Eating disorder referral?
I went to the doctor 3 weeks ago this Wednesday and she put a referral in for me to get help for my eating disorder, and put my as urgent as my bmi is quite low.
She said it would be a couple of weeks. Has anybody else had to wait thing long or around a similar time?
She said it would be a couple of weeks. Has anybody else had to wait thing long or around a similar time?
Original post by Lucy544
I went to the doctor 3 weeks ago this Wednesday and she put a referral in for me to get help for my eating disorder, and put my as urgent as my bmi is quite low.
She said it would be a couple of weeks. Has anybody else had to wait thing long or around a similar time?
She said it would be a couple of weeks. Has anybody else had to wait thing long or around a similar time?
I've had referrals for other things like to my local autistic services.
It depends on the local relevant services so I'm afraid even if someone replies with their account of waiting, it may not be that helpful. Your doctor's estiamte is probably based upon their experience with previous referrals so I'd say a couple weeks is likely reasonable.
when I was referred it was something like 4-6 weeks for an initial assessment, I was then put on their 'urgent' list and that took around another 3 months! Like the previous poster said, it will depend on your local service and your doctor's estimate will probably be accurate, 2 weeks sounds good to me!
I had an assessment, then had weekly meet ups with the assessor/counsellor from October to December then saw a Psychiatrist in January so it does take a couple of months depending on how busy the service is and who is available at what time 
Original post by Lucy544
She said it would be a couple of weeks. Has anybody else had to wait thing long or around a similar time?
It depends on where you live and how busy they are, but don't worry - this is a normal waiting-time. In London you would be looking at a lot longer for instance.
Erm mine took 8/9 months, but I live in an overstretched area I guess?
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It does depend on area and particular service, but it sounds like they're trying to be as quick as possible.
I was first referred by my GP sometime in January (2014) I think, they pushed it through as urgent and I saw the psychiatrist in February, then the Severe Eating Disorder Service a week or two after that, so it should happen pretty quick if you've been put through as urgent with a low BMI.
Remember that if you do need to in the meantime, you can go back to your GP, or you can ring and ask them to check the referral and how long it might be - they should be very happy to support you in the meantime.
I was first referred by my GP sometime in January (2014) I think, they pushed it through as urgent and I saw the psychiatrist in February, then the Severe Eating Disorder Service a week or two after that, so it should happen pretty quick if you've been put through as urgent with a low BMI.
Remember that if you do need to in the meantime, you can go back to your GP, or you can ring and ask them to check the referral and how long it might be - they should be very happy to support you in the meantime.
When I was younger I was referred to CAHMS via inpatient because my area didn't have an ED service at the time. I sat on the list until I was 18 (close to a year) without really being seen and then got transferred to an adult service, went for an assessment but never actually got seen there either. A few months after that an ED service opened in my area and I'm sure I got seen quite quickly after my referral, maybe 3/4 weeks (I was diagnosed with severe anorexia, the reason I ended up inpatient in the first place was because I had a near heart attack, they wanted to send me home with an NG/pump but I declined). In the end though I ended up going down a private route. If your doctor has said 2/3 weeks it's likely to be close to that or just a little bit longer, does depend on the area, for instance where I live mental health services are very poor because the funding in low but it seems you live somewhere with good provision.
Original post by Lucy544
I went to the doctor 3 weeks ago this Wednesday and she put a referral in for me to get help for my eating disorder, and put my as urgent as my bmi is quite low.
She said it would be a couple of weeks. Has anybody else had to wait thing long or around a similar time?
She said it would be a couple of weeks. Has anybody else had to wait thing long or around a similar time?
Depends on the speed of your local service I'm afraid, my first team I had to wait 3 months! Then when we moved it only took 2 and half weeks to get an assessment with a team.
Hope you get the help you need soon chic!
It can take much longer to get an appointment I was considered an urgent case as I had history of ED's but my second referral after relapse took 14 weeks. At that point I had a weight of 6.2 stone and I was 5 ft 9. Its entirely dependent on the amount of funding your local health authority has allocated to such illness. Evidently mine was very over stretched. I was in the fortunate enough position that my family were prepared to fund private health care for me, if thats an option at all I would highly recommend it. I commend the NHS for everything they do but they simply do not have the same resources at their disposal that the equivalent private practice has.
I hope you get the help you need and start your journey to recovery, best of luck! I know its the hardest thing I've ever done, but the rewards are so worth it!
I hope you get the help you need and start your journey to recovery, best of luck! I know its the hardest thing I've ever done, but the rewards are so worth it!
