Occasionally, we have the opportunity to share the experience of one of our patients, with their participation and consent, of course. We do this so we can show, rather than tell, what it's like from a patient's point of view and what their journey might look like.
Carmen is a woman in her 50s, living in New England. By the time her primary care provider referred her to Concert Health, Carmen had worked with other behavioral health professionals and had prescriptions for medications to help with her anxiety and depression. But when circumstances in her life changed, Carmen’s previous coping mechanisms no longer worked like they used to. Carmen said she way “lucky” to have found Pamela, her behavioral heath care manager, and together they developed new approaches to addressing her unique challenges.
Carmen in Her Own Words
“If we were just meeting socially, I would be very entertaining and you would probably like me very much ... but I would really get very tired. After a very intense evening of social interactions, I would need a week to recover—just to be myself.
I have a family history of undiagnosed depression. I’m actually the first one in the family who was officially diagnosed. Because it was not culturally acceptable from where I grew up to actually admit that you have depression.
I found my coping mechanism—knew when to hide, when to go out and talk to people. And then, three years ago, my mother and mother-in-law came to live with me. And I work from home, so it means that I’m stuck in the house with two women who do not speak English. So I am pretty much their only source of communication with the external world. And it’s a lot. So my coping mechanism wasn’t working anymore.
I thought that [my behavioral health manager Pamela] was a perfect match for me. She’s actually a very cheerful and cheering person—but not too much. It was just the right amount of cheerfulness, the right amount of education, the right amount of how she led me through the conversation.
She would just nudge me and draw me to some intellectual activity. She would give me the resources where I could go and she would actually provoke my intellectual curiosity, because this is what works for me.
After our sessions I would feel better immediately. I would work on everything she would suggest. My experience— I was very happy and I would recommend it to everyone. I would rave about it because it worked for me.”
A Note from Pamela
Carmen’s behavioral health care manager understood how important context was for supporting her patient. “The focus was to explore the patient’s well-being and how to elevate a
more positive outlook for her and to gain some reflection about the stressors and shifts that she’s encountered,“ Pamela said.
As they worked together, “Carmen became more accepting, particularly of the understanding about cognitive behavioral approaches. That by doing something, you can actually change your experience. And I think it was beneficial for her because it showed her growth.
“It is something that requires commitment. It’s that ‘practice muscle’ that we try to promote.”