Guess who’s back? Well the last few days have been sort of, well, nutty. At the recommendation of a friend I decided to hunt around for a counselor. I think I have had too many things that I’ve carried alone and somehow last week it all came to a head. The funny thing is, my last blog was not how I feel day to day. I have great friends and upon occasion, my family will even be decent to me, although they do tend to use me more as the target of their anger, frustration or really pathetic humor. Not that any of you would take enough interest in me to read my blog, so I can safely say these things.
So I’m done complaining. Fear not, this isn’t a lifetime vow, but I figured I at least owe it to anyone who might read this blog to let you know I am quite alright. I did, however, get a taste of what it must be like to have a mental illness and need help. Basically, I just wanted someone to talk too and be a sounding board about depression, family issues, bad relationships, the type of things that pile up on us as human beings. I’d like to one day have the ability to not be completely devastated when people don’t answer my emails or when I ask some girl out and get the “I just want to be friends” speech.
Neurotic is cool if you’re Jewish and have a sitcom. I don’t fall into either category. So I called my insurance company and found out they had a mental health program. I was happy to see that. They were very helpful and gave me about a dozen counselors names and numbers in my area. I started looking at the numbers and realized they were mostly clusters of different counselors. So there were 4 different numbers with 3 counselors at each number.
The first one I called was very helpful and would happily see me on Monday. When I gave the receptionist my address, she informed me they were actually located about 50 miles form my home. I commute enough as it is, so I said thanks but no thanks. At the second number I got the reply that the counselors at this site were now booked through a corporate program and could not see new patients. So, I tried the third number and left 2 different messages. As of now I have not gotten a call back. The 4th and final one just said they had no openings in the foreseeable future.
So I called the counselor my friend referred me to. They took all my insurance information and said they would call back today and let me know if I am covered. Otherwise, it would be $130 per session. You guessed it…not a word. I guess the fact mental health counseling is so hard to come by only contributes to the thousands of people who have SERIOUS problems and can not afford or otherwise access treatment. Its hard enough getting over the stigma and admitting you could use help, but when services are hard to come by and about $130 per session if you don’t have insurance, it is a wonder more people are not hurting themselves.
I have good insurance and minor problems and I still couldn’t get help. I guess until Wal-Mart adds mental health care to their services, little redneck towns like mine will always have a quiet minority who go untreated. This whole thing has me thinking I should do what every other head case seems to do and get a masters in psychology and go into practice myself.
So I’m done complaining. Fear not, this isn’t a lifetime vow, but I figured I at least owe it to anyone who might read this blog to let you know I am quite alright. I did, however, get a taste of what it must be like to have a mental illness and need help. Basically, I just wanted someone to talk too and be a sounding board about depression, family issues, bad relationships, the type of things that pile up on us as human beings. I’d like to one day have the ability to not be completely devastated when people don’t answer my emails or when I ask some girl out and get the “I just want to be friends” speech.
Neurotic is cool if you’re Jewish and have a sitcom. I don’t fall into either category. So I called my insurance company and found out they had a mental health program. I was happy to see that. They were very helpful and gave me about a dozen counselors names and numbers in my area. I started looking at the numbers and realized they were mostly clusters of different counselors. So there were 4 different numbers with 3 counselors at each number.
The first one I called was very helpful and would happily see me on Monday. When I gave the receptionist my address, she informed me they were actually located about 50 miles form my home. I commute enough as it is, so I said thanks but no thanks. At the second number I got the reply that the counselors at this site were now booked through a corporate program and could not see new patients. So, I tried the third number and left 2 different messages. As of now I have not gotten a call back. The 4th and final one just said they had no openings in the foreseeable future.
So I called the counselor my friend referred me to. They took all my insurance information and said they would call back today and let me know if I am covered. Otherwise, it would be $130 per session. You guessed it…not a word. I guess the fact mental health counseling is so hard to come by only contributes to the thousands of people who have SERIOUS problems and can not afford or otherwise access treatment. Its hard enough getting over the stigma and admitting you could use help, but when services are hard to come by and about $130 per session if you don’t have insurance, it is a wonder more people are not hurting themselves.
I have good insurance and minor problems and I still couldn’t get help. I guess until Wal-Mart adds mental health care to their services, little redneck towns like mine will always have a quiet minority who go untreated. This whole thing has me thinking I should do what every other head case seems to do and get a masters in psychology and go into practice myself.
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