Counseling and Therapy

Want gold?

That's why I came!	61.9%	[ 13 ]
I suppose...	38.1%	[ 8 ]
Total Votes:			[ 21 ]

[otoriio]

I was just curious if anyone here has ever been to see a counselor, psychoanalyst, psychologist, or therapist for any reason and if it actually worked out for them. I was just recently reminded of when I met with counselors when I was younger and how they were always effective when I did it alone, but when I did it with my family it didn't work, partially because I feel a lot more comfortable talking to strangers and partially because I have stubborn family members, but otherwise I feel like it may have worked. Then I remember this "divorce group" in my elementary school, and all we seemed to do was color, which I felt like solved nothing, but maybe because I wasn't really coping with much in the first place.

Discuss:
-Have you ever seen a counselor, psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, psychologist, or therapist?
-Did it help?
-If you've tried various forms of therapy, which one(s) worked best for you?
-Do you participate in any form of therapy on your own (or in groups, but basically anything you personally picked up, not necessarily suggested by a counselor)?
-How does this help?
-What kinds of things do you find therapeutic?
-Do you prefer lone introspection or venting in groups or to one person in times of stress? If you prefer groups or one person, to whom do you prefer to talk to?
-Any psychoanalytical methods or concepts you find interesting
-People that make life difficult for others
-People that don't want to help themselves

[Vardoger]

Therapist, psychologist, psychiatrist, and support group experience over here.

Psychiatrists: Absolutely worthless unless you want drugs. These people are only here to diagnose you and recommend drugs. They do not actually care about your problems outside how they convert to symptoms. If you do not want drugs, avoid at all costs.

Psychologists: In my opinion, hit or miss. Some are ******** amazing. Others also have the ability to prescribe meds and decide that they really, really, really want you on them, despite how often you say you don't want to be on them. I went to one psychologist for an in-depth psych eval recently and half the meeting was literally her trying to put me back on drugs when I explained many times that they make my situation worse because I can't take them daily. I could talk more about this but I don't want to have a ridiculously long post.

Therapists: Also hit or miss. When a psychologist hits, they hit AMAZINGLY and you won't even know wtf they did, but you'll be getting better. Therapists can do the same thing, but when they miss, they miss HARD. You can get therapists with some pretty whacked out views who can actually make your situation worse. This is especially true if you are a minor and your parents don't agree with you. Technically the same thing can happen with psychologists, but usually psychologists have a lot more, uh, pride or something. Not sure how to explain.


I've never had a good experience with a psychiatrist. I've had good experiences with therapists and psychologists. There was a time I was on meds and went to a psychiatrist pretty often. I had 2 different ones. One was an a*****e, the other one was pretending to be a therapist and really was no help. If you're on drugs, get the drugs, but meh. Psychologists who can prescribe meds are able to respect your drug choices (or non-choices) but there is the possibility they won't.

A good psychologist and/or therapist will have you leaving the appointment thinking all you did was talk and "not get anywhere" on a normal day. Other days you'll definitely know you did good. But if you are leaving meetings thinking that the psych/therapist voiced an opinion of some sort that didn't really jive with you, that's probably a relationship you should reconsider.

I was in therapy for 6 months and we saw eachother once a week. Pretty dedicated. 80% of the visits were me talking about how I didn't think I needed therapy and the visits were a waste of time because I was mentally healthy. I eventually stopped therapy and about 3 months later I finally realized.... Therapy is a preventative medicine. And those "We're not accomplishing anything here" meetings were actually VERY GOOD meetings. I am now trying to get a new therapist.

Support groups can be helpful but also can make things worse. I went to a couple PFLAG
meetings, and my problems were just not anywhere close to other people's. Support groups are great resources-- they can hook you up with all sorts of things. Recommendations to therapists, doctors, etc. Great reading material you can give to others or read yourself in regard to whatever issue the support group is about. But the actual group meetings have been overall negative in my experience. Everyone just vents about their days, and if your problems aren't similar, then you feel singled out and feel bad. Worse, if you are having worse problems then everyone else, everyone else just looks like they're complaining for little/no reason.
Some support groups also have cliques and a lot of drama.

Some support groups are great, but I'd say most (at least on the GLBTQ spectrum of support groups) are just not worth it outside their resources.

Family therapy can be good but normally ends up bombing in my opinion. Most people who are in family therapy are there because some one (usually a parent) is an obnoxious a*****e. And being in family therapy does not change that. I've been to family therapy once or twice because of my brother's problems, and it sort of worked out but only because it was more of a "teaching parents how to parent a violent ADHD kid" sort of thing.

Some people have obviously had family therapy work for them, but on the whole, it usually doesn't, especially if you're a teenager and you have shitty parents. What is more advantageous is if your parents and you attend the same therapist at different times, so the therapist can speak to you both privately.

I'm probably missing a lot of stuff. I could seriously talk about this sort of thing forever, probably. But my post is already huge so I'll just stop here.

[otoriio]

Bornes

Therapist, psychologist, psychiatrist, and support group experience over here.

Psychiatrists: Absolutely worthless unless you want drugs. These people are only here to diagnose you and recommend drugs. They do not actually care about your problems outside how they convert to symptoms. If you do not want drugs, avoid at all costs.

Psychologists: In my opinion, hit or miss. Some are ******** amazing. Others also have the ability to prescribe meds and decide that they really, really, really want you on them, despite how often you say you don't want to be on them. I went to one psychologist for an in-depth psych eval recently and half the meeting was literally her trying to put me back on drugs when I explained many times that they make my situation worse because I can't take them daily. I could talk more about this but I don't want to have a ridiculously long post.

Therapists: Also hit or miss. When a psychologist hits, they hit AMAZINGLY and you won't even know wtf they did, but you'll be getting better. Therapists can do the same thing, but when they miss, they miss HARD. You can get therapists with some pretty whacked out views who can actually make your situation worse. This is especially true if you are a minor and your parents don't agree with you. Technically the same thing can happen with psychologists, but usually psychologists have a lot more, uh, pride or something. Not sure how to explain.


I've never had a good experience with a psychiatrist. I've had good experiences with therapists and psychologists. There was a time I was on meds and went to a psychiatrist pretty often. I had 2 different ones. One was an a*****e, the other one was pretending to be a therapist and really was no help. If you're on drugs, get the drugs, but meh. Psychologists who can prescribe meds are able to respect your drug choices (or non-choices) but there is the possibility they won't.

A good psychologist and/or therapist will have you leaving the appointment thinking all you did was talk and "not get anywhere" on a normal day. Other days you'll definitely know you did good. But if you are leaving meetings thinking that the psych/therapist voiced an opinion of some sort that didn't really jive with you, that's probably a relationship you should reconsider.

I was in therapy for 6 months and we saw eachother once a week. Pretty dedicated. 80% of the visits were me talking about how I didn't think I needed therapy and the visits were a waste of time because I was mentally healthy. I eventually stopped therapy and about 3 months later I finally realized.... Therapy is a preventative medicine. And those "We're not accomplishing anything here" meetings were actually VERY GOOD meetings. I am now trying to get a new therapist.

Support groups can be helpful but also can make things worse. I went to a couple PFLAG
meetings, and my problems were just not anywhere close to other people's. Support groups are great resources-- they can hook you up with all sorts of things. Recommendations to therapists, doctors, etc. Great reading material you can give to others or read yourself in regard to whatever issue the support group is about. But the actual group meetings have been overall negative in my experience. Everyone just vents about their days, and if your problems aren't similar, then you feel singled out and feel bad. Worse, if you are having worse problems then everyone else, everyone else just looks like they're complaining for little/no reason.
Some support groups also have cliques and a lot of drama.

Some support groups are great, but I'd say most (at least on the GLBTQ spectrum of support groups) are just not worth it outside their resources.

Family therapy can be good but normally ends up bombing in my opinion. Most people who are in family therapy are there because some one (usually a parent) is an obnoxious a*****e. And being in family therapy does not change that. I've been to family therapy once or twice because of my brother's problems, and it sort of worked out but only because it was more of a "teaching parents how to parent a violent ADHD kid" sort of thing.

Some people have obviously had family therapy work for them, but on the whole, it usually doesn't, especially if you're a teenager and you have shitty parents. What is more advantageous is if your parents and you attend the same therapist at different times, so the therapist can speak to you both privately.

I'm probably missing a lot of stuff. I could seriously talk about this sort of thing forever, probably. But my post is already huge so I'll just stop here.

Thank you for your response! That was very informative! Feel free to say as much as you want about the subject. I'm just curious about people's thoughts about the subject. I never thought of therapy as a preventive medicine, but it does make sense now that you mention it. I did think that certain kinds may end up just causing people to distract themselves from their problems instead of confronting them though, but I guess it depends on what kinds of problems a patient has too. I had to laugh when I read the part about family therapy because that was exactly my experience lol. We would go through a perfectly productive meeting, we had found solutions, and then we go home, and after agreeing to do what the counselor said, my stepdad would be like, "Nope, we're doing it my way." When I met individually with my counselor I wanted to keep talking and I felt like meetings were never long enough. I mean, the reason I was even in it was because of an incident between my parents and I, but I didn't want to talk about my family. I was kinda like, "Well since you're here, I want you to help me understand myself on a personal level. I've already moved on from the fact that I don't get along with my family."

[Vardoger]

Quote:

I did think that certain kinds may end up just causing people to distract themselves from their problems instead of confronting them though

Sometimes that's part of the treatment.
- Sometime people have more than one issue. Issues get prioritized. Some get ignored until later.
- Sometimes a person wants help but doesn't want to talk about the root of the problem. Therapy works on different time lines for everyone. Sometimes people need to talk about 'nothing' before they can actually discuss the root of the problems.
- Sometimes the problem is out of the patient's control. A short example that comes to mind is a minor with bad parents. You can't move out or really do anything until you turn 18, so therapy as a place to unwind and not have to worry about a problem you can't get away from realistically (yet) can be very beneficial.

---

Overall, I think therapy is awesome. But it's not for everyone. Sometimes people only want/need meds. Sometimes people would rather try to solve their problems themselves. Sometimes people will go through phases of everything (yo that's me).

I'm 27 and been dealing with Depression for nearly my whole life. I've got a lot of methods of coping now and while I still have an open mind to some degree, there are some things I do that I'm not willing to change.

A huge part of dealing with mental illness is actually admitting you have a problem and you need help. If you don't want to better yourself, you will not get better. So therapy will only work as much as you let it. That's also why I think family therapy really doesn't work. Most of the time there's someone in the session that doesn't want to be there, and like your dad, will just say whatever to get out of it and continue being an arse at home. Other times people will fight in front of the therapist and that doesn't really help either.

Ultimately, therapy is introspective. I think the point of it is to have a guided exercise in discovering yourself. Learning how to identify what is wrong or what is causing behaviors/feelings you don't like, and learning how to deal with those things is something you could do on your own, but a therapist really helps and can speed along the process. But sometimes people just need a passive ear to get their frustrations out and that's all they need, too.

[kinnykins]

i've been to soooo many therapists over the years, since my parents got divorced when i was six. during the custody case (which lasted SIX ******** YEARS) i spoke with a woman who called herself a counselor (and i understood was under confidentiality) and i spoke freely with her. and she gave the transcripts as evidence in the case. it took me like 15 years to trust therapists.
i recently did psychotherapy to identify and treat the root of my anxiety disorder, or w/e it is i'm ******** up with. took about 3 years and it was very helpful. but by the end i was just stopping by once a week to chat rather than treat, so i called it a stop. after that, weed was legalized in washington state and i've been treating my anxiety with that. 3nodding

[Chieftain Twilight]

I have been diagnosed with Paranoid Schizophrenia when I was 16 by a psychologist. he very likely didn't know what he was doing when he evaluated me.

I was baker acted shortly afterwards (or was it before? I cannot remember). so I got to spend a few days in a Crisis Stabilization Unit, where I talked a couple times with one of their counsilors in a group session. that was actually really nice. a bit patronizing, but other than that I felt like I was given more respect and self-expression than anyone has ever let me have before.

I later went to Family Counceling, but it didn't work out. the Councelor was fine. I enjoyed talking with him privately. but during group sessions dad continued to insist that everything was my fault and that he couldn't be wrong about anything. that pissed me th ******** off, probably as much as he was pissed off to even be included in the counceling (I was the first one to suggest Family COunceling. he kept insisting that it wouldn't happen because I was the problem child, so it should only be me getting counceling. his idea was that I needed to be "corrected". ultimately, mom settled it by insisting on Family Counceling).

we ended up stopping that, without any progress. because dad was too ******** stubborn to ever admit that he could possibly be wrong, or that anybody's opinions or voices were even valid if they conflicted with his in any way at all.

other than that, I have tried all o twice to talk with a guidance councelor in college, and they were useless. I have spoken to lawyers before, if that counts....

my experience is that Counceling can be a useful and helpful tool if you can find one that is good or right for you. however, you should always trust yourself more than your therapist or councelor. they should be there to serve as guidance and an impartial listener to help you figure things out for yourself. but they shouldn't ever try to manipulate or influence your behavior or thoughts without your informed consent and desire.

unfortunately, many do. in fact, corrective behavioral therapy is one of many common practices of those in these types of professions. so do be careful.

[Vardoger]

Chieftain Twilight

I have been diagnosed with Paranoid Schizophrenia when I was 16 by a psychologist. he very likely didn't know what he was doing when he evaluated me

Why is that?
I saw you posted being diagnosed with schizophrenia in the regrets thread. I wanted to ask why there too, but it seems more appropriate in this thread.

[AmberSkyeF]

otoriio

I was just curious if anyone here has ever been to see a counselor, psychoanalyst, psychologist, or therapist for any reason and if it actually worked out for them. I was just recently reminded of when I met with counselors when I was younger and how they were always effective when I did it alone, but when I did it with my family it didn't work, partially because I feel a lot more comfortable talking to strangers and partially because I have stubborn family members, but otherwise I feel like it may have worked. Then I remember this "divorce group" in my elementary school, and all we seemed to do was color, which I felt like solved nothing, but maybe because I wasn't really coping with much in the first place.

Discuss:
-Have you ever seen a counselor, psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, psychologist, or therapist?
-Did it help?
-If you've tried various forms of therapy, which one(s) worked best for you?
-Do you participate in any form of therapy on your own (or in groups, but basically anything you personally picked up, not necessarily suggested by a counselor)?
-How does this help?
-What kinds of things do you find therapeutic?
-Do you prefer lone introspection or venting in groups or to one person in times of stress? If you prefer groups or one person, to whom do you prefer to talk to?
-Any psychoanalytical methods or concepts you find interesting
-People that make life difficult for others
-People that don't want to help themselves

I have been diagnosed with bipolar type 1 (possibly rapid cycling), an anxiety disorder (which might be panic disorder), and will most likely receive a diagnosis of PTSD when I see my psychologist or psychiatrist next. Not fun.

1. I see a psychiatrist and psychologist. I also hope to start group therapy if I can find a place that does it. I've also been hospitalized three times.

2. It does help. I need those medications, and my psychologist does both talk therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy.

3. CBT and medications--and hospitalizations.

4. Ballet is my form of therapy, and as I've said, I desperately want to start group therapy, but there is none where I live.

5. Ballet kills my stress and my worries because ballet is the only thing I can think about. It's such a hard artistic form, and thinking about anything else will royally screw my ability to perform the best I can.

6. Ballet, sometimes writing, personally made tea from Teavana, sometimes video games, sometimes reading, and hot baths.

7. Venting. My psychiatrist and psychologist. When I was hospitalized, venting in group therapies was the best thing for me.

8. CBT, mostly. It's about being given assignments that cater to your specific issues. It causes you to think about your issues so that when you go to your next appt. with whatever your homework was, you can discuss it with your therapist who will then provide solutions.

9. Sometimes my fiance will make life difficult for me without knowing it. I was recently sexually assaulted, and some of what he does triggers me. I was okay with it before, but for now I'm not. So he'll fall into this temporary depression for like ten minutes, until he gets out of it, and that makes me feel guilty and that somehow it's my fault. And then I get angry at may assailant, and then I'm just irritable afterward and angry at everything. Then my assailant himself. I had a brief glimpse of him when I went to pick up my paycheck Friday. I was in a panic mode, though I tried not to show it to my boss while I was trying to show her several assignments I worked on outside of my actual work hours. When I went to my car, however, I felt like a ninja sneaking around to see if he was anywhere near me when I was trying to get to my car. I was depressed for the next two days and still am a little bit, but medications can't fix it. I'm already on a cocktail of them that it's depressing in itself. I take 10 pills a day for my mental health.

10. People who don't want help are exasperating. Some people absolutely need medications for relief so that they can get to a stable point to talk about their problems and what led to those issues. If they never want help, they make life difficult for others, and while people try to sympathize, you get to a point where you just can't care anymore because they don't care.

[Chieftain Twilight]

Bornes

Chieftain Twilight

I have been diagnosed with Paranoid Schizophrenia when I was 16 by a psychologist. he very likely didn't know what he was doing when he evaluated me

Why is that?
I saw you posted being diagnosed with schizophrenia in the regrets thread. I wanted to ask why there too, but it seems more appropriate in this thread.

did I mention it in that thread? I mention it alot, but I didn't think there.

thing is, there are alot of people that are convinced I was misdiagnosed. and to tell you the truth, I've been starting to think they're right. but I don't even know how to begin looking for a second opinion. really, I always have this mental block about anything involving me seeing a health professional.

I have managed my alleged schizophrenia without medication my entire life. if I really am schizophreic, I"m the highest-functioning schizo I've ever met or heard of. I was alot more unstable when I was a teenager, but kids are always unstable. once I cut down on the drinking, stopped hanging out with druggies, and got out of my last abusive relatioship I stopped having hallucinations. most of the time. I mean, I still get night terrors, but there's PTSD to go along with it now.

part of me thinks that the episodes were just stress. and not just the hallucinations, but the memory problems, too.

[spacekitten]

I've been to 2 therapist over the years. One was a child therapist, and I was 15. It didn't work out well. Either mom was in the room with me, or the therapist would talk to her shortly after, and since some of my problems were ABOUT my mom I felt like there wasn't much I could say/do. Dude and my mother were both convinced I was just 'being a teenager' and had no "real" problems, so they didn't take me seriously or listen to me much. It blew, big time.

Then I went to one a few years later, at my dad's suggestion. My mom was going through a lot of health/mental problems, I just needed someone on the outside of the situation to spill it all out to. She was extremely effective, even if she didn't do a whole lot more than listen to me, and help explain to me why I was feeling the way I was at the time.

[Cosmic Jirachi]

I've seen three, and each experience was very different.

First one I was forced to go to by my dad because he thought I was sick in the head. I really wasn't back then but eventually I figured it was nice to have someone to vent about my problems to and decided to stick with it. She was very nice and helped me through a few things but I just don't see why I had to go.

The second time was voluntary, and I got the best therapist I could have ever asked for. We clicked very well and he taught me a lot about how to deal with my anxiety. (I actually had a reason to go that time, yay!) I learned plenty of relaxation techniques, and faced some of my fears head-on to get me feeling less anxious about them. He even helped me while my fiancé and I were split for a few months, and anyone who dared to take on my problems at that point can automatically be regarded as a great being LOL. I stopped going to him once my problems withered away and I figured that would be it.

Last one I went to was short-lived... I had to go because I ended up in a crisis unit earlier this year, and I probably needed it but I wasn't crazy about the therapist. She was nice, but her head wasn't really in the right place... The computers were acting up for the first few sessions so I let it slide, but even after they were fixed all she did was listen to music and when I would try to talk to her about my problems she didn't really respond. That's the last time I went. Dunno if I'll go again. After my second therapist I just don't know if I'll feel comfortable opening up to anyone else or trusting anyone with my problems.

[MarigoldMari]

As a child I was sent to various ridiculously well educated psychologists at respected institutions. I didn't appreciate them. I want them back. What I have now is utter s**t and I now believe that any mental health professional who is not ridiculously well educated and at a respected institution is utter s**t and definitely a waste of money. I was seeing these because a judge court ordered my parents to get a child psychologist to monitor my mental development due to the violence and other forms of assault on me that was going on 24/7 at my home that my parents had no idea how to control.

I have tried group therapy, outpatient therapy, inpatient therapy, and individual therapy. I like individual therapy because there's nobody there to say they have it worse than you and to tell you to shut up because your situation isn't s**t or to otherwise be a condescending a*****e.

Like, one time, I went to this group therapy for people with serious medical problems. I was talking about mine, and this big black lady started shouting at me saying she had cancer and that my problems weren't s**t. Like, chewing me out about how I was a "whiny little stupid baby". I was about 20 at the time so I was kind of the baby of the group but she had no right. Afterwards, the group's moderating counselor pulled me aside and told me that lady had been really upset that day about nothing that had to do with me and she probably was venting her frustrations at me but really wtf. Unfortunately I've been to many group therapies since then about various subjects and I find the situation to be typical. There is always one shouting a*****e.

What does help me specifically is when I have a kind and thoughtful counselor/therapist who listens as I rant about things and then gives their educated and experienced opinions. I have had one such therapist but he was way too expensive. The other individual therapists I've had have been rude or don't take me seriously or have nothing to offer but a series of "I'm sorry" or "that must be really awful". Though, I did have this closet old school goth psychologist one time for about three months and though we didn't talk about my problems we did talk about gothic things or listen to gothic music that he wanted to show me the whole sessions (I wasn't paying for them, so hey) so that was pretty cool and I did leave feeling pretty happy.

I guess I'm just looking for that one perfect therapist to go to every two weeks for the next twenty years. Some people have that. I currently feel like I'm shopping in a big warehouse store of mental health professionals who all are going to break within a few months and I'll have to go buy a new one. I have been wandering this warehouse store my entire life.

[LilPinkCandy]

I've been told that I need to see therapist/counselor/whatever. I get depressed often, have a lot of fears/anxiety. I deal with it by avoiding those things, talking on the internet and listening to music. Things were a lot worse years ago but I've dealt with those things by staying at a distance. Sometimes it makes me feel bad because I don't want to stay at a distance from camp but I feel like if I get closer again then people will die again.... feels like a never-ending cycle. I don't regret camp though. I've met a lot of great friends there.

I have seen a behavioral counselor when I was a teen. My mom had issues parenting my sister and I guess she decided I needed a counselor too, idk. Sometimes all three of us would go in together. Goodness that was awkward. She would ask a lot of questions like what I wanted to be and stuff so I'm guessing that because I wanted to pursue singing until well into my teens she thought I needed a therapist. My mom would also talk about how I watched Charmed so the therapist suggested reading The Hobbit instead. It was weird.

I don't feel like either really worked and family therapy even less. I hated it because I didn't want to talk to anyone. The prospect still feels unnerving. That stuff all gets written down and saved in a nice little folder. *chills*

I talk to the internet instead. Or distract myself. I never want to see a therapist ever again.

[nitznitz]

otoriio

-Have you ever seen a counselor, psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, psychologist, or therapist?

All of the above but psychoanalyst. Thank you very much, but I like having a v****a and both my parents are sexually repulsive to me.

otoriio

-Did it help?

Depends which

otoriio

-If you've tried various forms of therapy, which one(s) worked best for you?

Talk therapy. It helps to have someone to listen, and they're trained to give pretty good advice.

otoriio

-Do you participate in any form of therapy on your own (or in groups, but basically anything you personally picked up, not necessarily suggested by a counselor)?

Own. I don't think I'll be comfortable talking around other people.

otoriio

-How does this help?

It takes it off your chest and sometimes gives you a general direction even if you're still stumbling around in the foggy, dark storm.

otoriio

-What kinds of things do you find therapeutic?

Crying, venting, beating stuff up(never tried it as actual therapy though).

otoriio

-Do you prefer lone introspection or venting in groups or to one person in times of stress? If you prefer groups or one person, to whom do you prefer to talk to?

Lone, because in groups I'll either feel like I'm boring everyone to death, like I'm being that b***h who only sits there and never talks, like they're judging me or like they feel like I'm judging them.

otoriio

-Any psychoanalytical methods or concepts you find interesting

That all of our true motives are irrational and that we don't really want to face it. It really makes sense when you see all those egocentric, self-righteous ******** out there.

otoriio

-People that make life difficult for others

Too many types to count. Mainly entitled assholes.

otoriio

-People that don't want to help themselves

Some are afraid. Some want to feel special in the worst way possible.

[Padawan Ryan]

I did in high school and it didn't work for me. It actually made my problems worse because I felt like my counselor was judging me, so I stressed out over everything I did tell her.