4 ms·
As a medical student who also happens to have a CS degree, might I suggest that a councillor is an excellent idea, and a psychologist or psychiatrist might also
by thomasfedb 8y ago
As a medical student who also happens to have a CS degree, might I suggest that a councillor is an excellent idea, and a psychologist or psychiatrist might also be worthwhile.
- chris_wot 8y agoAs someone with dreadful experiences of the metal health system, I think the very last thing you want to do is see a psychiatrist. Psychiatrists are expensive and look at brain chemistry, more than likely you’ll end up on some sort of medication which you likely don’t need. By all means see a counsellor or a psychologist, but unless you have deep psychological issues where you are getting to an unbelievably unbearable point where medication might help you, see a psychologist first and leave the psychiatrist out of it. And, in case anyone thinks I hate psychiatrists - I don’t. I just feel they aren’t that helpful in the sort of situations you describe here.
- azthec 8y agoI don't know where you live, but generally that is applied to people who have all the other things and are still unhappy. Psychiatrists will generally try to steer you towards healthy fulfilling social lifestyles, and only then if you are still unhappy then usually you have some chemical imbalance that can be fixed, why be too proud rather than just fix it.
- chris_wot 8y agoThere are great psychiatrists out there, but honestly the two issues are that their main tool is medication which is a very blunt instrument, and they still only know so much about the brain. Unfortunately, for every great psychiatrist, there are just as many truly awful ones and despite their medical degree they can totally botch your diagnosis. That’s my opinion anyway, take it as you will.
- that_jojo 8y agoI don't know where you live, but of the two psychiatrists I've seen both wrote me a prescription on my second appointment. And frankly, my mental health isn't the worst.
- thomasfedb 8y agoAntidepressants are a first-line therapy. They're often very helpful in enabling people to make the changes that will help them improve their long-term health. They're excessively stigmatized however, which is incredibly unfortunate.
- meko 8y agoWith good reason, the last medication my psych gave me left me with liver damage.
- relaunched 8y agoThe side effects you experienced are unfortunate; if it happened to me, I would be very angry. However, the stigma around mental health is real and prevents many people from getting the help that they need. You can be angry without contributing to the stigma.
- chris_wot 8y agoActually, I found that the psychiatrists I saw universally did not listen to me, and one even told me to live with injustice (!!). I feel that the stigma is caused by the medical profession.
- meko 8y agoPsychiatrists are basically drug gatekeepers. They don't really listen to your problems, they just try to infer what medication is best for you (in a 10 min window) depending on how you act.
- thomasfedb 8y agoWas covering the bases as I'm not familiar with the US primary care system - here in Australia a general practitioner can refer you for CBT and start antidepressants themselves, but I'm not sure how that extrapolates around the world. For what it's worth, antidepressants have a very valid part to play in the treatment of depression, as do various other psychopharmacologies. I've taken medication for performance anxiety in the past and it helped me overcome some real challenges. That said, talk therapy with a good psychologist is also very useful both alone and in combination with drugs.
- chris_wot 8y agoI’m an Australian.
- meko 8y agoA good therapist helps, a bad one will make things worse. This is speaking as someone who has only had bad therapists and is a thread away from giving up on the healthcare industry altogether. American healthcare is a disgusting joke.