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SkaBob4225 karma

What can I ask a new therapist, to make sure they're actually going to help me build tools and techniques to deal with my issues, rather than just charging me to listen to weekly progress reports?

Also, since when are so many therapists just charging for listening to weekly progress reports, and why doesn't the professional community they belong to censure that sort of behavior?

SkaBob4218 karma

Trick question - in Welsch, everything is a vowel!

SkaBob427 karma

I get that it helps some people, but having been to three therapists so far that do what I describe, and had friends tell me of 5 others that do the same, it seems wrong that NONE of these therapists will shift gears into helping build coping mechanisms for their clients, even when like myself their anxiety has landed them in the ER several times. At a certain point, we have to admit that not providing those patients with the care they obviously need is lazy at best, and potentially negligent.

SkaBob425 karma

Thanks for the answer. Sadly, the latter is something that's had me struggling to find a good therapist for about 2 years. I've had 3 therapists prior to the one I just started with, and while I was clear with all of them that I need help dealing with my anxiety and thanatophobia, not one of them ever gave me anything by way of coping or distracting methods. When I asked friends for recommendations for other therapists in my area, they all agreed that just seems to be how their therapists are, too. I get that some people just need to be able to say things, to get them off their chest, but it seems wrong that they handle every case that way...

SkaBob424 karma

Nothing. The closest either had was the suggestion that we'd have to find some way to combat or interrupt the intrusive thoughts that my anxiety was being triggered by. No follow through on that in most of a year as that one's patient. My fourth is new as of last week. I asked my initial question so I could see if the AMA people could help me feel out my potential for success without burning another year...