psychiatrists and therapists piss me off so much

[innerspace_cadet]

Is it me, or are psychiatrists and therapists part of a useless, ineffectual profession? I've been in therapy and taking meds at least since I was 17 (I am now 32). And guess what? I am still every bit as depressed, angry, and anxious as I was back then. I can count the number of insights therapists have given me on one hand. I've been through more medication changes than I can possibly count. Some of the therapists I've had were actually worse than ineffective; for example, one therapist in a day treatment center I was attending actually took me into a room and tried to convince me not to join Buddhism. Whenever I get depressed or suicidal, all they do is make a medication change, as if I am some biochemical machine that simply needs to be recalibrated.

 

I am no longer in therapy (don't see the point anymore) but I am still on those godforsaken medications, because even if I try to wean myself off them under medical supervision, my emotions are even less stable than they are now. I no longer want to be a part of making pharmaceutical companies rich, but I guess I have little choice.

 

And what especially angers me about the psychiatric profession is that they seem to be in bed with the pharmaceutical industry, perfectly willing to label anything and everything a "disorder" to be treated with the appropriate medication.

 

Sorry, I just had to vent. There's got to be a better way than this.

[Spectrum]

Hey man. What kinda physical routine do you have? Ie what are you doing daily or weekly or monthly that you break a sweat?

[innerspace_cadet]

I go to the YMCA two to three times a week. I do mostly cardio and weights. I just bought a book on nei kung.

[joshu]

Thank you for this post, I couldn't agree more. Its frustrating as hell when you realize the "professionals" don't have things any more figured out than you do. I've been prescribed many drugs as well although I stopped taking them about ten years ago, they are garbage. Although stopping the drugs can be very tricky because your internal chemistry gets scrambled. (obviously taking or not taking medication is a serious decision and maybe for now you need them.)

 

Some things that have helped me:

1. "There is Nothing Wrong With You" by Cheri Huber (http://www.cherihuber.com/)

2. sitting still, follow the breath, letting go.

3. Once I had a very positive experience when someone used EFT (emotional freedom technique) on me.

 

There's lots of other stuff too, for me its just been a process of learning and accepting that ultimately we must find our own path that nobody can walk but ourselves. Psychiatrists don't have all the answers, despite what they may say. Although I'm sure some of them are great.

[Mattimo]

Brother,

 

May it be a possibility that the reason why you were put on meds is because you were having a reaction to an insane world? Could it be a possibility that you are in fact more sane than some of the people (all of the psychiatrists) who purport to help you? Maybe the world is backwards and you have seen the truth on some level all along even if you couldn't articulate it.

 

Everybody has healing to do and it is a journey which requires time and patience. Don't deny the reality of your own experience, nor be too hard on yourself.

 

I highly recommend checking out "John Breeding" on youtube:

 

 

 

Matt

[NeutralWire]

There are great therapists out there! If you'd have had treatment from Milton Erickson in his prime, you wouldn't be complaining. Alot of what the really innovative therapists have done has been very helpful to spiritual seekers.

 

As for the 'average' therapist, lost in theories written by other people, and prescribing pills... they can be a different story. It's like with the recent thread on doctors -- luck of the draw in many ways.

 

As far as the pharmaceutical side effects thing goes, you do have a choice. My own method would be diet/nutrition, exercise, qigong, belly breathing and relaxation, possibly some seminal retention depending on the situation, taking in some nature and something beautiful/artistic (including artistic activity of one's own if desired), a little spiritual cleansing with incense, and prayer. Add them in one at a time and then go 100 days.

 

I speak as someone who was the despair of a couple of shrinks in my youth (until I told them what I realized they wanted to hear, then they thought I was doing better!) This was in the days before all those pills, thank goodness, but it's really not hard to be well if you ignore the ephemeral. You have to remember, so many of these doctors are turned around by the latest thing, they don't have a clear sight of wellness. Their monkey minds are not controlled. None of them have done any sitting at all.

 

When things don't work, move along. It's fine to be pissed off at incompetence, but it's even better to get well.

 

All best wishes,

 

~NeutralWire~

[Bruce]

I too feel for you. There are probably some very good therapists out there. My limited experience with them, however has not been so good. They believe in their "outer science", which includes the drugs, and seem to be doubtful, if not afraid of "inner science" like meditation. That's not at all surprising, really, but it doesn't make it right.

 

When my first marriage broke up I was clinically depressed, and had been through a period of drinking way too much. I was even suffering from some pretty strong anxiety attacks. I did the therapist thing and took the anti depressants. I'm smart enough, or maybe dumb enough, that I eventually told the therapist what she wanted to hear. The anti depressants made me feel like I had a hangover all the time.

 

I had been very athletic all my life as well, so I do believe that exercise is quite helpful. The problem is when the endorphins stop flowing, you're right back where you were. That's when and why I decided to check out meditation.

 

I can honestly say that I struggled to sit still for 10 minutes, for quite some time. It was a gradual process of settling and learning to just be with the emotions. Eventually you experience for yourself that the emotions have no power unless you follow them out. They're just thoughts like any other.

 

The suggestion for breath following meditation was spot on, in my opinion. Keep it simple and stay away from esoteric practices until you are very stable. I also found that mantra practice really helped me settle the chaos in my head. I still use it from time to time, but now for different reasons. The key point is simplicity. There's enough chaos anyway so why add to it. What you're trying to learn to do is to see through it; to see that it doesn't have to have power over you.

 

Best of luck to you,

Bruce

[Spiritual_Aspirant]

There is a specific branch of Pranic Healing that deals with psychological ailments. It's called Pranic Psychotherapy. You can find more info at www.pranichealing.com

 

I suggest you try the Meditation on Twin Hearts. It both cleans and energizes your aura and your chakras, thus promoting physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual health. www.meditationontwinhearts.org or www.meditatepeace.com .

[karen]

I agree with NeutralWire; the profession itself doesn't necessarily corrupt the practitioner, and it depends on the individual practitioner, just like in other professions. Although it's not common to find an excellent psychotherapist who has worked through their own fears to an advanced degree so they can be truly helpful to you.

 

Conventional medicine has its place - if you were hit by a truck, you want to go to the ER, not to a homeopath (although a homeopath could give you remedies on your way to the hospital). The question is, where do these practices really fit in to a rational system, and when and for what is it wise to use them. That requires more consciousness than the typical knee-jerk reaction of going to a shrink if you have emotional issues and going to an allopathic doc if you have physical issues.

 

Weaning off the drugs without the proper support can be destabilizing, and conventional medicine doesn't have anything to offer in place of the drugs. That's why it's good to see a holistic or nutritionally oriented MD who can give you guidance with the drugs and at the same time work with a protocol for supporting you through the process, coordinating it all.

 

There are good nutritional protocols for this including orthomolecular medicine, using certain amino acids and vitamins in high doses. If you're interested, look at www.acam.org for local listings of nutritional docs. If you need more help finding someone, PM me.

 

About good therapists, it's often hard to find one locally, and I know a couple of excellent ones who can work by phone. Personally I'd rather use an excellent one by phone than one who isn't helping me in person .

 

Best,

Karen

[h.uriahr]

Is it me, or are psychiatrists and therapists part of a useless, ineffectual profession? I've been in therapy and taking meds at least since I was 17 (I am now 32). And guess what? I am still every bit as depressed, angry, and anxious as I was back then. I can count the number of insights therapists have given me on one hand. I've been through more medication changes than I can possibly count. Some of the therapists I've had were actually worse than ineffective; for example, one therapist in a day treatment center I was attending actually took me into a room and tried to convince me not to join Buddhism. Whenever I get depressed or suicidal, all they do is make a medication change, as if I am some biochemical machine that simply needs to be recalibrated.

 

I am no longer in therapy (don't see the point anymore) but I am still on those godforsaken medications, because even if I try to wean myself off them under medical supervision, my emotions are even less stable than they are now. I no longer want to be a part of making pharmaceutical companies rich, but I guess I have little choice.

 

And what especially angers me about the psychiatric profession is that they seem to be in bed with the pharmaceutical industry, perfectly willing to label anything and everything a "disorder" to be treated with the appropriate medication.

 

Sorry, I just had to vent. There's got to be a better way than this.

 

A therapist isnt supposed to cure you. They are only a tool, an option, a helpline. You have to put in the effort and you have to work on you when you're not in a therapy session. All they can do is try to help figure out what the root cause of your problems are. You still have to the roadwork.

[Bruce]

A therapist isnt supposed to cure you. They are only a tool, an option, a helpline. You have to put in the effort and you have to work on you when you're not in a therapy session. All they can do is try to help figure out what the root cause of your problems are. You still have to the roadwork.

Yep. That too is very true.

[karen]

Good therapy is also about having someone model a healthy relationship for you, that you haven't had before. That safe relationship itself allows you to let go of old patterns as you experience directly the emotional content that was too threatening to experience before.

 

So that healthy relationship facilitates that process in you. Even if a counselor could tell you an analysis of exactly what your patterns are, that kind of information won't do you much good until you make the important emotional connections yourself. And that's an unfolding process.

 

Even when you have the understanding intellectually, it can take time for the deeper emotional levels to connect up. It can be a very powerful relationship, way beyond counseling that simply helps you consciously understand the patterns and focuses on coping with the existing conditions without digging into the unconscious conent.

 

To make the deeper changes takes a different kind of work - most people are working hard and doing the best they can, so I wouldn't say "just work on yourself harder", because usually the false ego defense system is very strong, for a good reason. Then simply trying to work harder just allows the defenses to get stronger.

 

Many therapists will say that they provide a safe space to explore your stuff, but the therapist needs to be healthy enough to be present in a totally non-judgmental way every step of the way, when the going gets rough. And I wouldn't expect a psychiatrist to do that kind of therapy.

 

-Karen

Edited February 25, 2009 by karen

[resistance_fighter]

I think many of these people keep you down so that they can bilk your insurance. With some it is incompetence or arrogance. I met one therapist who gave me more insight than anyone. I knew the guy was always holding back some. One day I mentioned this and he said that he would never make me stronger than him. lol! As

 

Surprisingly I have had two therapist recommend Buddhism.

[Yoda]

Innerspace,

 

Finding the cure is a hard one!!! After 22 years of meditation I still aint right.

 

The good news, it that it is getting easier to transmute things now than it was 5-10 years ago. There are lots of great practices and even a healing circle on this forum that might be helpful for you.

 

I like the nicnac approach... try this and that and just add an element at a time that works. Keeping live plants and flowers inside and getting outside whenever possible are nice. Also holding a black rock to decharge before going to bed is nice too.

 

Your pal,

Yoda

[Wayfarer64]

I too have had poor results after spending much money on a therapist many years ago... It seemed I was just another way for him to sell some pills... I stopped seeing him -saving about $450 dollars a month and felt much much better without the pills and listening to his self-serving BS...

 

 

But that IS only one case -there may be good shrinks out there - I sure hope so...

 

Love to all-

 

and yes once again - deep meditation has always been the best theropy for me... Know thy self 101!

[h.uriahr]

Yep. That too is very true.

I guess I should've also added that I dont believe therapy is for everyone. I also believe that alot of therapists arent really all that good at helping people unless they understand them.

 

The same can be said for Christianity, Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, etc though. One bad apple does indeed spoil the bunch.

[rodgerj]

Edited March 22, 2010 by rodgerj

[innerspace_cadet]

Thank you for all of your helpful and insightful replies. I was feeling much better today, with a more positive outlook on life. I'm starting to find that positivity helps a lot. I think just writing that post was healing in a way; it helped me unload some baggage, so to speak.

[NeutralWire]

I'm starting to find that positivity helps a lot. I think just writing that post was healing in a way; it helped me unload some baggage, so to speak.

 

Excellent and just what these places are for.

 

NW

[pacala]

Thank you for all of your helpful and insightful replies. I was feeling much better today, with a more positive outlook on life. I'm starting to find that positivity helps a lot. I think just writing that post was healing in a way; it helped me unload some baggage, so to speak.

 

Glad to hear you are feeling better. I just wanted to add that there are also therapists now who tend to approach clients w/ the knowledge of Western psychology in addition to the wisdom of the East...so there can be a blend and balance which respects and utilizes both modern psychology and ancient spirituality. These therapists might be called "Transpersonal Therapists/Counselors" or "Holistic Therapists/Counselors" . They would be more likely to respond to YOU in the moment, to what you need, versus following an old, worn out recipe they learned once in a course long ago. They can use somatic approaches, meditation, hypnotherapy, EFT, pranic healing -- what's helpful is that they are more fluid and alive to what IS - YOU - in the moment.

 

I wish you the best.

[soundhunter]

I was seeing a therapist who is somewhat of a Taoist himself, and I personally found the sessions incredibly helpful for the specific things I was going for (anger at my small children) I had seen others before and never clicked with any of them, I think different times in our lives require different connections and different tools, I agree with trying the TCM approach, spending lots of time in nature and why not learn some EFT, the stuff is free to learn for yourself online. Nicnac!