought a nurse practitioner was like an advanced nurse - extra schooling and all that. According to Wikipedia (I looked it up, haha) they can also specialize in things like psychiatric-mental health (PMHNP) so they may actually be qualified to help. I can totally understand why that would be scary and stress you out though! You'd think she would have at least let her patients know or something?

[QUOTE=Nettio;1062736478! You'd think she would have at least let her patients know or something?[/QUOTE]

I know, right?

Ahh, good ol' Wikipedia. I love that you looked that up. I'm really curious to see how this appt. will go. I wonder how many cranky patients she will have seen in the meantime? I will try my very hardest to be nice because it's not her fault or anything. I'm just sad.

Oh, and I have abandonment issues. If it's not obvious. :o

Well exactly, you'd think she'd know better than to just leave her patients like that. I wonder if it all happened very suddenly? Just doesn't seem like the professional thing to do to your patients after 10 years. I mean my hairdresser gave me more warning than that and recommended me to someone else she thought I'd like after only two years. :D

Generally speaking a nurse practitioner has a Masters Degree. (vs. the nurse who takes your temperature who is usually an LPN...one year degree.)

Val... I would be in a froth, too. :( It makes me wonder, maybe there is someone better out there? Someone who would call their patients or give them a heads up? Or maybe this is an opportunity for growth. Weaning, kind of? Maybe a chance for good change. You could join a support group, find another source of security that you have more control over? I don't know. All I know is don't give in or give up. You didn't lose yourself, just your doctor. <3

I would be pretty upset too. They may not have access to their patients numbers and whatnot to be able to reach you to let you know where they went. It still stinks. I am just now seeing someone for those exact same issues, so I can relate. I hope you can find someone else, I know how hard it is to trust someone and open up to them. Starting over is scary! But you are strong and can do this!

Oh no! Doctors up and leave so often around here I've gotten used to it, but I do remember that feeling the first time after having one for years, and it sucked..... When you put in the time with someone like that and then they just up and leave, it is very scary to say the least, especially with Psyc cause they literally know EVERYTHING about you. My only advice would be to take a deep breath, and try to go forward into things with a positive mind, maybe, this is exactly what you need.... a different ear to listen to you, a different perspective, someone who may be able to come up with new ideas, better ideas and be even more helpful to you. :)

Big Hugs

When I was a young adult that happened to me with my first gynecologist, that was really upsetting, considering what body part they treat :(

More recently I had the same thing happen to me with my dentist. I went in for my normal cleaning after the cleaning I went to make another appointment for 6 months later and the front desk girl said can you call to make the appointment closer to the date. I said ok not thinking anything of it. The NEXT day I get a letter in the mail stating he was closing his practice to move closer to home that day! After 12 years with the same dentist who I loved him and the staff, I felt like an idiot. Because they ALL knew that was their last day and didn't have the courtesy to tell me while I was there that he was closing shop. I have to say its been well over a year and it still irritates me. So while I can only imagine the difference of getting blown off by a psych who you share your most intimate thoughts with, I do know what it feels like to feel to be ditched by a Dr.

The bottom line is that seems like a completely unprofessional thing for her to do, considering the nature of a psych/patient relationship.

Yes, an NP is a nurse who has more schooling than a registered nurse (and the people who take your temp and BP usually are medical assistants with 1 year of schooling and no nursing creds at all) ;) I have several friends who are NPs and most of them have specialized in a certain area - psych, eating disorders, endocrine, ortho, etc. They all have more than the standard 4 years of college for nursing and several years devoted to their specialization. Also, the psychiatric hospital I do work for has a ton of PMH-NPs who work there as therapists.

I'm sorry this has happened to you, Val. I have nothing to offer except a good ole :hugs: I hope you are able to find someone you can trust.

I hope this turns out to be a blessing in disguise, that you find someone (or a group or something) even better. I can imagine how you feel because our loved pediatrician left with no notice last year, after we'd been with her about a decade. And last month I ran into her at the grocery store. I wish I was quicker with my words because we just said, "Hi! How are you?" and moved on, then I immediately wished I'd asked her why she left. Lack of closure really bugs me.

Oh, that does suck!

My favorite doctor, recently just left his office too - no warning... in some cases, the doctor has no control over it - if the others in the office don't like them (and it can be as shallow as they are more popular than other docs in the group), out they go... and even if they left on their own, they sign non competes, they can't tell their patients that they are leaving or where they are going. And no one at the office will tell you where they are going, either - they don't want to loose your money - I mean, you as a patient.

Can you look her up on facebook or google her? :) Hopefully you can get by and maybe in 6 mon you will find out where she went... Good luck! I hate trying to find new medical help and getting to know them - and they knowing you! 10 years... that is a lot of history...

You girls are SO helpful. Thank you so much. I mean, I honestly do feel better because a lot of you gave me insights that I hadn't thought of. I got super tired and went to bed, which is why I disappeared, and woke up still kind of stewing about it before I came over here and read all these responses. I'm so glad I decided to rant and rave, lol!

I did NOT know all that about NPs. <face palm> I definitely will go in more open-minded.

Thanks again for hearing me out and taking the time to respond. You gals are the best.

Recently my sons doctor came in the room and asked me, "Why do you come here?" I was like WTH both my kids happened to be getting over really bad sickness. She said they had all these rules. Which they did and it was ridiculous. I told her I was still there because, she was. She said, "Well what would you do if I left?" I said, "You better let me know." She said, "She couldn't." I said, "Well I will find you lol!" She said it wouldn't be anytime soon. About two months later I took Cade to get his second flu shot and she was no longer there. For two weeks I searched the internet and found her. I changed the kids doctors office which was a pain but totally worth it IMO.

I said all this to say. Keep your appointment with the NP and in the mean time look around. Here we have a facebook group where people in the area post things and that is how I found our doctor again :) I hope if you don't find her that you really like your NP.

Cindy, that is... weird. She must've been pretty fed up with whatever was going on over there!

I wonder if you could find her through your insurance. I mean, if she's covered through your insurance, they want their money, and they would need to know where she is, right? You could tell them that she's the doctor you want to see but you know she recently changed practices and you're wondering if you they have an updated provider directory with her most recent contact information. Insurance companies always provide contact info for the docs they cover.

Your physician may be reeling just as much as you leaving their patients that abruptly without warning or helping with transitions, which is normally standard procedure in mental health organizations. It may have been beyond their control and legalities prevent the organization from sharing more info with you or for the physician to contact you directly. It's possible that they're moving to a different hospital or setting up their own practice as we speak. We had some APRNs that were amazing so never discount just because they don't have a MD. Hope you can unite with your physician soon or find someone else just as meaningful.

I love the NP's at my OBGYN office. One of them caught my pre-eclampsia, and wondered why my previous 3 appointments hadn't had it noted as something to watch. I hope you have a good NP experience while you are finding a new person to trust with everything!

That stinks! For now I'd do exactly what some of the other girls have recommended--try a Google search (or any other methods at your disposal, like insurance company doctor finder websites) to see where your therapist went and if you can follow her there. If that doesn't work out, try to find someone new you click with.

I'm guessing that for now your current practice is trying to get everyone in with someone as soon as possible, and that means that patients who aren't in crisis are more likely to see NPs until they hire a new doctor and get everything figured out. Like you said, this too shall pass!

Umm... why didn't I think of that?

I think I'll give the NP a chance and if it doesn't feel right try to track my dr. down. The office staff has never been very friendly and I've said for years that if it weren't for my dr. I wouldn't even go to this place.