Mental health care in London
March 18, 2022 2:48 PM Subscribe
Asking for a friend: we're worried about a young university student in London who is experiencing heightened anxiety, panic attacks, depression and general distress. We're outside UK and don't know how to help or where they could turn to.
First of all, we're not familiar with the UK health care at all.
The university has mental health services, but the student has told us that the waiting lists are several weeks if not months long, and according to my understanding, even longer still at NHS for anything mental health related.
The student is reluctant to look for help, and in their current state possibly also couldn't advocate for themselves very effectively. (Eg. we're worried that if they were treated dismissively by a professional, they would immediately stop seeking any help.)
There's also the possibility that there's something physiological contributing to their current state of distress. So maybe someplace where a basic medical check up would be included? So that they don't spend ages doing talk therapy if it turns out to be eg. something endocrine related?
We are prepared to pay out of pocket for private health care if necessary, but have absolutely no idea where to look for it.
Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated, you can also MeMail me.
First of all, we're not familiar with the UK health care at all.
The university has mental health services, but the student has told us that the waiting lists are several weeks if not months long, and according to my understanding, even longer still at NHS for anything mental health related.
The student is reluctant to look for help, and in their current state possibly also couldn't advocate for themselves very effectively. (Eg. we're worried that if they were treated dismissively by a professional, they would immediately stop seeking any help.)
There's also the possibility that there's something physiological contributing to their current state of distress. So maybe someplace where a basic medical check up would be included? So that they don't spend ages doing talk therapy if it turns out to be eg. something endocrine related?
We are prepared to pay out of pocket for private health care if necessary, but have absolutely no idea where to look for it.
Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated, you can also MeMail me.
First of all: the student will need to seek out care for themselves in the most part. Until they are willing to do that, the NHS or private service providers will be reluctant to treat them against their will. In an emergency situation (if it's likely the student will harm themselves or others), your friend or the student should call 999. No ifs or buts about that.
Has said student got a good relationship with their parents? Friends and family who can check in on them in person?
Their first port of call should be their university in an ideal situation. Their university can address whether they're getting support through their teachers or if they need extended deadlines, etc. Most universities won't give extensions unless students can provide proof that they've already contacted the university's mental health services.
In order to get psychological treatment on the NHS, they will need to be registered with a GP. If they're over 18, they can access IAPT services which can (in some cases, depending on location) be faster than going through a GP. If they can't access this, their first port of call should be their GP. Said GP will order blood tests if they think it's necessary. They will also refer them onwards to other services, i.e. talk therapy, a psychologist. They may also prescribe anti-anxiety medication straight away if they feel the need is severe.
Unfortunately, as you said, waiting lists are long. Mental health services on the NHS have been systemically gutted over the last decade and this student is just as likely to be given a printed out worksheet of some mindfulness exercises as they are given any significant help. Again, this depends on their location -- cities for instance are very oversubscribed, as are (sadly) universities.
If your friend/you are willing to pay for private services, you can just Google for psychologists or therapists near their location. Here's a guide for that.
Good luck to you all. It's a very hard thing to deal with and a tough time to be struggling.
posted by fight or flight at 4:03 PM on March 18, 2022
Has said student got a good relationship with their parents? Friends and family who can check in on them in person?
Their first port of call should be their university in an ideal situation. Their university can address whether they're getting support through their teachers or if they need extended deadlines, etc. Most universities won't give extensions unless students can provide proof that they've already contacted the university's mental health services.
In order to get psychological treatment on the NHS, they will need to be registered with a GP. If they're over 18, they can access IAPT services which can (in some cases, depending on location) be faster than going through a GP. If they can't access this, their first port of call should be their GP. Said GP will order blood tests if they think it's necessary. They will also refer them onwards to other services, i.e. talk therapy, a psychologist. They may also prescribe anti-anxiety medication straight away if they feel the need is severe.
Unfortunately, as you said, waiting lists are long. Mental health services on the NHS have been systemically gutted over the last decade and this student is just as likely to be given a printed out worksheet of some mindfulness exercises as they are given any significant help. Again, this depends on their location -- cities for instance are very oversubscribed, as are (sadly) universities.
If your friend/you are willing to pay for private services, you can just Google for psychologists or therapists near their location. Here's a guide for that.
Good luck to you all. It's a very hard thing to deal with and a tough time to be struggling.
posted by fight or flight at 4:03 PM on March 18, 2022
There's some resources/info here, including numbers for lines like the Samaritans if they should need it - the Samaritans can be a crisis line, but can also just listen when they're in distress, and they doesn't need to tell them who they are.
Generally, if it's not a life-threatening emergency, their first port of call will be their (NHS) GP, who might suggest a prescription or might only be able to refer them onto a waiting list for NHS counselling, but it's still worth going there first. (For info: Their GP might well be part of the University Health Service, but that will be part of the NHS, not a private practice. The University might also have a mental health service of some kind that offers counselling, that's not part of the NHS and might need to be approached separately. If you let us know which Uni, we can probably dig around that a little more).
If they have specific reasons for thinking it might be eg. endocrine-related, they should mention that to the GP and ask if it can be checked, but whether or not they'll do it might vary between GPs. Certainly NHS GPs don't tend to do full all-over health checks for a first presentation of depression/anxiety, but they might do a blood panel if there's a reason for it.
If they feel dismissed or not listened-to by their GP, they can go back and make an appointment with another GP another day in the same practice - it can be a bit of a lottery as to how good different GPs are at dealing with mental health issues. It's also worth letting them know that often GPs seem to use time as a form of triage: If you go away after your first appointment and don't come back, they assume it's resolved itself. If you come back 2 weeks later and say things are worse, that's entirely unsurprising to them and not a problem, and they then start to escalate their response. It's harsh, but worth knowing.
The GP will also be able to refer them for private health care/advise them where to go for that, if they know that you're happy to foot the bill. So you can tell them to make sure they ask their GP about that. There might be an option to be referred to one of the private health care companies like Bupa for a full assessment/treatment, or they might just be given a printed sheet of independent private counsellors to contact themselves. The latter is probably easier and cheaper but will require more work on their part and obviously wouldn't cover physical health checks.
(On preview: Thanks, fight or flight, I knew IAPTs existed but couldn't remember what they were called and was furiously googling).
The reason I asked about the borough they live in is that there are often local services available, run by charities - here's an example page with links to services in the boroughs of Barnet, Enfield and Haringey. If you're not sure which borough they're in you can drop their postcode (the letters and numbers right after 'London' in their address) in here and it'll tell you.
posted by penguin pie at 4:25 PM on March 18, 2022 [1 favorite]
Generally, if it's not a life-threatening emergency, their first port of call will be their (NHS) GP, who might suggest a prescription or might only be able to refer them onto a waiting list for NHS counselling, but it's still worth going there first. (For info: Their GP might well be part of the University Health Service, but that will be part of the NHS, not a private practice. The University might also have a mental health service of some kind that offers counselling, that's not part of the NHS and might need to be approached separately. If you let us know which Uni, we can probably dig around that a little more).
If they have specific reasons for thinking it might be eg. endocrine-related, they should mention that to the GP and ask if it can be checked, but whether or not they'll do it might vary between GPs. Certainly NHS GPs don't tend to do full all-over health checks for a first presentation of depression/anxiety, but they might do a blood panel if there's a reason for it.
If they feel dismissed or not listened-to by their GP, they can go back and make an appointment with another GP another day in the same practice - it can be a bit of a lottery as to how good different GPs are at dealing with mental health issues. It's also worth letting them know that often GPs seem to use time as a form of triage: If you go away after your first appointment and don't come back, they assume it's resolved itself. If you come back 2 weeks later and say things are worse, that's entirely unsurprising to them and not a problem, and they then start to escalate their response. It's harsh, but worth knowing.
The GP will also be able to refer them for private health care/advise them where to go for that, if they know that you're happy to foot the bill. So you can tell them to make sure they ask their GP about that. There might be an option to be referred to one of the private health care companies like Bupa for a full assessment/treatment, or they might just be given a printed sheet of independent private counsellors to contact themselves. The latter is probably easier and cheaper but will require more work on their part and obviously wouldn't cover physical health checks.
(On preview: Thanks, fight or flight, I knew IAPTs existed but couldn't remember what they were called and was furiously googling).
The reason I asked about the borough they live in is that there are often local services available, run by charities - here's an example page with links to services in the boroughs of Barnet, Enfield and Haringey. If you're not sure which borough they're in you can drop their postcode (the letters and numbers right after 'London' in their address) in here and it'll tell you.
posted by penguin pie at 4:25 PM on March 18, 2022 [1 favorite]
You've mentioned that the university's own MH resources have a waiting list. Has your friend contacted the university directly about the student? The authorities may or may not be willing to talk them, but either way it would be helpful for them to know and they might be able to make sure the student is signposted to the right place. For instance, if the student is at Imperial College I would contact one of the Wellbeing Advisors linked from that page.
posted by paduasoy at 12:16 AM on March 19, 2022
posted by paduasoy at 12:16 AM on March 19, 2022
There's this online service that I happened across the other day. It's online CBT for anxiety and depression, typing to a therapist instead of talking to them. They say they're free for NHS patients "in many areas of the country" - I don't know if your person's area will be one of them, but maybe? Looks as if you can find out by clicking "Get started" on this page. They say it usually takes no longer than 10 working days to find someone a therapist, although it's not clear whether the therapist would then be able to see them immediately or if there'd be an additional wait for the first session.
posted by ManyLeggedCreature at 2:42 AM on March 21, 2022
posted by ManyLeggedCreature at 2:42 AM on March 21, 2022
« Older how to pick two from three of practical help... | How to keep pillow from sliding off bed? Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by penguin pie at 3:46 PM on March 18, 2022 [1 favorite]