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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 7 of 7. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by AOB on July 22, 2003, at 3:02:22
My son has been diagnosed with almost everything possible over the past 13 years and he is only 22! ADD, NVLD, Bipolar, ODD, OCD, PDD, autisic spectrum, Asperger's and now undifferentiated schizophrenia. Currently he is in crisis and was hospitalized involuntarily 4 days ago. I need to come up with options - FAST.
He is 2000 miles away and the internet has been helpful but not a miracle. Because of his diagnosis and a family Hx of ADD and depression, I believe a SPECT scan would be a logical screening tool before we try another drug. After 12 different drugs I want to get it right this time if at all possible.
Getting to the Amen clinic seems to be very impractical right now. Does anyone know of a Dr. or clinic that does SPECT scans or a psycopharmacology specialist in Oregon?
AOB
Posted by kara lynne on July 22, 2003, at 3:45:14
In reply to SPECT scans in Oregon, posted by AOB on July 22, 2003, at 3:02:22
I don't want to discourage you from doing something you believe in, however I had a friend who went to the Amen clinic and said she could have saved the $3,000. The process she went through and the meds she ended up taking ultimately didn't have much to do with each other.
And just like everyone else, it has been a process of trial and error; she is with a new doctor (unaffiliated) entirely and on new meds--which by the way are working.
Posted by AOB on July 22, 2003, at 9:09:41
In reply to Re: SPECT scans in Oregon, posted by kara lynne on July 22, 2003, at 3:45:14
> I don't want to discourage you from doing something you believe in, however I had a friend who went to the Amen clinic and said she could have saved the $3,000. The process she went through and the meds she ended up taking ultimately didn't have much to do with each other.
>
> And just like everyone else, it has been a process of trial and error; she is with a new doctor (unaffiliated) entirely and on new meds--which by the way are working.Thanks for the reply. Could you tell a bit more re. your friends case? Previous diagnosis etc. Just ADD or more complex?
AOB
Posted by MB on July 22, 2003, at 13:31:47
In reply to SPECT scans in Oregon, posted by AOB on July 22, 2003, at 3:02:22
I found the Amen Clinic to be an expensive speed dealership. I went there for depression, OCD and anxiety. Ended up with an ADD diagnosis and a script for many meds including Adderall. Adderall was the only one that helped the depression (antidepressants have never really helped me) but I had to keep increasing the dose. The doctor had no problem with this as long as I called once a month for my 15-minute, $150 phone consultation. I told him I was getting addicted, and he said, ADD people don't get addicted. He knew I was a recovering amphetamine addict in a 12-step program, but still, as long as the money rolled in, everything was fine. Finally I had to detox myself and check into an inpatient treatment facility. Turns out, I don't even really have ADD...at least none of the other therapists I have seen think so.
This place specializes in ADD, and they will tend to see it wherever they look. My doc said to me, "We need you to come visit in person once a year so the government doesn't think we're a feel-good clinic." Now, why would he even say that unless on some unconscious level, he was afraid that it might be true. Have they had problems with the DEA in the past? My dad's psychiatrist that he sees at Stanford Medical thinks this place gets people hooked on amphetamine and sits back as the money rolls right in at $600/hr over the phone. One of her patients is an Amen Clinic casualty. He was such an amphetamine addict when he got to her, it took her two years to get him back to baseline. He was getting the amphetamine from the Amen clinic. Don't you think they should have recognised he was in trouble? I don't think they cared, they were raking in the $$$. Check out their web site. It's like a cyber-infomercial.
MB
Posted by MB on July 22, 2003, at 13:36:06
In reply to SPECT scans in Oregon, posted by AOB on July 22, 2003, at 3:02:22
I have heard that the University of Oregon in Eugene has the capabilities to do SPECT scans. They can send them to the Amen Clinic who will then evaluate them. If you talk to the UO, they will most likely deny that this is the case, but I know that another patient of a social worker I saw had this done. It *can be done*, just put the pressure on them. If your son is really ADD, then the amen clinic might be OK. For me, it was just a place that got me addicted. Don't expect very good follow-up. 10-15 minutes a month over the phone is what to expect. Don't expect any therapy, either.
MB
Posted by kara lynne on July 22, 2003, at 13:52:07
In reply to University of Oregon » AOB, posted by MB on July 22, 2003, at 13:36:06
Hi AOB,
I don't know all the specifics of my friend's case, but I do indeed think they dx'd her with ADD--(what a surprise!). At this point she does *not* consider herself to have ADD; she has a serious low thyroid cdx. however and is helped greatly by traditional thyroid meds.Other than that I think she had some underlying depression (not bi-polar) that she is successfully treating with Celexa.
My p.doc has heard similar things about the Amen clinic as MB alludes to, although that was the worst I've heard yet. I think he just said they end up diagnosing everyone with ADD and prescribing for that condition.
So sorry the news isn't encouraging, but on the other hand maybe you can spare yourself some grief and a lot of money.
Good luck to you.
Posted by stjames on July 22, 2003, at 14:32:15
In reply to Re: University of Oregon, posted by kara lynne on July 22, 2003, at 13:52:07
This is no standard for the interpretation
of a SPECT scan, for mental illness. A SPECT
scan measures activity in the brain, and this is a very rough measurement in the context for giving
a specific diagnosis.
This is the end of the thread.
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