So, That Happened

Just back from Intake.

Intake sounds like a term used in prison, and I have to admit I told friends this weekend that I was concerned about actually being TAKEN IN to some sort of mental health center. Like, I accidentally check the wrong box and next thing you know I have a paper cup of sedatives being pushed through slot in the door to my padded cell.

That wasn't the case at all...

I did have to fill out a lot of paperwork (making sure that I didn't check the "admit me" box.) There was a general health form and basic family medical history. I did a checklist about my addictive nature and use of drugs and alcohol. There were also a couple documents to read and sign that were like patient bill of rights and confidentiality agreements.

On a side note...during this process while waiting in the lobby a woman and a teenage girl rushed in and asked to speak to her therapist frantically. Picking up on peices of information from the desk people and the woman...this woman had just run into her daughter she hadn't seen in 4 years on the subway and brought her in to meet her therapist. Turns out her therapist happens to be the woman doing my intake.

Intake ended up being a series of state mandated questions by the New York Office of Mental Health. The therapist was very calm and soothing but not in a ridiculous way. It seems that after 5 minutes with me she realized that I was that unstable and just started leveling with me. "This isn't therapy," she says, "just paperwork." But after being asked a battery of really intense questions about my past and current issues, my family and personal relationships, and why I am seeking therapy...I had to ask..."Are you sure this isn't therapy?"

After the intake she told me that I am, indeed, an ideal candidate for therapy and that she would recommend me to the clinic starting at one session a week. She said she wished that she had room in her schedule to take me on, but that the intake coordinator will look over my paperwork and assign me to a therapist.

So, yeah...that happened.

I Picked Up The Phone

So after doing some brief research on what type of therapy is available to me (a somewhat broke uninsured new yorker) I have set up an appointment with a mental health clinic that takes on patients on a sliding scale. I was referred to the clinic by a friend who was referred there by his therapist. He never went, but after finding their site on the internet it seems that their mission and overall specialization fit with what I am looking for.

"_______________, how can I help you?" says them.
"Hi, I was calling to find out about seeing a therapist or um..." says me.
"Hold, please."

Another woman picked up and told me the process. She took down some basic info and told me to fax in tax records, a bank statement, and some basic personal information. For uninsured patients the sliding scale was $50-100. Intake was $50 and seeing a psychiatrist would be $65 per session if I was interested in getting medication.

After I faxed my info, today they called back to tell me that I was eligible to receive the low end of the sliding scale (yeah, broke). They set up my intake appointment for Monday.

What's an intake appointment?!!!?