Suggestions as to what I should do

[PamelaBarker]

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I thank the members that have responded. I appreciate the honesty. I originally posted a message with the intentions of gaining some knowledge into some plans of actions I should take or if I should even pursue a career in this field. Don't get me wrong I appreciate the honesty because I need to know the truth but I will find some other means of getting answers. I posed the questions because like all people if we are not familiar with something we either ask a question or do research. I know I can't just try to get a PHD right now but in school I was taught you go up the ladder. Get your associates, bachelors, masters, then doctorate. I have figured out that is not the case and was just wanting to make sure since policies and laws change from time to time. I'm Bipolar II and yes have been through too much. I know this is no means of moving through the ranks or automatically getting a job or degree or starting a career but that info was included to give insight to what I have been through. No amount of counseling will help me as I have been going to counselors since the age of 12. And am still currently going. This is something that will take time. I have the support of my husband and family and do the little things like volunteer with hospitals to talk to families that have gone through infant loss and go to support groups. I use these as well as the counseling to help me heal. I mean I have to do what I feel is right, regardless of what others say. So do I sit on the sideline as my life passes me by, and not pursue this because others think I am not fully healed or should be in a different place or stage in my grief? This may just be a symptom of my Bipolar II as I came posing questions and giving part of my life story. I am no stranger to people being in my business or talking to others and am currently writing a book so it doesn't really bother me. But to please some people (since I also have had codependency issues, but just am a genuinely nice person) I will most likely be deleting this post in the future and will just go to a guidance counselor. At least I'll have the face to face interaction. I just figure that you have to have been somewhere to get somewhere and I've been to psychologists/psychiatrists, both civilian and military, that didn't listen or seem to care, told you what you wanted to hear, prescribed unnecessary meds, or rushed through an appt. I was just wondering if it's better to go through this with my past experiences. As a patient, I would rather talk to someone that has been through something similar than to talk with someone that has no clue or little personal experience with what I'm talking about. Hence, there have been no psychologist/psychiatrists that I have talked to that have lost their baby due to stillbirth. I go to outside support for that and will never heal. I will learn to navigate through my grief and depression, but will never be 100%. But that does not mean I will forego my life. It will always be there. Just not in the same capacity. Also, with divorce and suicide? I have been there, and know how it is to be so low that even with family, around you feel alone. And that just because I am in front of a doctor it does not mean I am going to tell him I'm having suicidal thoughts all the time. I guess it's more of a relating tool and to show I have been through this all but am still here. Maybe this is practice for you guys. I am obviously a person that gets seen in mental health so maybe this is your chance to counsel me. I don't know.

 

[psyman]

Wow. You're really jumping the gun here. Yes, you do have to get a Bachelor's degree before a PhD. The best advice will be to start undergrad and see how you enjoy the classes. Discussing anything else at this point is very premature. Get a year or two of coursework under your belt before you go looking into graduate school.

Also, you have posted a significant amount of very personal information on a public forum. I would consider removing it, but that's just my opinion.

In the mean time, you can volunteer in many places as a mentor/volunteers in various settings to work with people from children to the elderly. Perhaps that will suffice for now? Good luck, hope that helps.

Edit: I erased the quotes of the OP

 

[dumbledoresgirl]

I'm going to be very honest with you, and I'll add a disclaimer that I am by no means unsympathetic to your situation, nor is anything in my post intended to be sarcastic, mean, or condescending--so please don't take it as such. And I am also NOT giving out medical or psychological advice (it is not allowed on here, so if it sounds like that's what I'm doing, feel free to edit this, mods!)

The fact that you posted such a huge amount of identifying (personal!) information on a public forum is of concern to me (and as psyman said, I would recommend removing all of the personal information and summarizing it as "I've had a significant history of trauma in my life, which has inspired me to...."

I think you might not be over your trauma yet, and it would be unwise to go into a counseling career without taking care of yourself first. I would strongly encourage you to seek counseling yourself, at the very least so that you can live a healthy and fulfilling life. And then, once you've taken care of your own issues, and you decide you still want to pursue a counseling career--go for it.

I will say, though, that it is highly unlikely (and probably impossible) to gain admission into a PhD program using your own trauma as the motivation (in fact, if you search the threads, you will find one titled "will my past trauma help me gain admission into a PhD program" or something similar to that--one of the mods might remember better). That thread turned pretty argumentative...but the main point to get out of it is that PhD programs will NOT accept you if you reveal that the reason you're applying is because of your own past trauma. They want to be sure that you can handle the stress and responsibilities of being a grad student, and revealing past trauma will make them doubt that. I haven't applied to any Masters programs, so I can't speak to that. You said "I don't have the energy to try and research my options." If you don't even have the energy to research your options, how will you have the energy to go through 6+ (BA+MS/PhD) years of school?

If you do find that you have the energy to go through school, my best suggestion is to go ahead and get your BA and get involved in lots of research. That way you will hopefully have enough experience that you won't need to mention your past trauma as what inspired you to go into psychology, and you will dramatically increase your chances of gaining admission into a program. I wish you the best of luck!

 

[VeryHopeful2010]

I recommend continuing to process your past in therapy/care for yourself and work on your BA for now. Try to get some research experience on the way, and good luck. You will need to be ready to tackle the emotions/problems/trauma of others when you pursue a PhD, so working through these issues as much as possible now will best prepare you to help others. Social work may also be a viable route for you, or a master's in mental health counseling.

 

[Tesseract18]

Mods, if I may suggest, can we please close this thread. The OP, for reasons that I have no authority to comment on but I feel are plain to see, is not using this thread in a productive way and has already received good feedback to her original questions. Any new responses to her edited post will likely be futile and only continue to drive the conversation into a redundant, and likely inappropriate, spiral. I wish the OP best of luck on her path but this is not the place for such private and detailed information to be revealed or dwelled upon.

 

[erg923]

so maybe this is your chance to counsel me. I don't know.

No. Its not.

 

[roubs]

Mods, if I may suggest, can we please close this thread.

2nd :/

 

[AcronymAllergy]

Mod note: OP's question has seemingly been answered, and the question itself has been withdrawn. Thread is being closed.

 

[futureapppsy2]

In addition, this thread has been reported by several users due to the comments about self-harm. SDN takes such statements seriously and we would like to remind the OP and all posters that SDN should not serve as a place to obtain counseling or other advice regarding significant psychological issues. Anyone who is contemplating harming themselves should immediately seek professional counseling advice, not rely on SDN or other non-professional resources.

Members who have serious concerns about their career and would like to post details more anonymously may do so in the Confidential Consult forum.