In the county I used to live in before I moved back here, I qualified for free counseling and med management, and the doctors at the county mental health office worked with me to help me get my prescriptions for pretty cheap. They would try to prescribe generics that I could get at Target for only $10 or less, and they were trying to enroll me in programs through the prescription companies that would let me get meds for free.
Where I live now is a much larger county that includes a major city. Instead of all low income people in the county going through one mental health center, it goes by the town you live in. For instance, most people in the big city could probably use the city's mental health services. In the suburbs, there are private mental health centers that provide sliding scale services to people in certain groups of towns. If you live in one town, you have to get services from whatever agency is serving your town.
I found out that my town is served by "Creekside Behavioral Health Hospital." At first I was hopeful, because their website boasted a mental health clinic near my house, as well as an outpatient hospitalization program where you can get all the benefits of inpatient hospitalization, but sleep at home. (I was very interested in this option, because my depression was getting so bad, I thought that an every other week counseling session was just not going to cut it this time!)
So I contacted them... and found out their "sliding scale" fees. It would be $160 for an initial evaluation, $100 for a therapy assessment, $80 for each follow-up therapy session, and $55 for medication management. So, assuming I just went to therapy twice a month and got med management once a month (you usually are required to have it once a month in order to get prescriptions for "controlled substances") I would have to have $395 that first month. That is money I just don't have laying around!
I did give them a call anyway... but you have to leave a message with their intake department, and they call you back whenever they get a chance. (Its been a week so far with no call back from them.)
In the mean time, I found a depression study I may be able to enroll in. I have an appointment on the first of August. The study means I will either be on a placebo medication (hopefully not), an already established depression medication, or a brand new medication. I will be on meds (I sure hope its not the placebo) for free for twelve weeks, and if all goes well, I'd be able to continue taking it for free for a year.
Here's the scary news... in order to participate, I'll have to go through a physical exam, including a blood test and an EKG. I hate blood tests (I usually faint.) And an EKG? Is that the thing where you have to run on a treadmill? I don't think I will do well on that! I really get nervous about physical exams because I don't like strangers touching me.
But... ugh... I guess it is what I'll have to do in order to get on meds!
I also found an ADHD study that I can participate in. I won't get meds, but I'll get paid $10 per hour to do it (four hours of testing) and that is a full tank of gas! I will be doing that tomorrow and Thursday.
If you have depression or another mental illness and you're wondering how I found these studies, I just went on Craigslist and typed "depression" into the Community, Jobs, and Gigs sections. You could also look on the websites of hospitals and universities in your area, since some have links to clinical trials that they are doing.
Anyway... I will be sure to let you know how all of these studies go!
1 comment:
Hello, Butterfly. Hopefully, the day will come when you can spread your wings and fly without fear or sadness.
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