Treatment ISO Therapist Recs (USA-DC licensed) for Telehealth (Amph Abuse)

[ehrai]

I’m looking for referrals from people who think highly with their therapists. My HI is Cigna PPO, and while in person would be nice I’m not seeing anyone available in next ~3 weeks that is well rated, in ntwk, and close enough. So, I’m looking for someone who can do remote but is licensed in DC. If they’re licensed in one of DMV states, I imagine I can still see them.

Some background for anyone who cares to read—
I’ve flirted with ADD medication abuse for over a decade now, but once I secured ease of supply in early 2021– on the tail end of cold turk off a mid/high prescribed dose for 4mo that wasn’t working out ()— well, I’ve been in amph’s clutches since. Id bern trying to make headway or getting out the hole end of 2021 through to all of 2022, not much progress. However, some additions to my supplement stack at end of 2022, a stack which I started cultivating in Apr of, are the best I can do in terms of attribution to the flipping of a switch.

I’ve been making a lot of progress since (tapered down to my end of 2020 dose; I sleep every night no matter what), but I’ve just well, been doing it largely on my own. I have confided in close friends but it’s time to get off the internet and into sessions with a therapist specialized in treating addiction that I can just fully open up to. I intend on coming clean to my psychiatrist, who prescribes me about half of what I take, during our next appt in 2 wks.

Thank you for reading

 

[Lil'LinaptkSix]

I’m looking for referrals from people who really fuck with their therapists.

What means this? Can "fuck with" be defined a little, please?
I would suggest calling your HI and ask for help finding a therapist nearby that is in network.
This of course doesn't mean that the first one you see will be compatible so be open to experiencing to being shuffled about until ya find comfortable with one.
Not sure what else to say on this as I am no therapist or doctor but just like shopping for a new pair of jeans it may take a minute to find a pair that fits just right.
Did I address anything in your post? lol I am not feeling confident that I did.

 

[ehrai]

S

What means this? Can "fuck with" be defined a little, please?
I would suggest calling your HI and ask for help finding a therapist nearby that is in network.
This of course doesn't mean that the first one you see will be compatible so be open to experiencing to being shuffled about until ya find comfortable with one.
Not sure what else to say on this as I am no therapist or doctor but just like shopping for a new pair of jeans it may take a minute to find a pair that fits just right.
Did I address anything in your post? lol I am not feeling confident that I did.

Sorry- think highly of/get along well with/respect— I’ve edited that but

I suppose I felt wary of calling my employer provided HI and saying I would like to see a therapist for addiction recovery purposes. Thinking over it more I don’t see why I should be worried with HIPAA etc. … should I? Lol


I guess I was just hoping for someone in the area who really likes their therapist—whom they see for working through substance abuse issues, among other things—to stumble across this thread

 

[Lil'LinaptkSix]

I guess I was just hoping for someone in the area who really likes their therapist—whom they see for working through substance abuse issues, among other things—to stumble across this thread

I am not sure this would be the proper venue for such a request. I mean I am not against your asking the community for help finding a local therapist but maybe this may get more attention in a different sub-forum... maybe Life Advice & Visual Arts... I don't know.
Maybe get up with Ds in his H&R stickied thread Drug Addicts Anonymous.
Thinking of heading there for a while now but want to be honest if I post anything or hit him up about any questions I may have.
Maybe something like this can tide you over until a therapist is chosen... never know ya may have a chapter where you are located and maybe someone in your situation could make a referral. IDK just thoughts.
I still think going through insurance co would be the best route and they are not supposed to share anything with anyone unless you sign off on a waiver.
Unless you are loaded with cash then it is likely anyone will step up and offer help but wouldn't trust it.
Imma check out Ds thread and see if there is a chapter in my area. I think he was entertaining the idea of creating his own chapter maybe online. Don't quote me on this until ya check it out if ya do I am fixin to.

 

[ehrai]

I am not sure this would be the proper venue for such a request. I mean I am not against your asking the community for help finding a local therapist but maybe this may get more attention in a different sub-forum... maybe Life Advice & Visual Arts... I don't know.
Maybe get up with Ds in his H&R stickied thread Drug Addicts Anonymous.
Thinking of heading there for a while now but want to be honest if I post anything or hit him up about any questions I may have.
Maybe something like this can tide you over until a therapist is chosen... never know ya may have a chapter where you are located and maybe someone in your situation could make a referral. IDK just thoughts.
I still think going through insurance co would be the best route and they are not supposed to share anything with anyone unless you sign off on a waiver.
Unless you are loaded with cash then it is likely anyone will step up and offer help but wouldn't trust it.
Imma check out Ds thread and see if there is a chapter in my area. I think he was entertaining the idea of creating his own chapter maybe online. Don't quote me on this until ya check it out if ya do I am fixin to.

Gotcha- all good I’ll have a looksee at Ds thread , and get with yon HI, tmrw— I’m open to joining such a chapter if one were in DC- I’m just not looking to go to AA as alcohol ain’t my issue and I’m not fond of the religious aspect, though I have heard it’s usually open to non God fearing folk. Mm—teebeedee
Thanks for sharing your thoughts

 

[Jerry Atrick]

I am not sure this would be the proper venue for such a request. I mean I am not against your asking the community for help finding a local therapist but maybe this may get more attention in a different sub-forum... maybe Life Advice & Visual Arts... I don't know.
Maybe get up with Ds in his H&R stickied thread Drug Addicts Anonymous.
Thinking of heading there for a while now but want to be honest if I post anything or hit him up about any questions I may have.
Maybe something like this can tide you over until a therapist is chosen... never know ya may have a chapter where you are located and maybe someone in your situation could make a referral. IDK just thoughts.
I still think going through insurance co would be the best route and they are not supposed to share anything with anyone unless you sign off on a waiver.
Unless you are loaded with cash then it is likely anyone will step up and offer help but wouldn't trust it.
Imma check out Ds thread and see if there is a chapter in my area. I think he was entertaining the idea of creating his own chapter maybe online. Don't quote me on this until ya check it out if ya do I am fixin to.

Just FYI, I know this sub isn't my jurisdiction but since the OP is seeking help with recovery, I think the thread is fine here

Not trying to step on toes and you know I gotta a lot of love for you LilLinaptk6

 

[Jerry Atrick]

I’m looking for referrals from people who think highly with their therapists. My HI is Cigna PPO, and while in person would be nice I’m not seeing anyone available in next ~3 weeks that is well rated, in ntwk, and close enough. So, I’m looking for someone who can do remote but is licensed in DC. If they’re licensed in one of DMV states, I imagine I can still see them.

Some background for anyone who cares to read—
I’ve flirted with ADD medication abuse for over a decade now, but once I secured ease of supply in early 2021– on the tail end of cold turk off a mid/high prescribed dose for 4mo that wasn’t working out ()— well, I’ve been in amph’s clutches since. Id bern trying to make headway or getting out the hole end of 2021 through to all of 2022, not much progress. However, some additions to my supplement stack at end of 2022, a stack which I started cultivating in Apr of, are the best I can do in terms of attribution to the flipping of a switch.

I’ve been making a lot of progress since (tapered down to my end of 2020 dose; I sleep every night no matter what), but I’ve just well, been doing it largely on my own. I have confided in close friends but it’s time to get off the internet and into sessions with a therapist specialized in treating addiction that I can just fully open up to. I intend on coming clean to my psychiatrist, who prescribes me about half of what I take, during our next appt in 2 wks.

Thank you for reading

The good thing is you have a PPO so you don't have to wait for a referral. Also good is that teletherapy should be available on a statewide basis. I once had a therapist 300 miles from where I live but since she was still in my state, I was allowed to see her via video chat. Never did meet her in person. I'm assuming DMV might mean Delaware, Maryland, Virginia? If you're allowed to see therapists licensed in any of those states, all the better.

The two sites I always recommend are Psychology Today and ZocDoc, linked here. You should be able to filter by location and/or insurance. You might even be able to filter by specialty, ie., addiction. Make sure you read each therapists profile to determine specialty, experience, education, and any other info you find pertinent. These sites are free services so there is no issue with me linking them here as neither the site or I profit from it.

I would never advise you to lie to your psychiatrist or any other provider but if it were me, I would probably first consult my therapist on how to approach the situation before disclosing these things with my psych doc out of the blue. Reason being, if the doctor is old school or unreasonable, they could potentially get pissed that you are abusing drugs while under their care and cut you off immediately and/or label your chart negatively. Like I said, I would talk with the therapist first.

@Lil'LinaptkSix gave spot on advice above that sometimes you have to shop around before finding a good fit. And then there is the building rapport and trust with the one you do end up choosing, which can also take some time. Don't expect all your problems to be solved in one session especially considering the sessions are only an hour long.

 

[ehrai]

The good thing is you have a PPO so you don't have to wait for a referral. Also good is that teletherapy should be available on a statewide basis. I once had a therapist 300 miles from where I live but since she was still in my state, I was allowed to see her via video chat. Never did meet her in person. I'm assuming DMV might mean Delaware, Maryland, Virginia? If you're allowed to see therapists licensed in any of those states, all the better.

The two sites I always recommend are Psychology Today and ZocDoc, linked here. You should be able to filter by location and/or insurance. You might even be able to filter by specialty, ie., addiction. Make sure you read each therapists profile to determine specialty, experience, education, and any other info you find pertinent. These sites are free services so there is no issue with me linking them here as neither the site or I profit from it.

I would never advise you to lie to your psychiatrist or any other provider but if it were me, I would probably first consult my therapist on how to approach the situation before disclosing these things with my psych doc out of the blue. Reason being, if the doctor is old school or unreasonable, they could potentially get pissed that you are abusing drugs while under their care and cut you off immediately and/or label your chart negatively. Like I said, I would talk with the therapist first.

@Lil'LinaptkSix gave spot on advice above that sometimes you have to shop around before finding a good fit. And then there is the building rapport and trust with the one you do end up choosing, which can also take some time. Don't expect all your problems to be solved in one session especially considering the sessions are only an hour long.

Greatly appreciate your thoughts here - I’ve been on a PPO for long enough that I forgot that it doesn’t require a referral (I’m euro so have only had employer insurance for a handful of years)

I had been using ZocDoc to search for addiction-specializing therapists in the area (DMV is DC MD VA, which have certain agreements between them, eg I work in MD but file State taxes with DC. This might mean that it’s particularly easy for VA/MD-licensed therapists to get licensed in DC- I’ll have to look into that). Maybe I was being overly picky- there was one I think that was 40m by pub trans, with 4 five star reviews. Might give him a go. Psychology Today I’m also familiar with, I just don’t recall if they have a review/rating system in place like ZocDoc does - however, can always Google the ones that look like they might be good for more info.

That’s a good idea re seeing with therapist first - having an addiction therapist backing me up would likely attenuate potential for unreasonableness. My psychiatrist is from Nigeria and we get along quite well, but I mean I would be admitting I’d been abusing something prescribed under her care for 1.5-2yrs—in that that scrip supplemented, and to an extent still supplements, the total quantity of amph that I take. However, I think she would be brought to reasonability if I (if needed) noted that whether or not she prescribed me the amount she does currently, I can still buy good quality presses—refusing to prescribe me would ultimately just have me spending more for non pharmaceutical grade amph.

Copy all re your last para I’ll be doing some more research into things in a bit here— if I do find someone that I like, I’ll be sure to mention that here so that anyone who might like a patient referral can PM me