Trouble Seeing Your Doctor?

Any of you out there in the UK experience the problems I do in actually getting an appointment with your GP? I guess you all have. If I recall the last government-and this isn't a political comment-decided that the way in which we could speed up meeting our GPs was to change the system of appointments meaning that they could only be booked by phoning at God awful o'clock in the morning in the hope you could beat the rush and actually see someone on that day.

There are 2 major problems with that a) if I am ill all I want to do is sleep and do not need waiting on the phone to try to get though, and b) it is almost impossible for working people like me to do that. If I need a Doctor if I'm physically ill I really don't mind who I see. Mind you when I had my possible kidney infection in the summer the second Doctor I saw tried to pin it down to a cause that was false which was due to side effects of my medication. Well I didn't have what he said and I had been taking that medication for 19 years without a problem.

So why do I mention that today? Well with my mental illness I will only talk to my GP as he at least has some idea. I would like to see him regularly given I'm not deemed mad enough to have a shrink. He also would like to see me regularly. Problem is I can never get an appointment with him.

Last month when I dropped in my repeat prescription they delayed signing it as he wanted to see me. I asked for an appointment but they of course couldn't help me. On Tuesday I dropped in to ask for this month's pills. After work today I went in to collect the prescription to be told it hadn't even been issued. Apparently that was as I was under using. Well he knows that anyway.

I have been on the same medication regime since 2002. I make it work for me in the context of my life and vary my doses. Sunday to Thursday I take 50 mg of trimipramine and 2 mg of risperidone at night. Friday and Saturday I take 150 mg of trimipramine and 2 mgs of risperidone. That is as I need sleep. No anti depressant has ever made an impact on my mood in the 21 years I have been on them. Risperidone, an atypical anti psychotic saved my life. I take the trimipramine to sleep. But I can't function or wake up on the full dose in the week. What is better I work full time and function? Or do I follow Doctor's orders and take myself out of the realm of work? Your choice dear reader.

Looks like I will have to move heaven and earth to get to see him but who knows how long that will take. In  reality I know more than he does. I will keep you posted.

Home now and going back to my university rugby club days and cooking a sausage curry. They were disgusting back then but I hope my honed skills will improve on the past.

I Heard a Voice.