This is Care Opinion [siteRegion]. Did you want Care Opinion [usersRegionBasedOnIP]?
Care Opinion

Mental health diagnosis of my son

Posted By Gonk

"Mental health diagnosis of my son"

About: Crisis Mental Health / Single point of access team (SPA) & Emotional Wellbeing Service (EWS) The Longley Centre

(as a parent/guardian),

My son was seen at SPA 3 times. He was seen by a psychiatrist who diagnosed him with moderate depression. We were not at all satisfied with this diagnosis so decided to seek another opinion. He has had several suicide attempts, two of which ended with him being admitted into hospital, one into ITU. He has finally been re-assessed by another psychiatrist and has been diagnosed with EUPD. How on earth could this have been missed by by that first psychiatrist?

More about:
Do you have a similar story to tell? Tell your story & make a difference ››

Responses

Response from Lisa Ryles, Nurse Senior Practitioner, Sheffield Health and Social Care NHS Foundation Trust 2 years ago
Lisa Ryles
Nurse Senior Practitioner,
Sheffield Health and Social Care NHS Foundation Trust

Submitted on 07/06/2021 at 10:27
Published on Care Opinion at 13:39

Hi, I am really sorry to hear that you do not feel your son was given the correct diagnosis early in his contact with our service.

I am not sure how old your son is but, I do know that Mental health services are reluctant to give a diagnosis of Emotionally Unstable Personality Disorder to young people under 25 years old. This is due to young people's personality not really being fully developed until around this age.

Although teenagers/young adults will often show some symptoms of emotional instability, it is not uncommon in developing young adults to experience a roller coaster of emotions. We do see a lot of this as a service.

A common symptom of EUPD is the low moods a person experiences. As a service we do try to treat the symptoms a person is trying to cope with rather than being diagnostic led. Other services do reflect this ethos, and a person can access treatment for EUPD without a formal diagnosis these days.

The most distressing for a person is often the accompanying suicidal thoughts which can come with extreme low moods which may be why the Psychiatrist focussed attention

However as a parent trying to care for someone experiencing these difficulties, I fully acknowledge that it is helpful to be able to put a name to the symptoms. I would imagine this is helpful to be able to deal with things.

I hope that you both now feel reassured the team formalising a diagnosis. The next step will be to undertake the treatment available for EUPD.

regards

  • {{helpful}} {{helpful == 1 ? "person thinks" : "people think"}} this response is helpful
Opinions
Next Response j
Previous Response k