(I wrote this in October of 2011. I get a lot of questions about how to afford medication and therapy. This was my road to being well enough to run this page and blog.) I am so sad angry right now that I can't stop crying. Is this America? I can't get anyone or any organization to help me right now and I am in crisis! I don't like to share this, but I suffer from major depression, Bipolar Disorder, and have had two psychotic episodes in my lifetime. I have been suicidal at times. I have been un-medicated for over a year, and am currently experiencing such a dramatic change and hardship in my life that suicidal thoughts are popping up. I have two young children, and they are what keep me from going through with suicide. But truly, I worry that during a psychotic episode, I may not be in the right state of mind to remember they need me. I need medicine and I need it NOW.
I have no job and no insurance. Even though I am an emotional mess right now, I have enough strength to make some calls. So first I call my Dr. who I have been seeing for 13 years. I have not been there for over a year because I moved away last year. I just moved back to my hometown area, and call to get an appointment. My last bill from them says I owe $5 and I plan on paying that during my visit. I guess that my office visit would be at most $50 and that I could get a $4 prescription from WalMart. When I call, I am told that I have an unpaid $200 bill (they sent that bill to my ex-husband so I had no idea) and they will not see me unless I set up monthly payments and come up with $80 upfront for my office visit. I have no money, so I can't do that. They say they will look into my bill issue and call me back.
My next call is to the local free/sliding fee scale clinic. They say "Sorry, we aren't taking new patients." I tell the lady that I need medicine right away and ask who else I could call. She says she doesn't really know, but try the clinic that's 20 miles away in another city.
I call the clinic that's 20 miles away and they say "The earliest we have available for new patients is 3-4 weeks away." I tell them that I really need some medicine now and they say try the local Mental Health center. At this point, I am crying. And crying. And crying. How am I supposed to be in the right state of mind to get a job and go through interviews when I am so emotional that I can't stop crying and nearly suicidal?! It took a lot of self talk to get up the gumption to make these calls and even admit that I am having a hard time and suffering from a mental illness.
The doctors office calls me back. They explain that somehow I was getting the $5 bill in my name and my ex was getting a bill that was for me but in his name. Since the services were for me, I have to pay it before they will see me. Had I known about the bill, I would have paid it when I had the money. She says try the local clinic. I tell her that they said it will be 3-4 weeks and I really need a prescription and am afraid I will go crazy before that appointment. I am so embarrassed that I am crying while I tell her this. She asks if I have anyone who can help pay for this. No, I don't. My entire family is poor. My friends are all poor. Usually, I am the one paying for their stuff. But since I just moved and have no job, I am in need. I tell her that I will figure something out and hang up.
By this time, I am desperate and afraid and remember to call 211. What a wonderful organization. They were able to sympathize with me and get me on the right track to help. When I called 211 they told me about all the local places I could get help from. 2-1-1 provides free and confidential information and referrals. Call 2-1-1 for help with food, housing, employment, health care, counseling and more. The best thing the lady did was verify that I had done all I could do and she was very caring and sympathetic. (I write the rest of this story now 2/18/13)
So I made an appointment with the free/sliding scale clinic even though I had to wait 3 weeks. I could also have gone to the ER I guess but someone I spoke to actually discouraged me from doing that because it would make my financial troubles worse because I would get a big bill. That is true, but I would rather go to the ER than die from suicide.
I don't know how but I made it the 3 weeks and went to my appointment at the clinic. My visit was free since I had no income. They prescribed me a $4 medication from WalMart. This helped for the moment, but I was only able to see a regular doctor who prescribed me Prozac for depression and lorazepam for anxiety. Less than 60 days later I was admitted to a psych ward in the hospital due to a complete mental break. I was psychotic and out of touch with reality. It makes me angry now looking back because I could have died looking for help. While in the hospital, I was seen by a psychiatrist who put me on Haloperidol after trying several other drugs with no luck. Upon release they set up appointments for me with a therapist and Psych Dr at a local mental health clinic. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to afford those visits but they were only $25 since I had no insurance. Now I see my therapist and Psych Dr. regularly. My new psych doc put me on abilify and prozac with Klonopin for anxiety. Those have been working for me. You may wonder how I afford abilify. I do so by ordering from an online pharmacy in Canada where there is a generic available. Isn't that sad?? What happened to America!? I am now connected with all of the right people, taking the right meds, and getting therapy but what a ride it was to get here. I would like to hear from other people in the USA about where and how they found help with no insurance and no money to spare. So tell me, how have you survived similar situations?? Do you know of other national organizations in the USA??
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