Have You Ever Seen A Psychiatrist Or Psychologist?

[arwalden]

How long did it last? Was it any help?

-- Allen

[arwalden]

1. I Had About 8 Sessions...

at the insistence of my parents (when I was in high school). Turns out that the doctor I saw judged me to be "normal" in every way and that the difficulties at home were the fault of my stepfather... and suggested that HE come in for some one-on-one's. My stepfather (an officer in the Air Force) also didn't like hearing that I had tested MUCH HIGHER than he had in a standard IQ test. (But the IQ determination also proved that I was being a slacker and that indeed I was capable of better grades. But hey... what's a rebellious kid to do?)

-- Allen

[BlueJazz]

2. I go to one because frankly....

I'm as nutty as a fruitcake...and worse: I'm proud of it!

[mopinko]

3. hard to say

got a crazy kid, and having a lot of trouble with the bozos she is seeing. hubby and i are seeing someone, mostly to cope with all this. mostly brings things up that we take up later. if we couldn't do that, it would be doing a lot of harm. i am deeply suspicious of the whole enterprise.

[arwalden]

7. My Mother Sees A Psychiatrist (Psychologist)

What's the difference between the two?

Anyway, it does help her to cope with her anxiety, depression, and her divorce. (I hope they find out why she keeps finding herself drawn to abusive men. And then DO something about it.)

-- Allen

[tigereye]

10. one prescribes medication (psychiatrist)

since they are are MD's; some also do therapy. Psychologists usually but not always have a PHD and tend to do more therapy and testing. Some are good, some are not. Most really are not concerned with boat payments and try their best to help. ( at least all the ones I know)
:)

[arwalden]

20. Her Medication Helps Her ... A LOT!!!

And it's not like she's happily "out-of-it" and just floating along in a blissful daze. She's actually able to cope with everyday worries and problems without falling apart.

-- Allen

[pagerbear]

34. Not to make generalities or anything

And don't forget another kind of psychotherapist: social workers.

[Wickerman]

4. I dated one

yeah, it helped.

:)

And seeing one isn't a bad thing either. Do some research on what kind of therapy style would suit you best and shop around until you find someone who does that kind of therapy. Then, find someone in the therapy type that you think you can work with. You will be paying a boat load of money - make it worth your while. Length depends on so many things - acuity of problem(s), modality of therapy, level that you want to resolve issues, number of payments left on your therapist's boat, etc.

[camero]

5. I went to group therapy once

For a fear of intimacy problem. When the therapist said that I was the one who should be teaching them, some alarm bells went off and I didn't go back.

They were giving me an IQ test at the time too and that's probably another part of it.

[mr_hat]

6. I went 'cos I wanted to become a sex addict.

[belle]

8. Yes, ongoing. It's helped immeasurably.

I'm now considering going into it myself.

[supernova]

9. I went to group therapy

for a little over a year for a bad case of social anxiety. But I didn't stick with it finally because I felt it was the wrong format to work out that problem. While some people had some extremely heavy psychic trauma to work through and I could sympathise to a certain point, I felt out of place.

I felt what I needed more was a good group of friends to socialize with on a regular basis. And I found that with a social club that a joined soon afterwards.

I think it can be helpful if there's some deep seated feelings that you can't quite come to terms with. But if you go down that path, be prepared to spend years of your life (and mega $$) exploring it.

edit: a psychiatrist is an MD who can prescribe meds. A psychologist does not.

[tigereye]

12. actually there is a prescribing psychologists movement

I do not personally think it is a good idea.

[supernova]

14. That's scary

I'm sorry. I don't want anybody giving me meds who hasn't studied physiology and pharmacology.

[Susang]

36. You want to know what's scary?

Look into what training is actually required of psychiatrists. It is not what you think. Many of them have gone into the field because their skills were not high enough to get them into other better respect areas. And while you would think that their pharmacology training would be more rigorous, it actually isn't. It's truly frightening.

Honestly, knowing what I know now, I would choose my internist's knowledge of psycho-pharmaceuticals before I would trust a random psychiatrist's.

[tigereye]

39. well the plan was that they would have to study in those areas

but that is an incredible amount of responsiblity

[opiate69]

11. I lived with a psychologist....

does that count? And, for the record, she was one of the most screwed-up people I've ever known..

[supernova]

13. One of the women in my group

was a psychologist! And she openly admitted to studying psychology to try to understand herself. :crazy:

[opiate69]

15. Yeah...

my ex used to tell me that was pretty common, actually... not to cast aspersions on an entire profession,but, I can see the logic in it.

[gyopsy]

16. Been there

I found it helpful but the $100 dollars an hour sessions were just killing me. :(

[supernova]

17. Yes, lots of times mental health

professionals are not covered by insurance, or there's an almost worthless yearly cap on the number of visits allowed.

[flamingyouth]

22. Yeah, and that sucks

My insurance doesn't cover mental health at all. When it did (back when I was seeing the psychiatrist) I only had six annual visits covered :eyes:

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

18. Yes

after watching my highschool boyfriend get murdered in a robbery and having to identify the shooters. It helped some with the grief, anxiety and the fear, but the feelings can still crop up and be triggered when someone wrongfully invades my space or presents themselves as a threat to me.

[supernova]

23. So sorry

for you having to see that, nothingshocksmeanymore. I can't imagine the horror. :hug:

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

29. It's a mental image that never goes away..and thanks

a slow motion picture every time I even talk about it

[CanuckAmok]

19. On and off. Currently "on".

I saw someone for a couple of years following my UN service.

Now I'm seeing someone (else), a Psychologist, to try and understand my wife's current behaviour, and better understand my own participation and behaviour in the relationsip.

He's a good listener. His name is David.

[flamingyouth]

21. Yes, I underwent therapy for PTSD

after being raped. I still pop in every once in a while. I took meds for a short period of time, but mostly learned how to deal with my own fears and anxiety and to gain confidence, which was an amazing thing, and I am very grateful someone was there to help me.

[Ilsa]

24. Sounds like my story.

Only I haven't been on meds yet. The therapy really helped with the PTSD as I couldn't trust anyone any more.

[flamingyouth]

31. Yeah, I hear you

I really didn't think the meds were all that great, to be honest. Although they did help when I was in a severe panic situation, the best thing is learning to handle it on your own - but that can take a lot of time, as I'm sure you know. The whole thing has made me a lot more sympathetic to what other people have to endure, so I guess there was something (albeit small) good about it. :hug:

[Piperay]

25. Once...

went to therapy for grief counseling after my mother died but I ended up feeling so much worse that I never went back. :-(

[VOX]

26. Yeah, for anxiety disorder...

that had dogged me since age 17. Therapy and low-dose meds have been a tremendous help with this.

[SheWhoMustBeObeyed]

27. Too long, and not all that much

[SiobhanClancy]

28. I had to see one every day while I was growing up....

he was my dad:)

[Waverley_Hills_Hiker]

30. woah! 40 have seen & 8 still going !

I wasn't expecting that.

[Shanty Oilish]

32. IQ testing

Does that count? Lasted a couple of hours every time. Many times. Waste of time.
:(

[scarlet_owl]

33. I go every month.

There was a time when I was going two to three times a week for counseling. Now I just go to the psychiatrist every month for medication check ups.

[Missy Vixen]

35. I'm there now

I have been going for a little over a month, once a week. I have found it immensely helpful. In other words, I'm not depressed anymore. As I stupidly registered under a name instead of a pseudonym, i don't want to give much more detail about my diagnoses than the above.

The psychologist in question is great. She is a very gentle and thoughtful person, and she also is unafraid to tell me what I need to hear. I would recommend her to anyone.

In the meantime, I'm thinking that I will be going for a few more sessions, and I will use the things she's taught me to find the answers in myself.

Julie

[Lars39]

37. I am leery of them.

My nephew(who fried his brain in the Air Force & was honorably discharged, enrolled in college,was there a month when he threatened his professor and class with a GUN, was treated with kid gloves by the judge because nephew's daddy is a cop) went biserk on me while I was taking care of my dying mother.

Daddy the cop and Southern Bapt deacon covered up for his ass and sent him back to college. He didn't stay on his meds, and only goes back on his meds when he is going to be evaluated for his disability.

Guess what nephew is shooting for degree-wise?
His doctorate in psychology. That sumbitch is going to be messin' with people's minds. He'll be able to prescribe drugs.
:puke:

My doctor was sympathetic with me until she realized what my nephew was going to be. She got hostile towards me. Needless to say I think there is much merit to the theory that doctors cover up for each other.

[POed_Ex_Repub]

38. I'm married to one n/t

[Onlooker]

40. Hard to find a good therapist

It can be worth it if you find a good one. A good one is simply a paid confidante who listens, asks good questions, makes you think, and offers good advice. A good therapist will prevent you from deceiving yourself (and if you have a problem, it reinforces itself with self-deception). Most therapists aren't very good. It's worth it when you find a good one.