How does your gf feel about looking for another T that would have more respect and be willing to work with her rather than trying to medicate her?
She is willing to see another therapist (we are lucky enough to live in an area that is just chock full of them) and there is one particular candidate that seems very promising. The problem is that
before she sees anybody else, she wants to try meds.
I'm really afraid they are going to mask the root cause of her issues at best, and more likely complicate things. She's not an alcoholic, but she already does have real issues with alcohol, and I think anxiolytics as a crutch are a poor idea. Her amygdala is primed to pump 24/7, and to manage her anxiety with benzos she'd be approaching a lethal dose, never mind habit-forming.
Sex is an important and connective experience for her, and almost everyone who I know intimately who is on SSRIs has had sexual complications. One female friend's subsequent inability to climax continues even 8 months after discontinuing her Wellbutrin. Not to mention that my GF's depression is obviously rooted in thoughts and ideas, not clinical depression.
Her memory issues, as she calls them, are most closely associated with instances of emotional stress. It's like no ADD I've ever seen.
These are now refered to in the industry as chemical restraints. Back in the day straight jackets were used... . now meds. It's easier to and CHEAPER to use meds than to do therapy. Especially for a T who is not trained in treating PD's.
It's actually a pretty huge thing that your GF recognizes she has issues and is seeking some type of help. Many people with BPD never even get that far.
One thing that makes this so frustrating is that she really is
SO willing to work, and in the right therapist's hands she'd be a dream patient. She's really pretty amazing and I want to say I have a lot of hope for her, but it's even more than that: I
know she is going to work through this. I know it's only a year in and things are going to get harder, but she has excellent self-awareness (when not disregulated, of course), and a real desire to change. She started seeing her therapist in Oct after a near relationship ending incident, and despite her doubts about the effectiveness of this particular woman, still sees her every single week like clockwork.
You are not paying for this, right?
No, I'm not. Though if push came to shove, I would (and it might).
If it did come to that, I feel like that would be an organically arising opportunity to discuss the ol' doc switcharoo (ha! Control at last!)
