Living With A Mental Illness -Taking Care of You Seeing a doctor regularly, monitoring your symptoms, regulating stress, bringing your thoughts in line with the thoughts of God, exercising, and eating healthier are all essential keys in your ability to fulfill your God-given purpose for living. Taking medications as prescribed, and seeing a doctor regularly are important strategies for maintaining your health, and living the life that God has for you. In fact, if you have a mental illness or think that you may have a mental illness, seeing a doctor will be the second step in your recovery process. Your first step will be developing or maintaining a relationship with Jesus Christ.

Seeing a Doctor First Time
When you see a doctor for the first time, he or she will talk with you about your symptoms. Then he or she depending on the setting may schedule or request that you obtain a physical and blood work. Again, this will depend on the type of doctor you are seeing and the circumstances. For example, if you are seeing a Primary Care Doctor, he or she may request the blood work and complete physical on site. But if you are seeing a Psychiatrist (a medical doctor who specializes in mental health), in his or her office he or she may conduct the mental health evaluation first and then refer or request that you see your Primary Care Doctor. Regardless of when you get it done, obtaining a complete medical physical to include blood work will be necessary.