Pregnancy Onset Schizophrenia?

[pip]

Right, so a bit of a story:

I just found out I was about eight weeks pregnant. I decided to keep the child seeing as I'm quite stable emotionally and financially, in a stable, longterm relationship, and most of the other things that make it not a big deal to have a child.

To be safe however, I thought I'd go back to therapy because of a predisposition to depression and anxiety. I wanted to discuss what we could do to prevent me from slipping back into the panic attacks and sleepless nights of a few years ago.

I walked out of that therapy office after about twenty minutes with a diagnosis of pregnancy onset schizophrenia.

I'm not yet a psychologist. I'm currently at university of amsterdam, but this still seems a bit fishy to me. Especially since I haven't had any hallucinations (unless you count bugs that everyone else can see too and drive me crazy with their buzzing. Unless I'm hallucinating that people are confirming my hallucinations...but that seems a bit farfetched when I'm covered in bug bites.) Granted, I put more emphasis on social psych, but I don't really remember ever hearing about pregnancy onset schizophrenia.

I'm pretty sure I need to go find myself a new therapist, but I am curious as to what you think: Is he a quack, or should I take this seriously?

 

[HA]

Pip,

It never hurts to get a second opinion. Make sure your next doctor is a clinical psychologist or psychiatrist. Your best approach would be to see a first episode clinic doctor. The following is information about early intervention in psychosis programs in the Netherlands from www.schizophrenia.com :

The Netherlands

Amsterdam: Amsterdam Medical Center (AMC) has a prodromal (early psychosis / schizophrenia ) diagnosis and treatment research center. Their web page (in Dutch) is here: Schizifrenieplei.nl

Utrecht: UMC Utrecht has a prodromal (early psychosis / schizophrenia ) diagnosis and treatment research center. To obtain information on the research program, please contact the following people:

University Medical Center Utrecht, department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Utrecht, Netherlands


Mirjam Sprong, M.S. Telephone: +31(0)302509839 Email: m.sprong-2 (at) umcutrecht.nl

Tim Ziermans, M.S. Telephone: +31(0)302503247 Email: t.ziermans (at) umcutrecht.nl

For more information on the UMC Utrecht research see this Clinical overview.

 

[Retired]

As HeartArt alludes to, when in doubt, seek out a second opinion. We need to be partners in our own healthcare, and we must take charge when we feel uncomfortable about that partnership.

No competent health professional will ever take offense at their patient requesting a second opinion.

Keep us posted on your progress.

 

[Daniel E.]

I walked out of that therapy office after about twenty minutes with a diagnosis of pregnancy onset schizophrenia.

Definitely get a second opinion, as others have said. Even if one was having a psychotic episode during a therapy session, it's a big jump to go from a recent history of psychotic episodes or paranoia to a diagnosis of schizophrenia.