Do you see a shrink and if so, what for?

On and Off, i've seen them, really havn't gotten much outta it though but i suppose that's because i'm not as open to it as i should be, Thinking of going back soon thought give it another try, desperate times right

 

Im also on and off, mainly because of my parents divorce and i was a rebel teenager and got kicked out of schools, but turns out its because i have ADHD, so im on meds now and a bit more lets say... calmer. but i get checked up by the pysch at uni because of the study support program.

 

I'm am glad you asked that....cuz I've always wondered why my mental problems started around the time that I realized I wasn't straight. I'm diagnosed schizoaffective bipolar and am a gender confused pansexual......so in all honesty I can see why I'd be a bit messed in the head. So to answer your question I am seeing a psychologist, though I'm not quite sure why, seeing as I've psychoanalyzed myself better than this doctor has been able to :badgrin:

 

I see someone weekly for bipolar, PTSD, and a severe panic disorder. i have been seeing the same person for 9 months and she really helps. I have always been in and out of counseling and psych hospitals but now that i am an adult i am actually working in therapy,,,

 

I see a psychologist and a psychiatrist, both for depression, anxiety, OCD, ADD, and atypical mood disorder.

 

I saw a shrink for quite a while. Therapy only helps when you open up, really. For me, my shrink didn't say much at all. I just talked to him about my problems, and kept talking until I figured them out myself. Or he'd beat me at chess and I'd get all mopey.

But, yeah, therapy helps if you open up. Otherwise it's a waste of time and money.

And, therapy wont take the scars away, it'll just help heal the wounds that make the scars. I'm a writer myself, and it never ruined my ability to write with my own voice.

 

Well my mom started me with therapy when I was like 4 because my parents got divorced when I was about 1 or 2. I stopped going when I was around 7 and then she made me go back when I was about 13 because I started cutting because I was raped when I was 11 and molested when I was younger than that (she only knows about the rape). I was raped 2 more times after that and diagnosed with depression, anxiety, PTSD and a mood disorder. I also was a bit rebellious because my home situation wasn't the greatest (physical abuse and other things) and once I hit the 8th grade I rarely went to school and when I did I wasn't really ever in class. I'm currently in a specialized therapy and I still see a psychiatrist even tho I'm no longer on meds. It's helpful if you want the help.

 

I've seen many and need to see one again. I would really like to address my sexuality. I sort of willingly let myself get violated at a bath house and was doing a lot of "sneaking around" and smoking pot and drinking a lot. I was always drunk. I think it all just affected me and trying to keep secrets led me to an episode where I really lost it. Now I see a doctor for prescriptions but I need to talk it all out with someone.

 

I saw three of 'em over a period of four years. None of 'em could knock a dent in my severe dating problems (although we did make progress with my health anxiety). Eventually I stopped wasting my money.

 

I see a therapist and a psychiatrist. mostly for depression and anxiety, but I see my therapist for my diabetes as well

 

I have Tourettes!

In fact, the form of Tourette Syndrome I have seems to be the kind that mimics bipolar disorder and also has the OCD-like quality to it, and it acts a little bit like ADHD. It's all the Tourettes, though. To treat it, I take this out-moded medication they used to use for Parkinson's Disease that my psychiatrist says they figured out works just as the makers of it were talking about taking it off the market, and it is a wonder drug!

 

wow thats interesting, yeah i have a book on ADHD and symptoms and meds and stuff (because i have it) and the psych who wrote it says that the symptoms do cross over with others like Tourettes. glad ur meds help

 

What's the difference between a therapist and a psychologist and a psychiatrist?

I've never seen anyone like that, though I think Mum would like me to. I tried calling Childline once and they were awful, so that has kind of put me off going to a counsellor at school or something. I don't do well with opening up, anyway.

 

Psychotherapists are a type of clinical psychologist. They employ a variety of non-medical techniques to help you have a more functional mind. Most therapists use spoken conversation extensively, but they may also put you through a variety of exercises such as doing stories or poems, word-association games, and a lot of other fun stuff. Most therapy practices are fun and calming for the patient, and I think it's a good place to start. They use a lot of extensively field-tested techniques, some of which seem obvious until you realize that you would never have actually thought to do it, to help you improve your quality of life.

Clinical psychology is broad in scope. Some clinical psychologists are trained to help doctors communicate with hospital patients, which can make a doctor's job much less frustrating. A lot of doctors don't LIKE dealing with patients, especially difficult ones, and this creates jobs for people who are trained for it specifically. However, other jobs in psychology are centered around child-development or education. Finally, some clinical psychologists work as clinical psychotherapists.

Psychiatrists have a more scientific insight into mental care, and they are able to prescribe medications to patients who have a need for them. However, some low-rent psychiatrists out there rely too heavily on drug therapy, and more reputable practitioners tend to recommend a combination of clinical psychotherapy and drug therapy, which is widely considered to be the most effective approach to clinical care.

A counselor is a gate-keeper position, for the most part. You might actually go to a counselor and come home feeling like all he/she did was to sit there agreeing with you, and it makes you wonder what these people are being paid for. Well, part of their job is to identify individuals who might be on drugs, are being abused, are being abused sexually, have gender-identity problems, suffer from deeply repressed sexuality or could be a suicide risk, so those people can be sent along to specialists who know how to handle these kinds of problems.

However, a lot of the people who make the complaint, "all she did was sit there and agree with me," ought to understand that one of the most time-tested approaches to psychotherapy is to give the patient a chance to talk out his or her personal problems in the presence of someone who *gasp* listens. It's really amazing, but most people have a lot of trouble with this concept. Most people are too determined to impose their own ideas or assumptions on others, or they just don't have the patience to listen to someone else. Most people hear something that sounds strange and react with condemnation or some form of judgment. We have been paying people to do this listening thing for over a hundred years because it actually requires skill and experience to really do it.

Essentially, you have a lot of options here, and a counselor is a good STARTING POINT for getting the care you need. They are not an endpoint unless the things that are missing from your life are things that are fairly basic, which is actually the case a lot more often than you would think.

 

I saw a few. One when I was 9 or so, and one when I was in a depression when I was 25. Both were generally positive experiences.

Lex

 

I saw one when I was 17 through to about 19 - I got diagnosed at 18 with ADHD and also found out I was Dyscalculic, my parents always suspected there was something up, but didn't want to medicate me as a young child for fear of "Turning me into a zombie and oppressing my creativity". . which I was actually eternally grateful for, as I was able to form my own coping mechanisms growing up with the help of my mum and dad and a few teachers, and they allowed me to make the decision to become medicated by my own free will once I got older.
My Psych was an amazing man who helped me over look my short comings, and made me focus on and admit to all the things I excelled at.

I'm now 24, on behavior meds, and I feel amazing!