Psychiatry-UK

Written by a NHS patient

For the first time in my life, I experienced a truly empowering, positive, and nurturing episode of care with real human beings who genuinely live through their Values. I was referred to Psychiatry-UK at my choice through my GP via the NHS Right to Choose pathway. A female at the age of 38, having struggled so hard through life to desperately try to achieve the same things as others, I was giving up on understanding why I was so constantly exhausted, anxious, frustrated, emotionally fragile, and honestly felt stupid with very little self-confidence and esteem. I achieved high attendance and performance at school, passing my GCSE's with very good grades, but I isolated myself with few friends and felt so frustrated and exhausted with having to take so long to do things, or ask so many questions to 'decode' what was expected of me. One of my earliest memories of this was around the age of 7. My reports described me as a daydreamer, who didn't contribute to asking questions or task activities, that I was easily distracted, and was a serial waffler with large handwriting who could not 'get to the point'. I went to college because that's what was expected of me, and I barely scraped a pass, often my assignments were over the deadline, and I was copying other people's work or asking them to help me because I didn't understand what to do. Even the lecturers would look at me with confusion because they praised me for my hard work, creativity, and bubbly, enthusiastic personality. I missed many classes as the pressure kept building as I struggled to keep up. Throughout adulthood I've spent most of my time around sociable people, to save me from having to contribute. I would just look like I was listening because I couldn't follow conversation or retain large amounts of information. But if something I was passionate about came up, I would not stop talking, I would overshare, and I would see myself in my dad so much. It would make me so self-conscious because when he did it, it would embarrass me. Jobs became harder, I would stick with them for years but would struggle so much, especially target driven positions that bored me or were repetitive. I limited my career aspirations because of how difficult it was to keep up, and the thought of extra responsibilities terrified me. But I had so much passion for helping others, and I was told I was really good at it. Home life was so tough because without the coping strategies (that ended up masking some of my symptoms), I would fall apart with remembering appointments etc, lose things, drive myself mad not being able to finish something... but I was racing around at 5000 miles and hour and not sleeping because my mind was also at the same speed. Chronic, complex pain issues do not mix with this. I have always been told I am so sensitive, and the thought of confrontation over anything or constructive criticism, guidance, normal personal relationship issues would absolutely crush me, and I would be left heartbroken for weeks sometimes with the physical and emotional pain of the aftermath, I would feel like a complete failure or fear that I would hurt someone so much by confronting them that I endured years of suffering. I then came across a Facebook presentation of Dr Muffazal Rawala's who works with Psychiatry-UK as a psychiatrist, and he was providing a talk on women with ADHD and how differently it presents. I have tears in my eyes when I write this because it was such a defining moment in my life when the penny just dropped! This explained my anguish and frustration for years and years of my life. The fear of making it all up in my head didn't go away but I thought I had to investigate this because years of anti-depressants and my own exhausting attempts at everything had failed, so what did I have to lose. I had my virtual assessment with Dr Rawala who was fantastic; so empathetic and listened to me so well but helped guide me through the appointment with professionalism and respect. I received a diagnosis of combined ADHD in 2021 and was paired with an ADHD medication prescriber called Jenny Winnard, who I have written a review of individually on this website too. She was absolutely fantastic, a sincerely wonderful human who has the highest standards of care and treated me with so much genuine care and expertise. Some of the admin staff at the time, Jo Tierney, and Hannah Adamson have been incredibly supportive, patient, and so very hard working. They are the unsung heroes! Without them, the incredibly well-oiled machine would not keep going, and my portal messages, forms, and appointments would still be sitting there pending. I recently met with Dr Teresa Gomez Alemany, a truly down to earth, caring, patient and highly recommended psychiatrist, who led my end of titration appointment and who is referring me to Psychiatry-UK's 'arm', HLP-U. Teresa was extremely thorough, allowed me to ask lots of questions, but also provided great insight into some health issues I am currently going through and how these can affect my ADHD symptoms and medication, and what to look out for and how to distinguish. She was so kind and caring. Margaret who works with HLP-U contacted me to explain in such brilliant detail but presented wonderfully for someone who struggles with large volumes of information, of how the therapy side of things works and different ways to approach it to best suit my individual needs. She has a kind nature and works with efficiently. I could tell she knows what she is doing and does it very well! I know my care will soon be transferred to my GP and understand the next steps, but am completely reassured that in between my annual reviews with Psychiatry-UK, if I ever need assistance, I am welcomed and will receive the best care. Waiting is hard when you have ADHD but living your life struggling is harder. Please try to be as kind and patient with all of the staff, just as we as patients expect to be treated. The wait will be worth it, and the effort you take filling in those forms will be hard, but not having the opportunity to be heard and appreciated is harder. This was one of the best decisions of my life, it has truly changed my entire life! I have so much more confidence, self-esteem, and appreciation for my journey and how I have made it this far. This is now about making the rest of my life the best of my life... thanks to them. I couldn't do justice with how appreciative I am for these humans, and not enough words... Although I made a pretty large effort, now my medication has worn off :)

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Written by a NHS patient

I'm so grateful to Psychiatry-UK. After receiving a referral from my GP I thought I would spend years on a waiting list for an ADHD assessment. But Psychiatry-UK we're brilliant; fast and efficient, whilst always remaining patient and friendly. I would highly recommend their service to anyone seeking an assessment.

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Written by a NHS patient

Life changing help. I cannot recommend this enough for people who are struggling with these symptoms. Thank you so much.

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Written by a NHS patient

Psych UK saved my life. I have been struggling since early childhood, I've felt 'wrong' and 'broken' and was often so confused on why I felt the way I felt, until I stumbled across the possibility of me having ADHD. I took it upon myself to get a referral to Psych UK to get assessed for this. And I was right, everything fit, and everything made sense and they were open and kind and understanding and listened to everything I had to say about my day to day life and the struggles I had with even getting out of bed. They diagnosed me with both hyperactive and inattentive ADHD, sub-type, and helped explain this to me so I understood. If I forgot what was mentioned or didn't understand a certain part of the 'next step', I felt I could ask without judgement. They got back to me within 2 days and helped put my mind at ease with any worries I had. The Dr's I worked with were lovely and had my best interests at heart, they helped find the perfect dose of the medication I chose to start and monitored me closely every 5 days for any side effects. I could not have been in safer hands. Psych UK listened to me when the GP did not, I was at my lowest and did not see a life worth living, but now I can work again. And I can go outside without panicking, I can talk to people and not interrupt so much and I can actually listen to what is being said to me without feeling like I'm all over the place. For the first time in my life, my thoughts are silent. I don't have that constant subconscious talking to me about every decision I go to make. I cried in relief after my first dose. It was scary at first because its all I knew, I wasn't used to such a silent mind, but then it was peaceful. I could sleep without racing thoughts, I could stay asleep and it has helped with me being less impulsive and with my binge eating also. I remember to drink water and eat when I'm hungry, instead of putting it off or simply forgetting. Truly life changing, I would not be here today if I wasn't listened to when I needed to be heard.

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Written by a private patient

They provided a great and understanding service with knowledgeable and helpful staff (doctors and nurses). I felt listened to and helped along the triation path to find the correct help and medication that suited me.

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Written by a NHS patient

Psychiatry UK is an amazing clinic! I felt safe and looked after throughout my treatment. I was treated and respect and understand from start to finish, and the whole experience wasn't at all stressful (as I feared it may be before I started the treatment). Definitely recommend!

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Written by a NHS patient

Overall the experience was good, but I had issues with the website portal when I tried to enter the meeting with the doctor. We were both inside the meeting, but were told we were both waiting for each other to arrive. I exited the meeting and could not re enter so we had to communicate via Zoom instead. I also received quite a few emails since my account was created stating someone was trying to reset my password which I was not doing. I think adding a star rating for the website would be beneficial to improve this as people might have the same struggles in future, and if they are not ‘tech savvy’ may miss their appointment

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Written by a NHS patient

(Cleanliness rating not given, as PUK started helping at the mid-point of lockdown, and everything was done online (it might be that at all times anyway) so it is not possible to rate the cleanliness. But, if their cleanliness is anything like their care, it would be 5 stars anyway!) I was originally referred by a therapist who was treating me for other mental health issues. (It was a hard and weird time for me!) Originally I was to be helped by Maudsley, but PUK took over when Maudsley stopped treating my area of the country. I also have GAD (among other issues) so I was worried about being moved over to someone else. I shouldn't have worried, at all. I was sent all the information I could possibly need, and told everything that would be going on. I had an open line to contact my titration team, if I needed to, and that helped me, just knowing I had help if I needed it. My titration team (initials only, privacy for all!- OK) have looked after me and been so lovely, I can't get it into words. All of my questions (oftentimes rather daft questions!) were answered, kindly and patiently. I felt like I was kept in the loop for every step of my treatment. I found out at 36 that I had ADHD but I have been helped at all times and never felt like the team at PUK were impatient, annoyed and too busy to deal with me. On a side note, thank you OK, you have been so much help, thank you!

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Written by a NHS patient

I was referred to PUK through the right to choose program after visiting my GP and requesting so. It was all very seamless, wait times are obviously longer as a right to choose NHS patient but I still completed referral from GP-diagnosis-titration-prescription-back to my GP in around 12 months. This is not bad as an NHS not paying patient. I am still yet to hear from the NHS psychiatrist I was referred to at same time. My PUK psychiatrist, Dr.Asif is a very caring and honest man and was a pleasure to meet for my diagnosis and my post titration session. I look forward to meeting him for my annual reviews. Professional but personable. My titration nurse Kath was a real star. She was extremely friendly and helpful. She was very understanding of my needs and went above and beyond to get me on the correct meds and dose. I am eternally grateful to the organisation and the individuals I dealt with. My life is changed in the most positive way and I can look forward to a happier, calmer and more fulfilling life.

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Written by a NHS patient

Vicki is a credit to your organisation and an absolute star. Every step of the way I was supported, felt able to open up and that I was being genuinely cared for to the highest standard. Vicki helped me through every hiccup along the way to completing my titration and treated me like a person and a friend throughout rather than just a number or a nuisance. It's a rare quality to be able to bond so deeply with a patient and I credit Vicki with how quickly I have improved once finding the right medication as her positive attitude bolstered me forward rather than giving up. I wish her every success in her future endeavours and will be forever thankful for meeting her.

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