How do I get help?

[SlipStream7]

I have like a month left of summer before I go back to college. I have axillary hyperhidrosis for sure, I'm very certain I have SAD, and unsure about mild OCD and AvPD. My parents have no idea about these things, but I've had problems in the past with them telling me I'm just overreacting about things before....for example my HH. They said that I just drink too much soda and that's why my shirts are soaked....right...

I want to start with medication rather than CBT, but of course, if I told me parents about the issues I'm having, medication would be a last resort for them, and they'd probably put me through 10 years of CBT not working before finally allowing a try at meds. I'm 19 and am getting a new primary doc very soon (the old one changed practice).

Basically I do want to get help, but this parent situation is killing me....I feel like once I tell them about it, I might immediately regret it forever since I could never take it back. I want to get help on my own, but I'm so passive when in public that I'd never be able to just straight up tell my doctor that I want to try medication rather than the therapies. I'd feel like he'd look at me strangely as if I was a druggy or something because I'm asking for meds.

I'm not at a low point in my life right now, just at a point where I realize if I don't do it now, I probably won't get another chance until next summer or after I graduate.

Does anyone have a similar situation where they are the only one who knows about their issues and they're afraid to tell their parents but really want help?

 

[Schmoo]

A primary doc may not want to get involved with issues of a psychiatric nature. Do you have access to a psychiatrist? I haven't told my parents b/c culturally, they wouldn't get it. They would either dismiss it or overreact and it just wouldn't help my situation to tell them, only make it worse. But in my case, not telling them doesn't have negative consequences or make my SP worse.

My biggest regret is that I didn't try to more aggressively deal with my SP when I was younger so I would suggest you not try to bypass therapy, even tho' it's a hard thing to do.

It would also help to get a professional's point of view on how to break it to your parents. In my job, I work with a lot of parents and they often prefer to live in denial about their kids' issues. Not b/c they don't love them, more b/c they just can't handle the truth. A therapist would/should have a lot of experience and good strategies to give you in helping you to communicate with them (and also support you through whatever fallout may occur afterward).

 

[prince182]

Yes, i found out about SA 3 weeks ago and there isn't a day i go without thinking about it. I wan't to tell somebody but I just don't know how. I hope i get something figured out before my last year of school starts.

 

[SlipStream7]

I've realized at this point that I get extremely paranoid and worried about mental disorders and things like that in the mornings. I get really emotional and my anxiety as at it's worst in the morning. I end up coming straight to work and pouring my heart out on here, then later on in the day I look back at what I posted and say to myself "I think I was exhaggerating a bit, I can just deal with this myself probably."

I think I'm going to try an approach I used to help me break up with my ex-gf. We had broken up and I wasn't happy about it. Thoughts of her kept creeping into my mind and I felt like I had no control over these thoughts....but one day I started to turn those thoughts into a trigger. Whenever I began to think about her or something I knew would lead to her, I'd visualize a sudden, vibrant green color filling up my visual field, then I'd visualize a giant stinger slashing across the green in my vision, tearing it as if it were made of cloth. The word "Bee Sting!" would ring through my ears.

For those who think I'm crazy, I'll explain. It's a technique I used to immediately and effectively startle my mind into thinking about something else. Similar techniques have people visualizing stop signs, red colors, etc.....but for me I found that a strong green was easier to visualize.


Taking this technique into SAD context, I've begun using it while in public....sometimes I have to keep "flashing" my mind with the Bee Sting to get rid of some pervasive thoughts, but for the most part it works well. Sometimes I include "self-coaching" voices in my thoughts saying things like "shut the fuck up and stop worrying, he's not thinking about you. look at him, he's the one that looks awkward right now, haha, drawing all that attention. STOP thinking about how you're walking, just stare at that building and let your body naturally do it! etc etc etc"

I dont mind the SAD at all when I'm successful in using the technique above, although I'm still masking the problem.....but how often is someone with SAD really cured?