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My experience with Mental Health Care: after the loss of my daughter and the subsequent hell I endured from a doctor who blamed me for her death I was diagnosed with PTSD, anxiety and OCD. I was very lucky. I got care quickly at the time. #BellLetsTalk 
I was accepted as a patient into Women’s Health Psychology and had a great relationship with my counsellor. However, the WH Psychologist for Eastern health was a single part time position. I was lucky. Many many many women in my situation are not.
When this position was vacated a number of years ago there was no plan for continuity of care. I saw this person twice a week for YEARS, and then suddenly nothing. My only option was to avail of my EAP, or access walk in services with community health.
After meeting with 3 separate counsellors to find a fit through EAP I ran out of benefits. I was referred to the community walk in program. Let me tell you something about walk in programs, they are a fabulous resource for people in crisis. But for people like me...
I have LONG TERM trauma related mental health issues. When you access walk in programs you are never guaranteed the same person twice. Over the course of 5 months I saw 6 different counsellors. Each time I would have to spend 3/4 of our appointment re-telling my story.
I cannot tell you how excruciating that is for someone with PTSD. An hour long session and for 45 minutes I’d simply be retelling my issues. The walk in program did far more harm than good. I spent over a year advocating for myself, because I am able to.
It took me a year and TEN different counsellors to be re-accepted into a women’s health program where I finally met someone who was wonderful for me.
Guess what? That position has been vacated again. Once again, I was discharged as a patient from there and there is no continuity of care. No patient navigation. I’m left on my own again to advocate for myself to find care while I wait for this position to hopefully be filled
All of this to say that a new building won’t fix the systematic issues that plague our Mental Health system. Mine is one story and I’m one of the lucky ones. It’s easy for our government to tout no wait times when they introduce walk in services. Mental Health care is LONG TERM.
I don’t often talk about my mental health, the care I receive or the issues I’ve faced. I talk about my daughter, and of being sad. But not about the real and tangible health care needs that I have. #BellLetsTalk
I just want people to know that this is a real problem and it affects real people. I wish I was strong enough to advocate publicly like this every day of the year, but I’m not. And that’s ok. That’s what I have to do to take care of my own mental health. #BellLetsTalk
But Mental Health care IS health care. And it deserves to be taken just as seriously by all levels of government. Patient outcomes are important - not just wait time statistics. And a new building won’t fix that. #BellLetsTalk
