Fugitivus Discussion Forum

Yes, a good therapist can be difficult to find, and psychiatrists are often notoriously bad at talk therapy. They are medical doctors, so they tend to look at this stuff as purely neurochemical. A skilled professional therapist can be a real asset, however, if one is available to you, especially if family and friends are already a major source of stress.

Additionally, attempting to diagnose and recommend treatment for someone over the internet is a risky game. Many medical professionals won't even do that, so my default response to someone coming in here like this is probably going to include "talk to a professional, if you can." I recognize that it's not the be all, end all, but I also think it's problematic to dissuade someone who may have a serious medical condition from seeking care.

I also think it's important, if you are recommending ways of coping with said condition to emphasize, "this worked for me/my friend/etc." and not present your way of coping as the panacea for overcoming a mental health problem. Over at Shakesville, I believe they have a rule about this on threads that discuss mental health. I'm not saying anyone was necessarily doing that here, just offering a word of caution.

Eirwyn - If you are not happy with, or do not feel like you can trust your therapist, I strongly recommend finding a new one. It is important that you can trust, and are happy with, your therapist, especially since you are telling him/her things that you may not tell anyone else. And it is also important that you can trust the advice and diagnoses he/she is giving you. One great way to find a good therapist is by asking people you know and trust if they have any recommendations.

While confiding in friends and family can be a wonderful source of support, I would still recommend seeing a therapist every once in a while, especially if there is a possibility that you have PTSD. It is definitely something you don't want to deal with on your own and completely out of the watchful eye of a trained professional.

Everyone has their own views and beliefs regarding therapy. Trust your instincts and go with what you feel is right for you. Just know that there are great therapists out there, if you feel that is something you want to continue doing. It just takes some research and patience to find the right one!

I think I am going to stop seeing my therapist. I tried to get more information out of her on coping techniques today and her advice is basically "just do it". She also likes to imply that I'm selfish or needy when I talk about the things my mom does that bother me. I feel I've learned as much as I can from her if she's going to withhold psychodynamic therapy until I'm done "just doing" things. She also didn't think I have PTSD because I don't have flash backs. I'm not sure where I stand on that now, (I mean I'll be pretty embarrassed if I'm wrong, after making this thread, but I don't know) but I think everyone's advice has been pretty good so far because it's been advice I can definitely use next time I'm starting to get anxious and high strung and close to snapping.

Yeah, that'd be my personal ABORT MISSION threshold right there. Therapist passing judgment on client: pretty clearly doing it wrong.

I hope you find someone or something that works for you, since this therapist didn't.

Edit: Discussion forums have quote tags. I'll start remembering this eventually, I'm sure...

the flashbacks are mandatory for a ptsd diagnosis, I think.

But still: you can be traumatized by something that happened in your life and that is BAD no matter if it is labelled as PTSD or not.

my advise would be to go to a therapist that is higher qualified than just a bachelor's degree. In Germany you aren't even allowed to do therapy unless you do your master's...

That would be my advice, too. Psychologists, while certainly not immune to the same problems as other mental health professionals, will at least have more experience, and I've found that they are generally better at being nonjudgmental.

I'm not sure what kind of degree she has- I didn't think to ask or look for it. I'll keep that in mind while I go on a hunt for a new therapist, thank you.

Eirwyn, another thing to look for is membership of a well-regarded professional organisation which handles certification for professionals wherever you are. In Australia it's The Australian Psychological Society, and Google tells me that the US equivalent (seems) to be the ABPP. Professionals belonging to these kinds of associations are required to maintain their professional development and usually to stay abreast of evidence-supported therapy options. Finding a certified psychologist greatly improves your chances of finding an ethical and informed therapist.

I don't know if this helps, but but two years ago I had a mild case of PTSD. It's a stupid story. I had a dentist who couldn't sedate properly and while I was lying on the table hyperventilating with pain he would yell at me and tell me "that I was not in pain".

I came home crying, but felt much calmer a few hours later. But for a year after the incident certain sights, sounds and smells would make me burst out in tears, though I wasn't feeling any physical pain or fear. I had also become terrified of dentists, though I never had a problem with them before.

What helped me was to find a dentist who had a lot of patience with me and gave me all the time in the world I needed before I could let him sedate me. He was also extremely precise with the needles and at all times made sure I wasn't in pain. The fear of dentists offices was mostly gone after that.

I think that time and people who believe you are vitally important to recovery. Mine wasn't very severe and is completely gone now. The triggers of the PTSD is something I eventually had to go through. I am not sure it will be the same for everyone on the road to recovery though and I hope this story was useful.

Oh wow, thank you Tevarre. That's very useful.

And thank you, Megann. I'm still wondering if I have it or not- I'm wondering if I could say that any time my mom talks to me is a bit of a trigger, or if it's just a conditioned response rather than a flashback type thing. Both times I freaked out, it was because I was under stress from other things while my mom kept talking to me. My mom was my abuser, so I'm very tense around her, even if she's less abusive today.