Attitudes towards therapy

[HouseHead]

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http://www.studentdoctor.net/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=60777

I know this thread was closed, but there was something about it that I thought was important. That is, there seemed to be several people who indicated that going to a psychiatrist somehow made someone "weak".

I would have to agree with TMS- I think EVERYONE can benefit from therapy, even if they are abnormally normal 😉

It just bothered me that people going into the medical field could be so negative about the possibility of wanting or needing psychiatric care. Many of your patients will be in such a position; I should hope you won't judge them so harshly.

 

[Mike59]

Originally posted by HouseHead
http://www.studentdoctor.net/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=60777
I would have to agree with TMS- I think EVERYONE can benefit from therapy, even if they are abnormally normal 😉

I have to disagree.
The philosophy of allopathic medicine centers itself on creating a condition antagonistic to the diseased state.

If someone completely normal walks into your office and you administer "therapy", what exactly is your goal? Are you alleviating pathology of any kind? Such activity begins to stray from the doctor's role in society. Should everyone be on prozac because it makes us feel a tad better? When you start screwing with the normal baseline, especially in psych, you take society down a slippery downward path into god unchartered territory.😱

If your post was in jest, disregard my comments. 😉 If you were serious, I'll agree to disagree with what you just said in what I've quoted.🙂

 

[abw]

I agree with the op, and hope he wasn't posting this in jest. I seriously think that before everyone graduates high school, or at some other point in their life, everyone should have some sort of counselling experience. Everyone has something about them that could be improved; whether it be anger & stress management, communication, learning to stand up for yourself more, phobias, etc. Poor mental health can quickly be manifested in physical symptoms, a good reason for doctors to be concerned with this. Besides, if everyone has at least one experience with a trained mental health specialist, maybe 1) the stigma associated with mental diseases will be lessened, or 2) some of the risk factors can be treated preventatively

 

[hiphopcutie44]

Originally posted by Mike59
I have to disagree.
The philosophy of allopathic medicine centers itself on creating a condition antagonistic to the diseased state.



What is crazy to me is that you could think that you wouldnt benefit from a psych's care. i personally think that everyone has been through their ups and downs , and the more people someone has to talk and discuss their problems with, the better they will be.

 

[CJLaw]

"I know this thread was closed, but there was something about it that I thought was important. That is, there seemed to be several people who indicated that going to a psychiatrist somehow made someone "weak".

I think you are referring to my post, Househead. However, I never said someone was weak for going to therapy. What I said was that some of us are strong enough to overcome hardships without the help of therapy. Big difference.

As a mental health professional, I understand the need for some to seek professional treatment for mental health disorders, whether it be long term conditions like schizophrenia, schizoeffective disorder, bipolar disorder, schizophreniform, borderline personality disorder and the like or temporary conditions such as PTSB, major depressive disorder, acute stress disorder, and the like. However, for conditions relating to divorce, finacial problems, abandonment, in which some do not need to be medicated--persons benefit from the ability to talk to another individual about their feelings, anxieties,etc. Far too often in today's society, people run to psychiatrists, psychologists, and therapists hoping that it will be the cure all. Sometimes, (and this happens alot) people just need to vent their feelings and get them out in the open, whether it be to a friend or family member. This is what I was referring to. The ability of someone to recognize that they are not in need of therapy, rather they just need a friend to talk to. In a world that tells you, if you feel blue, you need to take prozac, it takes strength to open up in a non-therpauetic setting.

 

[HouseHead]

Therapy in the context of mental health care doesn't necessarily equate with therapy for disease. Going to a psychiatrist doesn't mean relying on Prozac to get you through the bumps in life- many psychiatrists are trained as talk therapists too, not just psychopharmacologists. As for not fitting the philosophy of allopathic medicine, well, there is such a thing as health maintenance.

Saying one is "strong" enough to get through problems without mental health care does indeed imply that people who do turn to professionals somehow aren't "strong" enough to do it on their own. Anyway, sometimes people don't have friends or family to which to turn.

abw- thank you! Destigmatizing mental health care is very important, especially for people going into any of the health care professions. I agree with you that everyone has aspects of their psyche that can be improved. Having someone good to help you identify shortcomings and ways to improve them can be amazing. Also, talk therapy can teach you a lot about yourself, no matter how "strong" you are.

 

[ashkan33]

Originally posted by Mike59

If someone completely normal walks into your office

to be honest with you, i can't remember seeing someone that would be considered "normal" since i was maybe ten or eleven years old. the truth is, everybody has their issues and some people just hide it better than others. but i do have to agree with you on the prozac thing. i think doctors nowadays have a trigger finger when it comes to prescribing meds for depression/anxiety. i think this is careless, negligent, and absolutely inexcusable(sp). where i'm from, every single girl is on some form of antidepressant just because some guy they like screwed them over. instead of prescribing the meds, they should be referring to professionals.

 

[Adcadet]

my opinion is that much of psychotherapy can also be considered "good life skills" and is something everybody can benefit from. Unless severe negligence or malicious malpractice is involved, counseling certainly can't hurt.