In the UK therapy is a luxury for the middle class and wealthy

[FireFox]

I am so sick and tired of hearing the pharse "go see a therapist" if you are struggling. If therapy was so easy to acess we would all be doing it these people who say ' go see a therapist" its like they really think we are not trying or we are lazy or even stupid.
I have shared my experiences of my struggles of accessing mental health care under the NHS and which is why I ulimately gave up seeking help.This week I had a conversation with a grouo of people in a digtal detox and wellness discord community because I am trying to better my life. The people in the forum were like some well meaning others arseholes telling me to go see therapist and counselling.

I explained my experiences of how hard I found it to acess the nhs because this person was telling me to go see a therapist for my problems. The person was so dismissive and accused me of not trying even saying how there is free therapy alternatives in the UK.
https://sanctioned-suicide.net/thre...got-no-help-from-the-nhs.137949/#post-2239585
These arseholes just don't get how it works in this country and the mental health system is broken across ALL of the UK.

● The NHS is the largest provider of free therapy in the UK. Depending where you live will determine how long you wait for treatment. The waiting lists are very long some areas have higher waiting times than others. Before you can even get acess the NHS has asses whether or not you are suitable for the service. A lot of people have lost out on getting therapy due to this gatekeeping by the NHS.

● There are free therapy alternatives but the disadvantages are you have to meet criteria to be eligible. Some free therapy services over services for a particular age group ie 18-25 years old others will offer based on where you live. If you live in London there are services where you must live in a certain London borough to be eligible for that local service treatment. London varies a lot some boroughs have brilliant mental health services while others do not. The same also applies in other UK cities and towns.

There is demand for mental health services espcaily free therapy as too many people can not afford to pay to see a therapist meaning not everyone will get treatment. It may be free but there is a price so you will have to take whatever you are given.

Middle class and wealthy in the UK can pay to get aceess to therapists on speed dial and can choose a therapist of their own choosing if you are low income forget it. Therapy is an essential mechanism in helping people heal but it has now become a preserve for the middle class and wealthy.

These toxic positivity arseholes, hippies and wellness gurus do not fucking get it.

 

[ImsooDone1N]

I feel like this is a problem in the US as well. A good psychologist who's a PhD & a jungian analyst can cost >200$ per 1hr session. I had to find a free trial to get into here, and that was great but now I need to continue seeing a therapist & it's unfortunately cost prohibitive for me on my own. I'm grateful that my parents can help a lil, but they won't be here forever. Things are going really bad. I've thought a lot lately about just disappearing… not like anyone cares.

 

[ijustwishtodie]

Therapy in the UK is so hard to access. Also, I personally think that it wouldn't even be that effective on me. I heard some stories of some people using the free therapy here and they talked about how the therapist's ultimate advice was just to "take more showers" and "do more shopping". They're just anecdotes of course but if that's what therapy is like, I'm better off working on my own.. not that I want to get better but just saying.

Honestly, I think that maybe all of us are better working on our own. People worship therapy so much but I personally think that it's better to perhaps use therapy resources already available online if you want to go down the therapy route instead of relying on a therapist. It's harder said than done but it sounds far better than relying on a therapist and all of the therapy information is available online anyway

 

[FireFox]

I feel like this is a problem in the US as well. A good psychologist who's a PhD & a jungian analyst can cost >200$ per 1hr session. I had to find a free trial to get into here, and that was great but now I need to continue seeing a therapist & it's unfortunately cost prohibitive for me on my own. I'm grateful that my parents can help a lil, but they won't be here forever. Things are going really bad. I've thought a lot lately about just disappearing… not like anyone cares.

@ImsooDone1N Therapy has become a big business and its actually disgusting.

I think the government should introduce a pricing system for therapist fees. For example if you are on low income a person should pay lower fees for therapy, get special vochurs or get free therapy. I think the department of health should set the pricing as part regulations. The pricing should be reviewed regularly.

Therapist fees should be subject to regulation as therapy should NOT be a luxury for the rich and middle class.

 

[Forever Sleep]

Honestly, I've never gone through my GP to get therapy but I imagine that would be the best route. Do they just put you on some ridiculously long waiting list? Have you told them outright you have suicidal thoughts? Obviously not that you have a plan- you don't want to be sectioned I imagine. I did seek out a therapist at college. I guess that's the advantage of being some place that has one available.

I keep getting bombarded with 'BetterHelp' Therapy adds on YouTube- that is supposed to be affordable but- I guess it depends on what they call affordable! I don't know how good it is either. Seems more like a psychiatry version of Tinder!

I'm sorry though. I know what you mean. I think people do think we're stupid. Like- the police officers that did my welfare check after the IC SN business. They were nice to be honest but they- obviously wanted to put me in touch with a hotline. I was like- I do realise these things exist and they seemed surprised- like- why haven't you rung one then- to solve all your problems? Even that I knew about them seemed to surprise them. It's like- you've obviously never Googled suicide! But then- why would they, if they're not?

But yeah, it's weird that they think there even is that much effective support out there. What they wouldn't understand though is- I don't actually want their 'support' now. I did have to speak to this helpline in the end but it was such a waste. You though? You want support- you're desperately looking for it. They're failing you utterly if they don't provide that. It's like @TAW122 has said in the past- they should to some extent- withdraw all this attention they place on preventing people who desperately want out of here (and are mentally competent) and focus on people who are absolutely crying out for help. There aren't enough resources to go around- definitely- so- use them to help those that want help rather than force it on people who don't. I hope you manage to sort something out though. I believe you though. I'm sure it's not for a lack of you trying.

 

[stuckinthemud]

I'm currently having in person therapy on the NHS and it's not helping at all.
But I had a feeling therapy wouldn't help me.

 

[LaVieEnRose]

But they don't want you to kill yourself and to get help, remember? /s

 

[leavingthesoultrap]

Quality therapy is very hard to get.
In my country it's partially covered but the waiting time is long and the quality...
I got better sessions with chatGPT to be honest

 

[divinemistress36]

Therapy is overrated

 

[UKscotty]

Waste of time and money anyway.

£60 an hour to be told to keep a journal, get outside for a walk and eat healthy. That's in a nutshell what 12 weeks of therapy net out to.

 

[Kit1]

I am currently seeing a clinical psychologist from the community mental health team - I had to wait for a ridiculously long time to access the therapy (the team said that they had lost my file when my GP kept emailing them asking for urgent help as I was at a high risk of suicide and when I contacted my MP, the team magically found my file, contacted me and started therapy. Actually the clinical psychologist is good and I have been seeing her for over an year (she does cancel quite a bit due to annual leave, training etc) and she dis tell me several weeks ago that I only have a few more sessions left, but she can refer me to the trauma clinic in Tavistock - I refused this. Now another dilemma has popped up. I wish I had enough money to employ a private therapist for the long term.

NHS is struggling to treat any of us with disabilities, neurodivergence and essentially it was due to the failure of the NHS that I joined this forum - this forum replaced my GP..,

 

[TAW122]

I am so sick and tired of hearing the pharse "go see a therapist" if you are struggling. If therapy was so easy to acess we would all be doing it these people who say ' go see a therapist" its like they really think we are not trying or we are lazy or even stupid.
I have shared my experiences of my struggles of accessing mental health care under the NHS and which is why I ulimately gave up seeking help.This week I had a conversation with a grouo of people in a digtal detox and wellness discord community because I am trying to better my life. The people in the forum were like some well meaning others arseholes telling me to go see therapist and counselling.

I explained my experiences of how hard I found it to acess the nhs because this person was telling me to go see a therapist for my problems. The person was so dismissive and accused me of not trying even saying how there is free therapy alternatives in the UK.
https://sanctioned-suicide.net/thre...got-no-help-from-the-nhs.137949/#post-2239585
These arseholes just don't get how it works in this country and the mental health system is broken across ALL of the UK.

● The NHS is the largest provider of free therapy in the UK. Depending where you live will determine how long you wait for treatment. The waiting lists are very long some areas have higher waiting times than others. Before you can even get acess the NHS has asses whether or not you are suitable for the service. A lot of people have lost out on getting therapy due to this gatekeeping by the NHS.

● There are free therapy alternatives but the disadvantages are you have to meet criteria to be eligible. Some free therapy services over services for a particular age group ie 18-25 years old others will offer based on where you live. If you live in London there are services where you must live in a certain London borough to be eligible for that local service treatment. London varies a lot some boroughs have brilliant mental health services while others do not. The same also applies in other UK cities and towns.

There is demand for mental health services espcaily free therapy as too many people can not afford to pay to see a therapist meaning not everyone will get treatment. It may be free but there is a price so you will have to take whatever you are given.

Middle class and wealthy in the UK can pay to get aceess to therapists on speed dial and can choose a therapist of their own choosing if you are low income forget it. Therapy is an essential mechanism in helping people heal but it has now become a preserve for the middle class and wealthy.

These toxic positivity arseholes, hippies and wellness gurus do not fucking get it.

First off, I want to say I'm sorry to hear and learn about these "presumptuous arseholes" who think they know what's best for you (hint: they don't!). I too, had similar interactions in other online communities that I'm a part of and it infuriates me as well. To add to your post, I would even claim that therapy and psychiatry is not for everyone (as others have stated) and as someone who has interacted with the mental health system in the US, it really is (at best) a waste of time and money, with the added risk of (at worst) being interrogated and possibly locked up against your will in the name of public health and safety. I read somewhere that psychiatry and the mental health system is mainly looking out for the public and societal interests first, not so much about solving problems or helping an individual, contrary to what others' may say. Many proponents of MH and psych oftenly tout about all the "success" stories and such, but again that is confirmation and selection bias at play. Anyways, I don't want to digress too much and I just want to say that you're not alone in feeling the way you do, and it's always good at have people who stand up to/against psychiatry as well as the mental health system itself and be able to be critical about it without being shut down.

Honestly, I've never gone through my GP to get therapy but I imagine that would be the best route. Do they just put you on some ridiculously long waiting list? Have you told them outright you have suicidal thoughts? Obviously not that you have a plan- you don't want to be sectioned I imagine. I did seek out a therapist at college. I guess that's the advantage of being some place that has one available.

I keep getting bombarded with 'BetterHelp' Therapy adds on YouTube- that is supposed to be affordable but- I guess it depends on what they call affordable! I don't know how good it is either. Seems more like a psychiatry version of Tinder!

I'm sorry though. I know what you mean. I think people do think we're stupid. Like- the police officers that did my welfare check after the IC SN business. They were nice to be honest but they- obviously wanted to put me in touch with a hotline. I was like- I do realise these things exist and they seemed surprised- like- why haven't you rung one then- to solve all your problems? Even that I knew about them seemed to surprise them. It's like- you've obviously never Googled suicide! But then- why would they, if they're not?

But yeah, it's weird that they think there even is that much effective support out there. What they wouldn't understand though is- I don't actually want their 'support' now. I did have to speak to this helpline in the end but it was such a waste. You though? You want support- you're desperately looking for it. They're failing you utterly if they don't provide that. It's like @TAW122 has said in the past- they should to some extent- withdraw all this attention they place on preventing people who desperately want out of here (and are mentally competent) and focus on people who are absolutely crying out for help. There aren't enough resources to go around- definitely- so- use them to help those that want help rather than force it on people who don't. I hope you manage to sort something out though. I believe you though. I'm sure it's not for a lack of you trying.

I saw that you tagged me and I too, had interacted with the psycho-therapy and mental health system, and I would say that from my experience, no it hasn't really helped me in the overall grand scheme of things. My life was (at best) just where it was, now with the added risk of being probed, scrutinized, and/or questioned, which of course isn't good. I think you raised a good point that "they should withdraw all the resources on those who don't want help, and focus those same resources for those who are literally begging for help". Not only would that reduce the amount of incarcerations of people who shouldn't be there, respect bodily autonomy of more people, but also actually benefit those who really want help by being able to devote more resources and better quality of "help" to those that desire and yearn for it.

While money is an issue throughout most of my life (and still somehow is in present day because I don't make a fortune with my wageslaving/grind), I'd be better off (personally) spending my hard-earned money on things I want and desire, which is NOT psychotherapy, psychiatry, and/or other cliche and unhelpful things for me. It also does frustrate me greatly how many people often defer and ignore whatever plight and struggles one has, and instead, presumptuously and arrogantly push psychotherapy and psychiatry down people's throats while hand-waving and dismissing whatever struggles one has. It's nothing more than an insulting jab at a person and a dirty label being placed on them! Worst yet are people who then shame those who didn't find success by either: 1) gaslighting them saying that they didn't try hard enough, 2) they didn't "really" want help, 3) they simply didn't find the right "professional". It makes me furious and very offended when I hear such filth being spewed by normies! Whenever I hear that it means one of two (or both) things, they don't want to hear about my struggles, and they just want to push platitudes while (secretly) patting themselves on their backs about how "good and helpful" people they are! Just dispicable and awful!

Anyways I digress, and stay tuned as I have more anti-psychiatry and anti-psychotherapy threads that I will write in the future.

Quality therapy is very hard to get.
In my country it's partially covered but the waiting time is long and the quality...
I got better sessions with chatGPT to be honest

Yes, and as someone who has interacted with almost a dozen or so mental health professionals in my lifetime (mostly while as a student in primary and secondary education), I can claim that it doesn't help me and instead, I had more success seeking out my own solutions and finding other resources (outside of the toxic positivity, tried and tired platitudes, that most mainstream society likes to push). Most of my goals that I found success were NOT from psychotherapy nor the mental health system, but from my own self. I also did not need to pay someone to tell me how to think, to gaslight me, or to tell me that I'm not being honest with myself. Also, yeah ChatGPT seems to be better (and free) than these "mental health professionals".

Waste of time and money anyway.

£60 an hour to be told to keep a journal, get outside for a walk and eat healthy. That's in a nutshell what 12 weeks of therapy net out to.

Indeed, and throughout the years on SaSu, I wrote about the horrors and ills of the industry. Assuming you spent £60 per hour and one hour session per week, that's £720 just gone to the scummy mental health industry! With that amount of money, I could probably go on a nice short vacation overseas or even spend that money on things I like and would enjoy, rather than pay some "mental health professional" to gaslight, belittle, patronize, and/or risk saying something that drives them to freak out and incarcerate me (to protect themselves from liability). I'm sorry to hear about the time and money wasted as well as not having any discernable improvement. Your experiences only reinforce and prove that the system is really predatory and scummy, and people who are critical and skeptical (myself included) gets swept under the rug. I too, share the same sentiments as you did and I would never live it down if I wasted that much money just to get nowhere, in addition to putting my liberty at stake.

I am currently seeing a clinical psychologist from the community mental health team - I had to wait for a ridiculously long time to access the therapy (the team said that they had lost my file when my GP kept emailing them asking for urgent help as I was at a high risk of suicide and when I contacted my MP, the team magically found my file, contacted me and started therapy. Actually the clinical psychologist is good and I have been seeing her for over an year (she does cancel quite a bit due to annual leave, training etc) and she dis tell me several weeks ago that I only have a few more sessions left, but she can refer me to the trauma clinic in Tavistock - I refused this. Now another dilemma has popped up. I wish I had enough money to employ a private therapist for the long term.

NHS is struggling to treat any of us with disabilities, neurodivergence and essentially it was due to the failure of the NHS that I joined this forum - this forum replaced my GP..,

I think yes, the mental health system is a mess and in need of reforms, mainly to help those who WANT help, and not FORCE help on everyone (including those who DON'T want it!). For starters, I would say abolish the carceral nature of the system, unless said person has committed a "crime", legally speaking, or even a danger to others' (NOT oneself!), then they shouldn't be involuntarily committed or locked up against their will! Then of course, the overpromotion and ubiquitous nature of spreading said cause (mostly virtue signaling and toxic positivity veiled with insiduous intents) needs to be toned down! Most people know about it, and we (including us pro-choicers) are NOT so naive nor stupid that we don't know said services exist! We (the anti-psych crowd) know it doesn't help us and the fact that outside people shove us said "help" (which isn't even remotely 'helpful' for us) is nothing short of patronizing, condescending, and dismissive attitude towards our struggles! It is also presumptuous and arrogant to claim that one (who isn't and doesn't live our life) knows better than we! Anyways, I'm sorry about your experiences and for the ones that were helpful, I wish you the best either way.

 

[Tesha]

I'm sorry you've struggled to get what you need. I agree that therapy is difficult to access via the NHS, but I disagree that money can always get you access.

I have a community NHS MH team supporting me, but they're generic practitioners and I need specialist trauma care. There is a dedicated NHS trauma clinic in my area, but I was turned down because I was too suicidal.…

So I thought I'd go privately - I have Bupa cover or I can self fund private care. However, no one in the private sector will touch me either because of my high risk. I've been turned away by three inpatient clinics and numerous consultant psychiatrists and clinical psychologists.

Money doesn't always buy you treatment… ironically not being suicidal and needing treatment would mean I could get it…

 

[FireFox]

I am currently seeing a clinical psychologist from the community mental health team - I had to wait for a ridiculously long time to access the therapy (the team said that they had lost my file when my GP kept emailing them asking for urgent help as I was at a high risk of suicide and when I contacted my MP, the team magically found my file, contacted me and started therapy. Actually the clinical psychologist is good and I have been seeing her for over an year (she does cancel quite a bit due to annual leave, training etc) and she dis tell me several weeks ago that I only have a few more sessions left, but she can refer me to the trauma clinic in Tavistock - I refused this. Now another dilemma has popped up. I wish I had enough money to employ a private therapist for the long term.

NHS is struggling to treat any of us with disabilities, neurodivergence and essentially it was due to the failure of the NHS that I joined this forum - this forum replaced my GP..,

@Kit1 The problem with this country is how people praise charities like Mind and Samartians for dealing with mental health because this is part of the problem.

I am NOT anti charity and recognise the good charities do especially mental health charities but we don't need any more mental health foundations or charities. We need a fully funded functionally NHS so members of the public can get the help they need.The mental health system is inaccessible to the general public. What are we paying for tax for if the NHS is not working effectively? We the British public need to ask ourselves what are we paying for and how can we get a good value for money. This is our taxes. This country is a f*cking joke

It is the responsibility of the British government that our NHS is working well and charities should not be filling in the holes because our government is lazy and doesn't give f *ck.

I really wanted to live but never found the real support to be helped to live. Difficulty accessing treatment, I have no relative I can trust because my relatives are gossipers and my mum along with grandmother puts too much pressure on me to be perfect. I am not allowed to have mistakes meanwhile all the d*ckheads, arseholes and complete piece of sh*t relatives are are allowed to mess up, be honest about their mistakes and get sympathy from the wider family. I have no real world friends and now even more lonely seeing everyone else I grew up with getting married.

As a society we need to be looking at how can we improve our public services and institutions so people are getting the help and support they need. There are many areas of reform our public services needs and can be reformed but government and society is too lazy to fix it. Suicide I have always believed to be a sympton of a broken world. I believe if we had a more caring compassionate society that actually helped people with their problems suicide would be the exception and not the norm we see today.

Therapy is overrated

@divinemistress36 I feel like the pharse go see a therapist is the new way of saying f*ck off and go away. I just wonder the same people who say go see a therapist actually knows what therapy involves really.

I get so annoyed when people tell me to go see a therapist because I have had difficulty getting therapy in the past and I don't want to go through that cycle again of phoning GPs to get referred and then go many months hearing nothing from the NHS. The struggle to find information even the NHS website for my local areas mental health services provide not much information on how the service works.

I am not going through that again but people do not want to listen when share my experiences.

I'm sorry you've struggled to get what you need. I agree that therapy is difficult to access via the NHS, but I disagree that money can always get you access.

I have a community NHS MH team supporting me, but they're generic practitioners and I need specialist trauma care. There is a dedicated NHS trauma clinic in my area, but I was turned down because I was too suicidal.…

So I thought I'd go privately - I have Bupa cover or I can self fund private care. However, no one in the private sector will touch me either because of my high risk. I've been turned away by three inpatient clinics and numerous consultant psychiatrists and clinical psychologists.

Money doesn't always buy you treatment… ironically not being suicidal and needing treatment would mean I could get it…

@Tesha I did not know that. You deserved so much better and this goes go show the people who say "go see therapist" don't really understand what actually goes on inside the hospitals and healthcare facilities.

 

[divinemistress36]

@Kit1 The problem with this country is how people praise charities like Mind and Samartians for dealing with mental health because this is part of the problem.

I am NOT anti charity and recognise the good charities do especially mental health charities but we don't need any more mental health foundations or charities. We need a fully funded functionally NHS so members of the public can get the help they need.The mental health system is inaccessible to the general public. What are we paying for tax for if the NHS is not working effectively? We the British public need to ask ourselves what are we paying for and how can we get a good value for money. This is our taxes. This country is a f*cking joke

It is the responsibility of the British government that our NHS is working well and charities should not be filling in the holes because our government is lazy and doesn't give f *ck.

I really wanted to live but never found the real support to be helped to live. Difficulty accessing treatment, I have no relative I can trust because my relatives are gossipers and my mum along with grandmother puts too much pressure on me to be perfect. I am not allowed to have mistakes meanwhile all the d*ckheads, arseholes and complete piece of sh*t relatives are are allowed to mess up, be honest about their mistakes and get sympathy from the wider family. I have no real world friends and now even more lonely seeing everyone else I grew up with getting married.

As a society we need to be looking at how can we improve our public services and institutions so people are getting the help and support they need. There are many areas of reform our public services needs and can be reformed but government and society is too lazy to fix it. Suicide I have always believed to be a sympton of a broken world. I believe if we had a more caring compassionate society that actually helped people with their problems suicide would be the exception and not the norm we see today.

@divinemistress36 I feel like the pharse go see a therapist is the new way of saying f*ck off and go away. I just wonder the same people who say go see a therapist actually knows what therapy involves really.

I get so annoyed when people tell me to go see a therapist because I have had difficulty getting therapy in the past and I don't want to go through that cycle again of phoning GPs to get referred and then go many months hearing nothing from the NHS. The struggle to find information even the NHS website for my local areas mental health services provide not much information on how the service works.

I am not going through that again but people do not want to listen when share my experiences.

@Tesha I did not know that. You deserved so much better and this goes go show the people who say "go see therapist" don't really understand what actually goes on inside the hospitals and healthcare facilities.

The decent therapists you have to pay privately for anyways and not everyone can afford that . My therapist is wonderful but she can't fix my brain damage and wanting to die

 

[ForgottenAgain]

I had a similar experience going through the NHS. I was sent to the crisis team at the psych hospital due to being suicidal. 6 weeks of help which was a mixed bag (had the psychiatrist telling me to go on walks) and then, after being told I'd still get supported by another team after the 6 weeks are up, they tell me they wouldn't refer me because I have a private psychologist. I was in need of a psychiatrist but apparently being seen by a psychologist revokes having a psychiatrist. Now I'm on a high dosage of medication and was sent to the GP to manage that and the GP tells me they can't change my medication because my case is too complex. So am I just staying on this dosage forever? Had to ask to be referred to a psychiatrist and I'm doing that privately now too. I have a little part time job beyond my main job to help pay for therapy and now I'm spending more of my money on health insurance so I can be seen by a psychiatrist.

 

[FireFox]

The decent therapists you have to pay privately for anyways and not everyone can afford that . My therapist is wonderful but she can't fix my brain damage and wanting to die

@divinemistress36 People keep saying "but there is free therapy and low cost options" the thing is low cost options are there is a risk the quality of therapy may not be good. I have read stories online of peoples negative experiences of low cost options. Low cost and free therapy comes with criteria ie you have to be a resident of the area. My city does this a lot or belong to a particular demographic group.

Low cost and free services generally tend to deal with people suffering from mild to moderate cases of depression and anxiety, people are the more severe end of the spectrum or have complex issues are not really catered for.

I am so sorry to hear about your brain damage. I think it is so sad that in this modern age where we are so advanced in technology and medicine we still can't find relief for people suffering from various illness, accidents and so much more.

 

[FireFox]

I had a similar experience going through the NHS. I was sent to the crisis team at the psych hospital due to being suicidal. 6 weeks of help which was a mixed bag (had the psychiatrist telling me to go on walks) and then, after being told I'd still get supported by another team after the 6 weeks are up, they tell me they wouldn't refer me because I have a private psychologist. I was in need of a psychiatrist but apparently being seen by a psychologist revokes having a psychiatrist. Now I'm on a high dosage of medication and was sent to the GP to manage that and the GP tells me they can't change my medication because my case is too complex. So am I just staying on this dosage forever? Had to ask to be referred to a psychiatrist and I'm doing that privately now too. I have a little part time job beyond my main job to help pay for therapy and now I'm spending more of my money on health insurance so I can be seen by a psychiatrist.

@ForgottenAgain Your case also shows that we need for have a serious public discussion about the quality of mental health services the NHS offers and how it needs to be reformed so people like you do not be disadvantaged and suffer the way you are.

British people pay all this tax into the NHS and the public are not getting a good value for money. It is so not fair how we can not have a civilised and grown up discussion about the state of the NHS in this country. If you criticise NHS left wing labour supporters or misguided altruists accuse you of "not caring about the NHS" and the never ending guilt tripping. These people are going to be the reason why there will be no NHS in the future. One day the NHS will get to a point where it can't be fixed and by the time we realise it would be too late. Most industries go bust because the opportunities for reform were always ignored and eventually the industry can't cope.

 

[ForgottenAgain]

@ForgottenAgain Your case also shows that we need for have a serious public discussion about the quality of mental health services the NHS offers and how it needs to be reformed so people like you do not be disadvantaged and suffer the way you are.

British people pay all this tax into the NHS and the public are not getting a good value for money. It is so not fair how we can not have a civilised and grown up discussion about the state of the NHS in this country. If you criticise NHS left wing labour supporters or misguided altruists accuse you of "not caring about the NHS" and the never ending guilt tripping. These people are going to be the reason why there will be no NHS in the future. One day the NHS will get to a point where it can't be fixed and by the time we realise it would be too late. Most industries go bust because the opportunities for reform were always ignored and eventually the industry can't cope.

It's in a terrible state. I just called to the private psychiatric clinic to book my appointment and they're full until May. Even if you have money for health insurance you're still screwed... Now I have no one to manage my medication and I'm having to go back to the GP to figure out what to do.

My partner has a sleep problem and it's 6 months until treatment through the NHS and none of our health insurance covers it and just an initial consultation with a respiratory specialist costs £200 out of pocket. He is seriously considering going back to Portugal just so he can have treatment. All my life being told that England is amazing to then have to go back to my country to get proper care. Talk about expectation versus reality.

 

[FireFox]

It's in a terrible state. I just called to the private psychiatric clinic to book my appointment and they're full until May. Even if you have money for health insurance you're still screwed... Now I have no one to manage my medication and I'm having to go back to the GP to figure out what to do.

My partner has a sleep problem and it's 6 months until treatment through the NHS and none of our health insurance covers it and just an initial consultation with a respiratory specialist costs £200 out of pocket. He is seriously considering going back to Portugal just so he can have treatment. All my life being told that England is amazing to then have to go back to my country to get proper care. Talk about expectation versus reality.

@ForgottenAgain These are the issues we all need to be talking about in this country and not getting mad over bullshit culture wars, Royal family drama, issues in football etc

I think its so fucked up in this country people are mad over women having jobs as football commenters on male football games and arguing over it. The amount of people in this country arguing over joey barton( former footballer and mega arsehole) about his comments making fun of women football commenters and his bullying of women footballers is actually shocking. One section of the British population is an enormous section of British football fans defending his comments and another section of the population is outraged.

This is why this country can't progress we focus on issues we shouldn't be focusing on and ignoring issues we should be focusing on

 

[saddo]

I can't get any help either. I'd love to have therapy. I think it would help a lot, just to have someone to talk to but I just got 6 sessions which was good while it lasted and then nothing - that's all there was. Did make me feel like what's the point. I think if you've got major problems you're dealing with - 6 sessions is never going to be enough. I suppose I could wait a while and then try again but you wouldn't get the same person and you'd have to start all over again just for 6 sessions. It would be so much better just to actually help people who need it, who are asking for it. I rang my Dr before in a lot of distress and she didn't even ask if I was suicidal and just said she could refer me for 6 sessions but would be a massive wait. Don't think they care at all

 

[Zaljko]

I mean, by and large, if you have major problems such that you're seriously considering CTB, then therapy isn't going to do much of anything to help you anyway.

If your life is absolute shit, talking to someone isn't going to do anything. What do you think they're going to tell you?

Let's say you're upset and don't want to live because of a major health condition; let's say MS. The most they're going to be able to do with you is basically try to "cope with" the illness. But no one wants to live with any horrible, progressive disease. So they basically spend their whole time talking through minor issues that come up, making sure you aren't actively suicidal (or admit such to them) and just basically spinning your wheels while the counselor takes your money (or the insurance pays them, or whatever).

I've always said, if you're a healthy, attractive, wealthy person who encounters a very minor setback in life (let's say, a bad breakup) - then yes, counseling can help those people, because of course it's a very time limited situation and the person, with or without counseling, will eventually get back to their baseline level of functioning.

But if you're seriously believing that ANY form of "mental health" treatment can do anything to make life better for those with incredibly painful health conditions; those who are in severe poverty; those who have years and years of systematic abuse; those with severe mental health conditions (i.e. Schizophrenia, Bipolar, etc.); those who have degenerative, invariably lethal conditions like ALS... well... I got news for ya - that shit doesn't do a damn thing.