Being required to see a psychologist and psychiatrist for reasons never explained

[Rushie]

Did I miss what med the OP took? All I read was “antidepressant” but everyone keeps posting about SSRIs. Not all antidepressants are SSRIs, and even at that there are only four SSRIs on the protocol. There are several other SSRIs that aren’t.

Good point!

Believe me, I've seen doctors do this. Patient complains he's out of sorts, here try some paxil to see if it helps. It's reprehensible.

We're giving him the benefit of the doubt as SSRIs can be approved with an SI. Others, like tricyclates,etc... are not.

Also good point, the other option for OP is the SSRI SI pathway. OP this means if you cannot certify off the antidepressant and you have unipolar depression of a specific type, there is the option of getting back on one of the four approved SSRI antidepressants and being certified under a Special Issuance.

Again, while the particulars will matter in the long term, the fact that he's been prescribed any psychoactive drug whether for mood disorders OR smoking cessation OR throat spasms or whatever is going to be a problem.

Doctors will hand out antidepressants for chronic pain, and for trouble sleeping, and for who knows what else that does not technically have "depression" in the name but might be associated with depression. There's no way around it, the FAA will want a closer look if you were prescribed an AD for any reason.

 

[vman]

wow, what a can of worms, just googled
-faa ssri decision path 1
-faa ssri checklist
-depression faa medical
etc et al

 

[mryan75]

Believe me, I've seen doctors do this. Patient complains he's out of sorts, here try some paxil to see if it helps. It's reprehensible.

We're giving him the benefit of the doubt as SSRIs can be approved with an SI. Others, like tricyclates,etc... are not.

Again, while the particulars will matter in the long term, the fact that he's been prescribed any psychoactive drug whether for mood disorders OR smoking cessation OR throat spasms or whatever is going to be a problem.

Yeah, I get what you're saying, but even in the case you mention, there is a diagnosis. They can't prescribe without one. They may pick one out of a hat, but there is a diagnosis.

 

[1anG]

So I applied for a class 1 flight med before I started ground school because I wanted to be sure I could get one before even trying to become a career pilot.

I have no medical health issues. My appointment with my Ame went ok, though I would never see him again by choice. Fast forward to 3 weeks later, i get a letter from the FAA saying I have to see a psychologist and a psychiatrist for a boatload of mental screening and testing, with no reason attached. I called the AME and the faa to find out whats going on and why, and apparently its because I was on anti-depressants in my past. I have no hospitalizations, nor official diagnosis of clinical depression. I was prescribed them about 10 years ago when I was in college and having a hard time due to stress and and the loss of two family pets.

I never went off them even though I spoke with my primary doctor about them because she told me the dose was so low that it wouldn't hurt to keep taking them. I stopped taking them 6 weeks before my appointment to my AME to be in line with what the FAA regs say on their website.

So the AME is all but refusing to speak with me at all and saying I should route all questions and information straight to the FAA, and the FAA is telling me in person they are "reviewing the info", only to repeatedly just send me carbon copies of the same letters saying I need to see the psychiatrist and psychologist.I am now down to my last 30 days to do this or they will "refer my application to legal action or denial".

I am looking at close to or over 3k just to have these psychological tests done, which is money i really dont want to spend since I still have to pay for ground school, and flight time before I even GET to my instrument ratings. Even though I have no formal diagnosis of depression, have never been hospitalized, and have had no psychological issues in my life outside seeing the doctor that once regarding my issues 10 years ago.

Does anyone have any advice or ideas for me? I honestly am really starting to feel like my AME is sabotaging me somehow. He was a bit of a stuck up jerk in the appointment, and it was obvious he did not care for me as a patient or person in the slightest. Is it just frustrated paranoia over this whole thing?

Check out the pilot to pilot podcast, Rich curcio episode. It's an interview with a pilot who was on antidepressants and all the stuff he had to go through

 

[benyflyguy]

The thing I feel bad about is that the unknown of this is totally preventable. Research it a touch and this would have been entirely predictable. There has to be like a PSA announcement at schools or somewhere that if you have any of these issues know that you have to have a plan of action, be prepared and know what you are in for.
Finding PoA a little late is going to cost time and some money. Researching this ahead of time would be a time saver.

 

[Rushie]

The thing I feel bad about is that the unknown of this is totally preventable. Research it a touch and this would have been entirely predictable. There has to be like a PSA announcement at schools or somewhere that if you have any of these issues know that you have to have a plan of action, be prepared and know what you are in for.
Finding PoA a little late is going to cost time and some money. Researching this ahead of time would be a time saver.

Even better there needs to be public education and awareness for parents. Most of these cases are young people who were put on an ADHD med or an antidepressant when in grade school or during adolescence and neither they nor their parents have the slightest idea how much it can mess up your future. No one should ever take psychoactive drugs without a hard diagnosis or without understanding the future consequences. It's not just pilot certification. It can affect security clearances, other types of jobs, the ability to get concealed weapon permits, to qualify for cetain types of insurance. No parent should allow their child to take such a med unless that child has been formally diagnosed through testing by a qualified psychiatrist.

 

[TCABM]

Yeah, I get what you're saying, but even in the case you mention, there is a diagnosis. They can't prescribe without one. They may pick one out of a hat, but there is a diagnosis.

The other kicker is off-label use. MDs can prescribe SSRIs as treatment for other than FDA approved uses.

Most people trust their Doc to first do no harm. The problem Docs have is they generally have no idea the harm they can do and most patients don’t know enough or aren’t willing to challenge their treating physician’s plan of care.

Generally speaking, prescription medication is my last choice to treat any condition I might have.

 

[bbchien]

To: Ty09: I am quite impressed by the quality of the replies in this string. Pretty much, the board has got the reply correct .

 

[Half Fast]

To: Ty09: I am quite impressed by the quality of the replies in this string. Pretty much, the board has got the reply correct .

Bruce, that doesn’t mean you can retire now!

 

[weilke]

To: Ty09: I am quite impressed by the quality of the replies in this string. Pretty much, the board has got the reply correct .

It's that 'ten thousand monkeys on a keyboard' thing at work.

 

[weilke]

To the OP:

Doc Bruce helped me to get an airman certified who was in a very similar situation to yours.


A couple of points:

#1 Contact the prescriber who put you on the drug the first time. If my math is correct, you were a minor at the time. In many states, records retention is 18 years + X years, with 'X' usually a function of the statute of limitations. You may be able to get the correct diagnosis for which the med was prescribed. This may or may not affect your pathway to getting your medical.

#2 What the CFI told you is at best misleading. If you have 1300hrs 10hrs multi and the ATP written, these days there may be an airline who sets you up to get the missing hours. 100hrs and a private is not going to get you there.

 

[ty09]

I got my answer so I am done with the topic I guess. Mods can close this if they want to.

 

[Palmpilot]

I got my answer so I am done with the topic I guess. Mods can close this if they want to.

Normal practice here is not to close threads unless there is a serious problem with violations of the rules of conduct.

 

[Matthew]

I'll add a Doc Bruce story: I was sort of mentoring a high school or early college kid, he was ready to solo and was about to head to an AME for his student medical. I met him for lunch and he offhandedly mentioned taking Ritalin "for a couple weeks in Jr High". I got him in touch with the good doctor, and contacted Dr Chien also on the kid's behalf. The two of them worked with a local-to-the kid AME, got his ducks in a row, and he ended up with a clean, unrestricted medical.

It can work, but it isn't easy, and it isn't always the fault of the student. It's hard for a student to know what he doesn't know and that's really frustrating.