3 ms·

> CBT While I agree with everything else you say, that seems much too specific without knowing the condition or the person, and without being a professional yo

> CBT While I agree with everything else you say, that seems much too specific without knowing the condition or the person, and without being a professional yourself (unless you are one). I've read about research saying that the success of mental health therapy depends on 'the singer not the song'; the therapist and especially their rapport with the person they are helping are what matters, not so much the particular technique used. A good therapist, from what I understand, will have several techniques to choose from and will apply what works best in that situation.

hluska 8y ago
There is a literal ton of research that indicates in acute situations, CBT is a very efficient way to gain coping mechanisms. It may take some time (or other methods) to solve underlying issues, but CBT can act as a temporary crutch. CBT is also interesting because this individual is experiencing some financial problems. One of the dirty little secrets of being near financial ruin is that you end up relying upon freely available/socialized forms of help. In the vast, vast majority of cases, these types of resources offer a very limited tool chest, and CBT is the single tool they use most. It's also important to know that you won't get the chance to work with twenty different therapists to find one you get on with. In most jurisdictions, you wait three months to get access to someone. And if that person doesn't work out, it's too bad, but there just aren't the resources. The lack of resources means that the people you work with won't have the time to try different things. They have to rely upon methods that provide the greatest probability of stabilizing the issue in the shortest amount of time. But most importantly, it's about seeking a type of therapy. There's a shitty fucked up thing about depression and anxiety that keeps people away from therapy.
- forapurpose 8y ago
  I'm not a professional; I would strongly caution against offering or following non-professional advice in a situation like this one. IME, even professionals - experts in their field - will not offer advice based on such limited information. If for some reason I can't imagine I offered such advice, I would do so in as judiciously, measured, and precise a way as possible. Hyperbole is, IMHO, not an indicator carefully considered ideas but of emotion.
  - jklein11 8y ago
    While I agree with your sentiment, is there any harm in going for cognitive behavioral therapy? I haven't read any commenter say that it should be the only arrow in the quiver, but seeking help seems like a logical first step. That said, I 100% agree. I want to get my mental health advice from mental health professionals who fully understand my situation, not random people on the internet who have a paragraph on my situation.
    - forapurpose 8y ago
      > is there any harm in going for cognitive behavioral therapy? I don't know; I'm not a professional. As an analogy, imagine a non-technical small business owner asked a psychologist, 'is there any harm in starting this critical, time-sensitive project in Java?'? Clearly the psychologist should say, 'I don't know; I have no expertise in software development.' But you could imagine the psychologist saying, not personally knowing of a difference between Java and other languages, or knowing someone whose Java project went well or reading something about how great Java is, saying, 'sure, what's the harm?' The professional's answer to the hypothetical Java question is, yes, there very well may be harm. At least there's a good chance of opportunity cost because you may have to start over. But you know how these things go, especially on time-sensitive projects - once started in Java, probably they will be stuck with that technical debt and the compromises of the wrong choice for the life of the software. And this is a critical project. Letting a professional take even a quick look at your project beforehand could save you a lot of unnecessary pain.
      - jklein11 8y ago
        I understand that you are not a professional, but the cognitive behavioral therapist is. I would liken this to going to a Java developer with your business problem and seeing if this would help. There is a chance that they might say "I can't help with this problem but approach XYZ might be worth exploring." Sure, this might not be an optimal approach to architecting your application, but it is at least a step in the right direction. Furthermore psychologists are licensed, highly regulated, and must commit to an oath of doing no harm. I think one of the most important things for someone who is having mental is that they reach out for help. I think any advice which slows that down is dangerous.

hluska 8y ago

There is a literal ton of research that indicates in acute situations, CBT is a very efficient way to gain coping mechanisms. It may take some time (or other methods) to solve underlying issues, but CBT can act as a temporary crutch. CBT is also interesting because this individual is experiencing some financial problems. One of the dirty little secrets of being near financial ruin is that you end up relying upon freely available/socialized forms of help. In the vast, vast majority of cases, these types of resources offer a very limited tool chest, and CBT is the single tool they use most. It's also important to know that you won't get the chance to work with twenty different therapists to find one you get on with. In most jurisdictions, you wait three months to get access to someone. And if that person doesn't work out, it's too bad, but there just aren't the resources. The lack of resources means that the people you work with won't have the time to try different things. They have to rely upon methods that provide the greatest probability of stabilizing the issue in the shortest amount of time. But most importantly, it's about seeking a type of therapy. There's a shitty fucked up thing about depression and anxiety that keeps people away from therapy.

forapurpose 8y ago
I'm not a professional; I would strongly caution against offering or following non-professional advice in a situation like this one. IME, even professionals - experts in their field - will not offer advice based on such limited information. If for some reason I can't imagine I offered such advice, I would do so in as judiciously, measured, and precise a way as possible. Hyperbole is, IMHO, not an indicator carefully considered ideas but of emotion.
- jklein11 8y ago
  While I agree with your sentiment, is there any harm in going for cognitive behavioral therapy? I haven't read any commenter say that it should be the only arrow in the quiver, but seeking help seems like a logical first step. That said, I 100% agree. I want to get my mental health advice from mental health professionals who fully understand my situation, not random people on the internet who have a paragraph on my situation.
  - forapurpose 8y ago
    > is there any harm in going for cognitive behavioral therapy? I don't know; I'm not a professional. As an analogy, imagine a non-technical small business owner asked a psychologist, 'is there any harm in starting this critical, time-sensitive project in Java?'? Clearly the psychologist should say, 'I don't know; I have no expertise in software development.' But you could imagine the psychologist saying, not personally knowing of a difference between Java and other languages, or knowing someone whose Java project went well or reading something about how great Java is, saying, 'sure, what's the harm?' The professional's answer to the hypothetical Java question is, yes, there very well may be harm. At least there's a good chance of opportunity cost because you may have to start over. But you know how these things go, especially on time-sensitive projects - once started in Java, probably they will be stuck with that technical debt and the compromises of the wrong choice for the life of the software. And this is a critical project. Letting a professional take even a quick look at your project beforehand could save you a lot of unnecessary pain.
    - jklein11 8y ago
      I understand that you are not a professional, but the cognitive behavioral therapist is. I would liken this to going to a Java developer with your business problem and seeing if this would help. There is a chance that they might say "I can't help with this problem but approach XYZ might be worth exploring." Sure, this might not be an optimal approach to architecting your application, but it is at least a step in the right direction. Furthermore psychologists are licensed, highly regulated, and must commit to an oath of doing no harm. I think one of the most important things for someone who is having mental is that they reach out for help. I think any advice which slows that down is dangerous.