Posted on 05/18/2013 12:33:46 PM PDT by neverdem
I’ve known several people who have gone to a psychologist. They learned “why” the did as they did, got a pat on the back, forgave themselves for being jerks, expected everyone else to forget they were jerks, all so they could “move on”.
I could get more specific, but I think you get my drift.
That person is one who needs to see a mental health counselor. The person is stuck in place. A few counseling sessions would free that person to speak freely and get the problem(s) resolved.
You are talking about “sharing the burden”. It is not an insignificant act, but what about personal responsibility?
Do you, as a psychiatrist, address that issue? I’m not being argumentative, but without personal responsibility, how can there be any resolution?
thank you for your excellant and reasoned post.
As in any medical profession, there are jerks and in many situations there are also competent,excellant and often also spiritual psychiatrists who are able to help those suffering from mental illness and return to a full and satisfying life.
On some occasions, a run in with a jerk can give the needed boost to someone who can turn their life around...usually they do not suffer from a serious mental illness that may require hospitalization, medication and ongoing counseling to put their life in order.
I'm not sure what you mean. Every patient has personal responsibility for what he/she does. Counseling allows the patient to discuss problems which concern him/her. Various solutions will be discussed in order to understand all the alternatives available, but it is the patient who makes the decision to act or not act and they have a better understanding how to solve problems from that point forward. The patient has the power, the counselor does not.
I would never say, “You must do this.” It was not my prerogative to run a person's life.
Thanks for the difficult work you do. Mental illness is just as real as physical illness, but it’s easier to see a broken bone.
Though a bit ambivalent , I am on the side of psychiatric counseling. Some people need it. But, I think those who seek it are weak.
If the psychiatrist just lets a person spew a bit..relive themselves, then says the decision is yours...what good is it.? The decision has Always been that of the patient.
The patient...just needed to talk. Which makes the psychiatrist just an expensive sounding board.
How does the psychiatrist give anyone a better understanding without giving advise?
BTW, my Father in Law was a very well known psychiatrist in San Antonio. A brilliant man, but geez, he thought he had everyone’s number. Maybe he did.
“But, I think those who seek it are weak.”
That is putting every person in the same box. Each person is unique. Circumstances happen that may be overwhelming to a person and counseling helps the person take control and move on with his/her life.
“If the psychiatrist just lets a person spew a bit..relive themselves, then says the decision is yours...what good is it.?”
You are not “listening” to what I wrote. I did not say I sat there like a log and said nothing except “the decision is yours.” Perhaps you could read my post again and understand it better.
The odds of finding a "really good" anything in our world today, especially a really good psychologist, are poor.
I was just pointing out the practical difference between them, in this state anyway, unless things have changed.
I admire anyone who takes the initiative to figure things out about themselves and overcome their life's obstacles. That process can be a very difficult and, for some, a humbling experience.
One never knows about the people around us. Some have gone through remarkably tough things and yet are still here.
Their wounds are real, but unseen, and the damage can take time and skill to heal. That kind of skill is not common.
Which is too bad, since we are born into, raised by and must live in an increasingly damaged world of the spiritually deaf, dumb and blind.
Every person who sees a psychiatrist IS in the same box. They are overwhelmed by their problems - unable to deal with it on their own.
I don’t need to re read your post to understand that. So what if you say the decision is theirs? It was always theirs.
The psychiatrist is a Stamp Of Approval. And there is a place for that, a meaning to that.
I’m on your side in this because there exists in this world, weak people. People who must have an audience to their problems.
That does not make psychiatry insignificant.
I should have shriveled up and taken to my bed 20 years ago. Justifiably so. But in my blood somewhere, was this will to carry on.
Maybe I have a bit of contempt for those unable to pick themselves up, dust themselves off...and carry on!
There was a moment in my life, without getting into details, where I woke up (I was 17), and said to myself “ Kay, you are the only one taking care of you, there is no white knight...GET UP!
I agree Marcella....that if your not functioning as you know yourself to do and if the air, so to speak, doesn’t clear over a period of time... it’s time for help.
I got help when there were many family deaths happening, through natural causes, kids going off to college, and a relocation all at once. You can get overwhelmed and not know it until you find yourself in a closet in tears.
What a wakeup call that was to me! Called a friend who was a Psycologist who actually said he was waiting for my call. He knew things were pilling up and he and his wife also knew I wasn’t taking the time to mourn the losses....there wasn’t time!
I think if you can’t see you have a problem...generally your behavior will signal somethings wrong. For me sitting with a pillow in my closet was NOT normal!
“For me sitting with a pillow in my closet was NOT normal!”
That’s a good example - you weren’t able to live your life in a positive way anymore, you were stuck in the closet with a pillow and that certainly wasn’t normal for you.
Just reading about it sounds like you had a terrible set of events hit all at once.
Yes, that’s exactly what happened.....I learned there is “a time to weep” ....rather than tell yourself to keep moving forward....there is a balance....I was just so busy trying to keep things going...I didn’t take time to do what comes natural in loss.
It was a good move to see a Psycologist...Couldn’t hardly believe I basically needed to just grieve....and to take the time to do so. Which I did...and not in my closet either! ;)
He summed up the issue perfectly:
“There are only two kinds of verifiable mental illness.
“Clinical depression and schizophrenia.
“Everything else is caused by personal inadequacy or unrealistic expectations.”
Here’s a good backgrounder on how the Pink Mafia forced the APA to change the DSM:
http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/204/81-Words
It’s worth listening to and sharing. Ignore the liberal origins, it tells the story pretty faithfully and openly. It will be obvious that it wasn’t a scientific, but a political/emotional decision.
Good posts throughout this thread. Don’t take life too seriously.
I’m waiting for the DSM5r when they state that desire to own a gun and wanting to practice Christianity is considered a codependent mental disorder.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.