question on therapy

It is not necessary to see a therapist after Guillain-Barre. Everyone deals with stressors in their life differently, has a different course, and has a different support network. It helps to have this group of understanding people on this site. Three things to think about. For me, the emotional impact of this hit harder several months into this when I realized how slowly one gets better (of course, I am a lot older than you and very tall) and also how much life has changed. I think this is the case for a lot of people, because right after you get sick, you focus on getting better and it is later that ou focus on trying to make life normal again. I work with teens with cancer and other serious illnesses and the impact that these have should not be underestimated. Soon you will go to college and most of your classmates will be healthy and energetic. You likely will have less energy and reserves, but more maturity because you have faced seriousness. It is harder to be young and different.
My second thing to mention is that in your first post, you said that you are having a hard time sleeping and having nightmares of going back to the hospital. This is a concern for PTSD. Maybe these have resolved, but it kind of sounds to me like it might be beneficial to keep the appointment with the therapist and talk some about your feelings and concerns about the GBS. There is no rule that if you go to a therapist, you have to go many times or over a long time. Sometimes only a few times can help a lot, especially in someone as attuned to their feelings as you seem to be. Click on your name and look back at your first post.
The third thing to say is that it is really important not only for your body to recover, but your mind/spirit. You want to live forward especially at your age.
Best of luck to you in your healing, body and spirit.
WithHope for cure of these diseases
GBS 3/07

🙂 Hi-

It doesn’t sound like you had a severe case of GBS. It also determines on what your weak points in your body are (arms, legs, etc.). If you are 90% or higher w/out any setbacks, saving the $20.00 co-payment sounds cool but down the road, your insurance company might cancel future treatments if your therapist states that they are not needed anymore.

Good luck!

Hi-

Update –

My co-payment in California is $15.00 (maximum visits is 3 before asking for more sessions).

W/out the co-payment, the cost per hour session at my therapy place is $194.00.

A few things to consider, Brit…

Many times, we worry more about our family than we need to; it is just human nuture. Have you asked your parents how they feel? Maybe they are more comfortable spending the $20 than you are? Speaking from the view of a mom who went through a life-threatening illness with her own child – money is nothing compared to the child’s wellfare. Speaking from a patient who feels uncomfortable accepting anything from anyone – i know how you feel. I can’t provide for my family (financially) now, so spending any amount of money puts me through a horrible guilt trip.

Another thing –
Be honest; does the emotional trauma you’ve been through affect your life? If it does, then maybe it is something you need to act on.

Also –
there are many treatments for PTSD; not just talking. There is something called neurofeedback that is very popular right now. They use it a lot for depression and adhd, and many clinicians offer it for free to our post-war guys/girls. Don’t know if they do it for GBS, but it is something you could inquire about. It is not invasive, either. they use your senses to take you back (emotionally) to when you were really sick. They expose you to your situation, slowly add (or subtract) different stimuli, until you become “tolerant” of those emotions. They let you control the situation, though, by adding or substracting stimulation to different senses, as you need to (like, adding or subtracting the sound of the monitors beeping, etc). The person is looking though special glasses to see the images and sounds are played in the room. The clinician asks what you saw, heard, felt, etc, and slowly adds those things as you are able. It gives you control over your fears. This is what ive seen, anyway.

Hope we all are of some comfort to you. I know this is hard for you, but remember that it is not your fault and you have no reason to feel guilty for being in the situation you are in. Like someone else said, maybe you need therapy, or maybe not. Maybe now, or maybe later. You just do what is right; your gut will let you know.

I have not read the previous posts:

I would just like to comment on the fact that you are willing to talk about what has happened to you, you have contacted others who have dealt with this and are open to discussion – that is a wonderful start, and I think that in itself is therapy.

I had a trach for 6 weeks, totally paralyzed head to toe, was in hospital for about 3 months and was allowed to leave once I was able to stand on my own for a few seconds with my eyes closed. I didnt speak of what had happened for about 17 years, and that was the biggest mistake because finally, when i was ready to talk about what had happened, grief overwhealmed me. Just over 22 years later, I still live a vicious circle dealing with denial, depression, acceptance while I live with what is known as Post GBS.

I think a very important part of dealing with this emotionally is to talk about what you have been through and try not to hang on to people who dwell too much with all the depressing aspects of what you have been through. If you are happy not doing therapy, that is perfectly fine. There are often groups who help out, for insance, the local chaper where you may be able to find support for one or two people who you get along with. Also there are churches or community groups who have support groups who help with people who have had to overcome awful illnesses. It all comes down to what you are comfortable with and what you would like to persue.

Below is an article about grief………..this is the circle of grief I was speaking about.

[B]Five stages of Grief: Neurology Now[/B]

[I][U]Exert taken from the Editors page[/U][/I]: Robin L. Brey M.D. Editor-in-Chief of [I]Neurology Now [/I]

Quote:

…….

[B]A neurological diagnosis can lead to a tremendous loss both for the patient and the people who care about her-loss of physical or mental abilities, livelihood, or autonomy[/B]. It is not hard to imagine why people in this situation experience the same stages of grief we go through when someone close to us dies. The psychiatrist Elizabeth Kubler-Ross, M.D., identified five stages of grief:

– Denial (this isnt happening)
– Anger (why is this happening)
– Bargaining (I’ll do anything to make this go away)
– Depression (I’ll just give up)
– Acceptance (I’ll do what I need to do to live with this the best way i can)

It can be even harder when depression goes hand in hand with a neurological disorder. ….. we learn that the rate of depression is between three to five times higher in people with certain neurological contditions than in there general population – something that is NOT seen in people with other chronic illnesses like heart disease or cancer. It is so imporatnt to recognize and treat depression, if left untreated, a person could be blocked from getting the help he needs to have the best quality of life possible.