Jump to content

Recommended Posts

I'd like to hear opinions as to whether people have found private assessments useful or have stayed with the NHS. 

I have two children: 11 and 8. Both under CAMHS for 'OCD behaviours'. Eldest is also autistic.  They struggle with the CBT: they're doing the relaxation activities and what's told of them after each session but the thoughts (& behaviours) remain and we're not seeing any progress. If anything they dread it - feeling as if they need to change. And all the while being supported at school for 'anxiety' and low self esteem as they're not diagnosed.  People see their hard handwashing (which has recently become rather normalised and praised as sensible when this has gone on for years - even by CAMHS), checking behaviours and hear the repetitive questions.  Unfortunately my children won't openly talk about their intrusive thoughts about germs, illness, death and causing death to others (as they're afraid of what people think) and so it comes down to me having to be their voice making me sound like a helicopter parent. 

Since my eldest's autism diagnosis people are more willing to adapt and then understand. CAMHS are not forthcoming with sharing leaflets, which I guess may be because they've not been assessed and diagnosed so they won't commit in writing. My GP and I have fought really hard to get the CAMHS involved rather than being supported by tier 1 emotional resilience intervention.  But now we're here, months later, nothing is moving. Should I go private for an assessment so people (and my children) understand or stick with CAMHS which my kids are getting fed up with and being told to do stuff like it's their fault for nor being resilient?

Thanks.

Link to comment

Hi 'T' (may I call you that for short? :) )

I can imagine how difficult it must be to have 2 children with OCD, especially when one has autism too. You've done really well to get them both under CAMHS and get support at school too.

I'm honestly not sure what more you'd get by going private. Progress still depends on the children's ability to take on board what they've been told and their readiness to change their behaviour. If they've begun to interpret what the therapist says as 'their fault' it's less likely they'll comply. You don't need me to tell you that kids with autism particularly can dig their heels in if they feel they are being forced to change! It may be that the therapist is inexperienced and has inadvertently allowed the idea of 'fault' to creep in when they are struggling, or it could be simply the children interpreting things as if therapy was a kind of punishment/reward system. That's not uncommon as kids give meaning to therapy according to what they already know of how the world works and 'punishment/reward, fault/right' is a system they're already very familiar with. Somebody telling you to stop doing things you believe are essential 'because it will help you' is a difficult concept for kids to get their head around.

Maybe have a word with the therapist to see if she could explain to them it's not about 'fault' or right and wrong, just about making them feel better in the long run even if it means some discomfort at first. You could do the explaining yourself too, although if it came from the therapist followed up by you saying the same thing it might help them to view the therapist (and therapy) less as a challenge/command and more as help/making the bad thoughts go away.

It's certainly worth chatting to the therapist about your concerns that you're not seeing any progress. What does she think? Is she hearing progress in how they're processing the ideas CBT teaches? The realisation that the perceived risk isn't real and rituals/checking doesn't protect sometimes takes a while to sink in, so if progress is measured only by how much handwashing and checking you still see it might appear they haven't changed when inside their heads (where it matters) a lot of change is actually going on. If she agrees with you that things have become stuck you can then ask her for suggestions on how to get going again.

Going privately is no guarantee that therapy will be more effective and you run the risk of losing the NHS support you have in place. Whatever you decide, I think it's important the childrewn only have one therapist at a time to avoid confusion.

Good luck!

 

Link to comment

Thank you Snowbear,  I really appreciate your time taken to respond.  

I know we are extremely lucky to have managed to get CAMHS involved.  It took a lot of fighting to ensure they got this... at one point we were offered tier 1 emotional support to build resilience in my youngest. Our GP and I were livid that the actual mental health needs leading to the behaviours were being ignored. 

I guess it's that limbo were in with having the support but the girls not knowing why / a diagnosis and just going through the motions. I read 'Up and Down the Worry Hill' with them separately and both felt such relief... butvthe asked 'Is that what I have?' which I couldn't really reply because there's no formal diagnosis and CAMHS seem rather reluctant. 

I'll take on what you've suggested about talking to the therapist. Something needs to change, for sure.

Thank you so much again.

Link to comment

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...