the treatment of depression on nhs

[mattandamy09]

Hi, So Im British and married to an Australian and were currently living in South Australia. Im wanting to move back to the uk but we cant until we are sure my hubby who has long term depression and anxiety will get the treatment he needs. Over here he sees a psychiatrist once a month just to have his meds monitored and adjusted  and he gets along very well this way. Hes had this illness since he was a kid and so has done talking therapies and other therapies ( that i cant remember the name of at this time lol ) and comes back to these when he needs them.
We have lived in the uk in 2010 for 6 months due to my mum having a heart attack but we had to return due to matt not being able to access any kind of help with his illness. All the gp said was we will have to take you of the meds as in the uk we only use them for short periods of time. and of course this sent my hubbys anxiety into overdrive. After fighting i did get her to give him a referral to a mental health team who did give him a referral to a psychiatrist but said that it was only for 1 session. He of course couldn't stand the uk any more and we  had to return to Oz . We just need to know if its always this difficult to get a referral to a psychiatrist on the NHS? or is this just one bad apple of a GP? We did bring a letter from his gp with us as well as a couple of months meds and a letter from his psychiatrist, who also faxed over to the gp my hubbys history. The gp did say that his meds are available on nhs so that wasnt the problem it was just her unwillingness to help or understand the situation. We understand that there will be a waiting list so will come prepared with at least 6 months meds. Please can any tell us if its like this all over the uk or just bad luck? By the way we were in lancashire last time and this time planning to settle in Boston, Lincolnshire as this is where my family are. Its very sad that this could stop us, as when in the uk over than this issue my hubby loved it and my family and him are very close. Thanks alot hope you all have a good day :) amy

[danbob]

shouldnt be a problem..... when you move back to the UK because your a UK citizen your husband earns the right to a visa to stay in the UK indefinately, technically making him a UK citizen.

you have nothin to worry about :)

[Zaf]

I'm surprised at the reaction from your GP as mine has told me I will probably have to stay on my antidepressents for life,  I know there is sometimes a big wait for counselling but havent much other recent experience with anything past seeing my GP

Hopefully someone else will know and be able to help more xx

[cornish]

You just need to find a good gp.  I'm probably on meds for life and I see my gp phycoligist and psychiatrist on a VERY regular basis, they actually want me to go every week without fail but I only manage this with my physiologist, oh and now they want me to go forghtnightly to have my head in some machine thingey, can't remember what that's called.   Back to the point, you shouldn't have any problems once you find the right people that will help, also try and get a copy of his medical recordstp show to them

[Angelina]

My GP referred me to the local mental health team, if they think of you as high priority you get an appointment within a few days. I see a doctor there every month to look at medication and I see the mental health nurse to talk to every few weeks, or as often as I need. I've recently been referred to the psychiatric team for assessment to see which specific therapy would be good for me. A few days after I was referred they sent me a questionnaire which I sent back straight away and I was feeling really bad at the time so wrote some pretty serious things on it. It's been 3 weeks and I've heard nothing. I was told that I could be waiting a few months before seeing them though.
The mental health team has been great for emergency appointments or phone calls and I've never had trouble getting appointments. It sounds like that GP wasn't very well informed I'm sorry you two had to deal with that   I've seen the team in north Dorset and in Somerset and both have been long term things with regular appointments so maybe you were unlucky or it might greatly depend on your location.

[Depina]

Hi Matt
My doc has said he is happy for me to be on antidepressants for life if it helps me and that is what I want. Hope things turn out well for you all
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[mattandamy09]

hi everyone, thank you so much for putting my mind at ease, my hubby will have his right to live in uk before we arrive to limit the stress  :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :)

[Depina]

morning Matt

Thats Great-have a good day
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[Munchroom]

I too can vouch for Somerset Mental Health Team. When I opened up to my Dr about just how bad I was he referred me for an emergency appointment and I had attended that and had some therapies lined up within 24 hours.

I think the key is having a good GP who understands mental health and just how debilitating it can be.

xx