When You Can't Afford Treatment For Your Eating Disorder

The current condition of the economy is causing a strain on most everyone's finances. Finding the needed funds for treatment, medication, and therapy has become an increasing problem. Many are finding themselves unemployed with the additional burden of having also lost their health insurance. In increasing numbers, people are now faced with having to choose between purchasing medication, food, or other necessities. A very dangerous position to be in.

If you find yourself in this situation here are some suggestions that may help you.


Affording Doctor /Therapy Visits: (Renegotiate Fees/Sliding Scale) Many Providers are willing to base their fee on your ability to pay. Do not be afraid to explain your situation and ask to renegotiate the current fee. If they are unable or unwilling to do so ask them for a referral. You can also search online for services in your area.


Affording Medication: Medication co pays can be expensive. Without insurance, some medications are just too costly for some to continue to afford.

• Most drug companies offer Indigent Programs or Patient Assistance Programs (PAPs) that provide medication for free to those that cannot afford to pay for them. Ask your doctor about these programs. They can help process the paperwork.
• Check out the website of the pharmaceutical company for each of your medications. See what programs they may have listed to aid those in need.
• Call the pharmaceutical company that makes your medication and speak to them directly about what programs they offer.
• Some companies like Walmart and Costco offer 30 days worth of medication for $4 / $9 for a 90 day supply. See if your medications are on the list of prescriptions they offer at these prices. Print these lists and show them to your doctor. Ask if your current medication could be safely replaced by one that is listed.
• Request Generic. If your doctor okays it, consider switching to generics. Generics give a substantial savings in cost while still providing the same active ingredients.

Affording Hospital Care: Emergencies can result hefty bills when you're lacking health insurance or are struggling financially. If you find yourself in this situation contact the hospital's financial department and inquire about charity care. Your bill can be significantly reduced to an affordable amount and may even result in you owing nothing, depending on your financial situation. If you do not qualify for the programs they offer, ask them to suggest other options. They will be aware of many programs, charities, and organizations that may be able to assist you. Note* You cannot be denied necessary hospital care based on your ability to pay. It is against the law.


Affording Eating Disorder Treatment: There are alternatives available to help see you through when funds are low.

• If you need treatment for your ED and cannot afford it there are scholarships/grants offered by several treatment facilities and organizations. Contact them and explain your situation. If they cannot help you, ask them for suggestions of others that you can contact.
• Search the Yellow Pages for Support Groups in your area. Most have a minimal or optional dues/donation fee.
• Contact a Teaching Hospital or Mental Health Facility. Some offer free services as part of their training program.
• Online Support is offered on many ED websites and it's free. Those there will also be able to help guide you in your search for assistance.

*Be sure to contact your local Department of Social Services. You may qualify for financial aid, free or reduced medical coverage, and other programs designed to help in times of need.



picture source: publicdomainpictures.net

rEEG Guided Medication Study Demonstrates an Improvement in Depression and Eating Disorder Symptoms

Article Courtesy of The Earth Times Online Newspaper
Preliminary Analysis of rEEG(R) Guided Medication
Study Demonstrates an Improvement in
Depression and Eating Disorder Symptoms
COSTA MESA, Calif., May 22

COSTA MESA, Calif., May 22 /PR Newswire-FirstCall/ --
CNS Response, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: CNSO) reported today
the results of a study presented at the American
Psychiatric Association (APA) 161st Annual Meeting
by Dr. James Greenblatt, M.D., Chief Medical Officer,
Walden Behavioral Care Inpatient Psychiatry and
Eating Disorder Programs. The poster presentation,
titled "Referenced-EEG Guided Medication Predictions
in Treatment Refractory Eating Disorder Patients,"
provided a preliminary analysis of a patient-controlled
case series studying the use of Referenced-EEG (rEEG(R))
to facilitate the medication selection for patients
with eating disorders and comorbid depression.

The study of eight female patients, conducted over up
to a four-year period, demonstrated that rEEG
successfully guided physician selection of each
patient's medications in the series, leading to
a dramatic relief of depression and eating
disorder symptoms. Successful rEEG-guided
predictions involved medications in the
anticonvulsant, antidepressant and stimulant
classes, often in combination.

Dr. Greenblatt commented, "Despite the small
sample size of this study, the results support
the promise of rEEG as an effective tool for
determining medication programs for treatment
refractory patients with eating disorders
and depression. The decrease in depressive
symptoms, as well as significant improvement
in eating disorders symptoms and weight, for
the eight patients in the trial was striking,
considering that, prior to the study, each had
required either partial hospitalization or
inpatient care, as determined by managed behavioral
health care reviewers. However, following rEEG
medication recommendations, hospitalization days
for the patients decreased dramatically. Anorexia
nervosa is a potentially fatal illness with significant
mortality if early interventions are not successful.
Improved pharmacology, as these cases demonstrate,
could decrease the high morbidity and mortality
in patients with disordered eating."

Primary outcome measures of the study included the
21-item Hamilton Rating for Depression Scale (HDRS)
and the Clinical Global Improvement Scale (CGI)
and the Clinical Global Severity Scale (SGS).
Some of the criteria used to assess improvement
in the CGI included: body dissatisfaction,
drive for thinness, compulsive exercising, binging
and purging.

Improvements in both HDRS and CGI scores were evident
at 8-weeks,6-months, and 2 years (for 4 patients).
The medications selected from rEEG correlations
involved combinations from many different classes
of medications. Stimulant medications in four
Eating Disorder patients did not result in appetite
suppression or weight loss. These results are consistent
with recent findings that ADHD can predict eating disorder
pathology in adolescent girls.

Greenblatt continued, "Specific patient progress during
the study demonstrated the ability of rEEG to have a
real impact on the lives of those with severe mental
conditions. One anorexia nervosa patient had previously
received five different medication regimes, none of
which provided any improvement. The patient had been
hospitalized on five separate occasions during the two
years prior to rEEG testing. Based on the rEEG report,
we medicated the patient with a combination of
Oxcarbazepine and Duloxetine.

This treatment combination is outside of the traditional
medications we would have considered. In fact, there
are no medications that have shown consistent success
in treatment of anorexia nervosa. For the 24 months
following, the patient did not require further
hospitalization, and at the end of the 24 months was
rated as 'Normal.'

"The two Bulimia Nervosa patients in the study had seven
hospitalizations between them, but neither required
further hospital care after being treated by the rEEG
guided medications personalized to their own brain
function. We would never have known or even considered
these medications without the guidance of this rEEG
analysis and associated reports."

Len Brandt, Chairman and CEO of CNS Response, noted,
"I congratulate Dr.Greenblatt on his accomplishments
in this study in which he documented the benefits of
personalized medication selection based on analysis
of brain physiology. It is not only the dramatic
improvement demonstrated in this study that makes it
a compelling analysis, but also that he had carefully
documented treatment history on these patients for two
years prior to rEEG analysis. Generally, researchers
lack accurate treatment histories for patients recruited
to a study, and comparisons of previous treatments
to a new treatment approach cannot be made. The best
alternative is to compare two patient groups that
are randomly assigned different treatment regimes,
ignoring comparisons to historical response to treatment.
Results are typically measured over a fairly short
period of eight to twelve weeks, but rating
improvements are challenging as unique patient history
and symptom manifestation data is unavailable.

"In this study, however, Dr Greenblatt carefully
recorded treatment histories for 24 months prior to
the rEEG analysis. He then measured patients' responses
to the rEEG-guided medications and associated
therapies for 6 to 24 months post initial dosing,
demonstrating not just treatment response, but also
that the response was durable. The long term record
of pre-rEEG treatment history compared to post-rEEG
treatment makes this a notable study.


The full poster presentation and analysis of results
are available via:
http://www.cnsresponse.com/uploads/assets/0000/0066/rEEGEDPosterCNSR2008.pdf

Read the article in full here.
SOURCE CNS Response, Inc.

More information on rEEG here.


sources: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/cns-response-inc-provides-review,405290.shtml http://www.neuropsychiatryreviews.com/may06/rEEG.html
Picture source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/37643027@N00/2050024263/