So, I'm seeing a shrink now.

[Excess]

Yeah, a thread from me. Fuck if I know. I'm feeling good about things though. Anywho, the other day I saw a psychiatrist again. It's technically my third time but I had a lot more time with him than I did before. Really gotta give him credit; he knows his shit. I went to one before and they told me I was hopeless.

But yeah, helped my come to terms with a lot of stuff. Well, I mean it's still a work in progress, but anyone who claims not to be is a robot. So I'll still be going for a coupla more weeks. Maybe if I keep at it I might actually start to be...mentally healthy! Well, healthy-ish. Anyway, dunno why I posted this. Bored waiting to go out I guess.

Anyone else see a psych at some point? I guess some just suck and some get inside your head. Clusterfuck it is too. Also the little chair I laid on was comfy. Oh I know! I'll ask if he'll have pancakes next time! That'd be perfect.

 

[TKLVR181]

Oh man, it is so good to see you so chipper. Good to see you making a post, much less a thread, and good to see you open about something that's helping you. In fact, it's good to see you on the forum PERIOD. Where the hell you been man?! XD

I'm seriously glad to see you've found a guy you can talk to. I mean, I know I'm a brilliant psychologist and all, but even I can only do so much over the internets.

Plus I'm not licensed to give out drugs 😛

On a more serious note, I have been to a psychologist, when I was younger. I was feeling anxious and depressed after my parents divorce and again when I got back from a situation I wasn't happy in (I was lucky enough to have the same woman both times). The good ones make you feel like you aren't "getting help", just that you've found somebody who's going to help you out.

As a licensed psych myself (I'm not used to being able to say that 😵) it's always good to see this stuff being used for good and all.

Hope you keep feeling better and stuff! Keep us updated! \o/

~K

 

[knicks255]

I've been to one or two, anxiety/OCD stuff. One of them was particularly memorable in that I'm pretty sure he didn't speak more than a few sentences of English, proceeded to try and get me diagnosed as Autistic 🙂blink), and turned out to be full of shit. I'll never forget what he told me though:

"Eric. Your personality BEEEG BEEEEEEG HALLMARK SIGN of Autism."

 

[Rox_My_Sox1]

If it makes you feel confident, more secure, and all around just plain feeling awesome then it must be doing something right hun. I got counseling myself after being raped and I have to say it helped ALOT. Heh, Karen, you know we love you but the day you start giving us prescriptions is the day we find out the moon actually IS made of cheese. Not that I'm saying that'd be a bad thing. ^_~

 

[sadi]

That's Great! Who knows, if you continue feeling better and better, you 'might' become a regular poster, here? (Anything's possible, right? :huh)
That's amazingly fantastic that simply speaking to someone is helping you feel so much better, figuring everything out and helping your issues get resolved! :happy:

Personally, I've seen a shrink when I was young, after admitting to my parents that I was suicidally depressed, already having settled said issue with my pastor beforehand (psychologist? psychiatrist? don't know which). As everything was 'settled' at that time, I didn't say much more than 'fine', and other monosyllabic responses. Verdict: Not good. 🙁

After my car accident, I had regular visits with a social worker and he was fantastic! Allowed me to vent, help me see things in a different light, offering caring suggestions and options to help, guiding me in a positive direction. Really enjoyed talking with him. Didn't seem like a 'shrink', diagnosing me or anything, (which he was) but just a caring ear to listen to. Verdict: Good. :thumbsup

This Monday, I have an appointment with a neuropsychologist, so we'll see how things go after my first meeting with them. Verdict: unkown. :huh

 

[chicag0]

I was diagnosed with PTSD in January of 2007, after trying to deal with my addict/bipolar/abusive mother, raising my little sisters, working, college, and helping my homeless, alcoholic father through rehab after he had been absent from our lives for 13 years.

Was quite a bit on my plate and it wasn't until I had a mental break that I realized that I probably had something going on since childhood. My "normal" was a constant state of stress and panic and I just didn't realize that life wasn't supposed to be like that.

The trial and error of finding out what anti-depressant would work for me was a bit frustrating. The wrong drug, since it deals with your mind, can change your mood / perception of things and it can be hard to determine that it's the medicine making you feel that way. I didn't want anything really to alter my mood, but the constant panic was keeping me from wanting to leave my house, when I would leave - I would always have a pit in my stomach. Regular panic attacks and puking every morning from nerves. Then my mom slit her wrists in front of me and my sisters and I had to clean up the blood. Lost 60 pounds in a month after that. Zero appetite. I was a lot fatter then, though, so while it wasn't healthy, I didn't die or anything lol

I had insurance through school so seeing a shrink for my Prozac (helped keep the edge off which allowed me to clear my mind and better focus on improving my mental health and dealing with the stress of life at the same time - but had some sexual side effects that I wasn't too thrilled about) and a psychologist just to talk, was easier. Since I have no insurance right now (though looking into it) I just read a lot of books about cognitive brain therapy and also buddhism, which helps to put a lot of things into perspective and give me coping mechanisms and ways of looking at things differently in order to not be so negative.

At the end of the day, people think that happiness is something that just falls out of the sky into your lap, but it takes work. You have to change the way you view things and life. You have to not be so hard on yourself and others. You have to work to not get so worked up about small things. Find healthy ways of de-stressing (woot exercise!). You literally have to derail the train of negative habits your brain has gotten into over the years and start to make new tracks to positive thinking. It's not easy, by any means, but it is possible with help from the right medication and psychiatrist.

That's my .02.

 

[TKLVR181]

.

At the end of the day, people think that happiness is something that just falls out of the sky into your lap, but it takes work. You have to change the way you view things and life. You have to not be so hard on yourself and others. You have to work to not get so worked up about small things. Find healthy ways of de-stressing (woot exercise!). You literally have to derail the train of negative habits your brain has gotten into over the years and start to make new tracks to positive thinking. It's not easy, by any means, but it is possible with help from the right medication and psychiatrist.

So much this. If I could give people advice on how to be happy, it's pretty much this paragraph. Happiness is a state of mind, not a state of being. The derailing your negative thoughts, or "just stop" as I learned it, has helped me enormously. I suffered from panic attacks as well, though not nearly as severe as you did, and I had to learn that, if there is nothing I can do about a stresser at the time , there is no point in thinking about it. For example we got our car tag this week--we weren't able to do it until a specific day. It worried me for a few days before hand, but I had to remind myself I had a plan and that there was no need to panic.

Planning helps. A lot. I can't stress that enough--if you know what you're going to do, it lowers anxiety. That goes for everything from how you're going to pay your rent down to what's for dinner!

~K

 

[The pear]

I saw a shrink last year. Only went to one though, as I hate discussing my feelings, and I'm too clammed up in my own independence to want to discuss my past, unless I feel confident in the person knowing.

So yeah, I have, but it didn't work out for me, however, hope it works out for you, seems to be.

 

[chicag0]

So much this. If I could give people advice on how to be happy, it's pretty much this paragraph. Happiness is a state of mind, not a state of being. The derailing your negative thoughts, or "just stop" as I learned it, has helped me enormously. I suffered from panic attacks as well, though not nearly as severe as you did, and I had to learn that, if there is nothing I can do about a stresser at the time , there is no point in thinking about it. For example we got our car tag this week--we weren't able to do it until a specific day. It worried me for a few days before hand, but I had to remind myself I had a plan and that there was no need to panic.

Planning helps. A lot. I can't stress that enough--if you know what you're going to do, it lowers anxiety. That goes for everything from how you're going to pay your rent down to what's for dinner!

~K

Great point on the part about planning. I do that so much and hadn't really realized til.I thought about your words here. 🙂

 

[Excess]

Thanks all. Glad that you took time to respond and say such meaningful things, instead of just not because "Making toast!"

@Karen: Yeah I dunno, just haven't. Some reason just felt like it. Go figure. Also, I'm with Sox on that. 😛

@Sadi: I dont' think I'll EVER be a regular poster. If anyone here says they are regular they are...errr...not! Probably. Maybe. Also hope your appointment goes well.

@Chicag: Yeah I was the same way, always worried and such. Maybe I should try reading some things like that. I can certainly see how it might take some doing to get yourself in a proper state of mind. My way growing up was that everyone was gonna be hard on you, all of the time, and that you are inferior to others until proven otherwise, which I was told I could never do. Eh, well I dunno bout all that, but seems that everyone does indeed have something that works for them. And hey, if it works and doesn't hurt anyone else, then who's business is it of anyone else's?

 

[Beckers1]

Well I know most people skimmed over this, but no real professional therapist would tell a patient they are seeing that they are "hopeless" unless it warrants such an accusation. The problem with therapy is that you have to want to be helped when you walk into their office, it's not just them taking stabs at the dark. So unless you were being purposely hard to read I think that was a terrible thing to accuse you of.

Other than that I have not been in therapy, I am finally graduating with my master in psychology this year though and am very stoked to finally be able to do something along the same lines.

 

[Rox_My_Sox1]

Well I know most people skimmed over this, but no real professional therapist would tell a patient they are seeing that they are "hopeless" unless it warrants such an accusation.

I will say that there probably are humans who are so downright vile and have done such terrible things that no amount of therapy can make them decent again.

Fortunately, they appear to be few and far between (at least from what I can tell).

 

[TKLVR181]

I personally see absolutely no excuse for a professional therapist of any kind to tell somebody they are beyond hope. Beyond your expertise maybe, with a referral out. But for a professional to be so discourteous and downright disheartening to a patients face is disgusting and inexcusable IMO. Being a therapist is about helping people come to terms with themselves -without judging-, no MATTER what they tell you they've done. It's our JOB to not judge. To tell someone they're hopeless is to utterly lose professionalism.

Sorry, rant over, didn't mean to get quite so passionate. Carry on.

~K

 

[Excess]

Well, I mean i've been told I'm hopeless before. Like by my dad. And my ex. And my high school science teacher.

Personally, I don't get why it's so important I have hope in my life. She was a nice girl but way to religious for my taste.

 

[chicag0]

Gotta let that shit roll like water off a duck's back. Not easy, but with work it can happen. Shoot, my mom done called me a waste of sperm, money, little bitch, shoulda put me up for adoption, yadda yadda hey.

But then I realized I control my emotions and reactions and why the hell would I let someone like that rent space in my head for free...

But yeah, for a therapist to say that makes no sense. I mean, at the very least wouldn't they want to keep makin money?

 

[The pear]

My therapist told me I was hopeless, but it was for aforementioned reason, hopeless because I didn't want people to help me, I wanted to help myself.

No person is hopeless if they want to be helped.

 

[Lee47]

I was forced to see a psychologist because of repeated episodes where I would get the shakes, sweat, and have humongous nervous symptoms that made it hard for me to work at that time. He asked me questions to check my "orientation", like "Who is the President?"; I think I surprised him when I reeled off the last 8 in a row.

It turned out that I had hyperthyroid disorder, which flared up and gave me those symptoms every 6-7 months, and finally got so severe that my GP sent me to a specialist who diagnosed me correctly and burned my thyroid out with radioactive iodine pills. So, that was better I guess?

Hope you're still keepin' on.

 

[meteor]

Truth be told i think a lot of people go for some form of treatment during their life.

First time around was depression following a motor cycle accident,the outcome was a change of meds and it worked after a while.

Smoking and drinking was the next order the drink being very hard, and needing much help, that was about 14 years ago.

Recently periods of stress and anxiety started to overtake my life, and the medication was leading to perpetual tiredness, along with meds for other things.

I stopped taking a lot of this medication and feel alive again, first time for years, i have control and energy.

I agree with one comment, you do have to want to face your demons and be treated, and its hard work for you and the folks around you, but worth the struggle in the end.

Good luck to you and i hope you get it sorted, your not alone, a lot of people have problems of this nature, but won't admit it, let alone discuss it, (a problem shared is a problem much reduced) so your on the way.

 

[Stjanki2819]

I won't pretend to know what you're going through, cause i don't
But i thought I would share my shrink story
I saw a shrink due to my anxiety disorder. It was holding me back in school because i couldn't focus. I remember that the meeting didn't help too much. I solved the problem myself however. I did it by convincing myself that this statement was true: "Feeling anxious about something will not solve the problem, but rather further it."
So what i'm trying to say is that, even if a shrink can't help you, you might be able to find the answer yourself. But once again, i can't assume to know what you're going through.
One last thing: A shrink who uses the word "hopeless" is pretty terribad at their job.
Good luck