Is it normal for mental health professionals to think like this?

8% Normal
5 Comments

The mental health professionals around here thinks that if are capable of communicating your issues and getting in touch with them about needing help you aren't sick enough. But by that logic no one is sick enough then and they wouldn't have a job if people who needed help weren't capable of asking for it. Plus they have no idea how much time or energy it took to get to that point. They dont know if whom they're talking to might've needed help for years but not had the bravery to take the step to ask for help. For me it's because my mom supports me a lot, she makes me e-mail my therapist about things I need clarified etc that has to do with mental healthcare-related things. She sits with me and tells me how to formulate things the best way even. I dont have the energy or motivation to think of e-mailing different authority figures and ask stuff. During a meeting though of course I can mask really well after years of training, so I appear calm and "normal". A meeting is not long though, and they dont see any of the process for me to get to it or how I feel afterwards. I also wonder if a health care professional is allowed to call you not handicapped enough and say that you won't get taken seriously when it comes to needing support, but that you also aren't normal enough.

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8% Normal
Based on 12 votes (1 yes)
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Comments ( 5 )
  • Jamie_Sulky
    3 years ago

    yeah thats fucked. Jordon Peterson says the opposite actually. Someone who has actually decided to come and get help, someone who is able to discuss their problems are already on a road to recovery, and should be helped. because by coming to a professional they have accepted the fact that they have a problem. That doesn't they are healthier, it just means they have taken initiative. people who don't want to be saved (those who can't admit their problems and seek medical help) can't be saved, until they decide it's a problem. being sick isn't a race, everyone's pain and issues matter.

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    • [Old Memory]
      3 years ago

      I bet Abraham Maslow had a great affect on his patients. He said he would classify some as actualized, in a really loose tongue people who are very aware and have forethought and living your best life. It's how he expounded upon the idea. He's also famous for the Hierarchy of Needs, and various written/video work.

      Frederick Nietzsche is also worth looking into. There are a lot of good sources out there, I think by studying psychology you're looking into what your therapist is thinking about, so you really understand what's going on and it also depends on how you use your knowledge; plenty of things could make it dangerous. It's the same layer of bias your therapist is gonna have, but who do you trust more between yourself and a stranger?

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  • Tommythecaty
    3 years ago

    “The mental health professionals around here thinks that if are capable of communicating your issues and getting in touch with them about needing help you aren't sick enough.”

    So they’ve never met someone with borderline personality disorder then lol.

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  • olderdude-xx
    3 years ago

    Unfortunately, yes it is normal. But, there are indeed really good professionals out there which take looking for to find, and they do not think that way (more on that below).

    I see two issues with how mental health is handled in the USA.

    1) The insurance industry controls how they must act and report in order to get paid, in addition to how much most of them can be paid (which is not enough to retain really good professionals). This leads to focus on what the insurance company wants - and not what you need; and the fact that poor performance is rewarded well enough that there is no incentive to improve for many of them.

    2) A reality is that most mental health "professionals" get involved because they are trying to figure themselves and their own problems out; which usually takes 10-20 years after they start "professional" practice (if they ever do). So perhaps not the best people to be presenting an issue with until they have sorted their own issues out.

    These people are most effective with the really extreme cases, and often don't have a clue what to do for someone who is not an extreme case (although their problems are usually a lot easier to solve - if they knew how to do it).

    Now there are real professionals who are past whatever problems they may have had and who had the inner drive to improve to a high level of competence. They do exist.

    Unfortunately, most of these are in "Private" practice and do not accept most insurance coverage as they are not going to work for less than they can get. They will accept your insurance payment (typically for out of network coverage) and bill you for the rest.

    These people generally do a certain amount of charity work (free or reduced rates); but, you typically need to have 1 or 2 appointments with them 1st (and you may need to come up with the money up front for that) as most of their other charity work comes from professional referrals.

    My wife and I had a marriage issue; and I found a private professional who was an expert in the issue (there were 2 in the state). Best thing I ever did (also the hardest emotionally and mentally too); and it saved our marriage.

    However, I burned an entire years worth of PTO taking days off to drive to Milwaukee for every week or every other week sessions with my wife for 6 months, and I think it cost me over $5000 (and that might have been closer to $7000) above what the insurance paid (and I was in an industry that normally guaranteed free professional counseling; except our issue was not a standard one and none of the "in network" "professionals" had any experience with it. My Psychologist would have to take an hour off and talk to them about my case, and then agree to take their marked down rates for them to cover it. I wasn't even going to ask her to do that (why would she agree to loose $300 for an hour, and then agree to work for perhaps $200 an hour or less - there's a reason she was very busy in private practice).

    Note that if the issue is relatively minor a skilled "Life Coach" can likely assist you with the issue. The good ones cover many of the lower level cases that can be resolved without the use of drugs (I started Life Coaching this year after many years of charity mentoring - and the training involves a lot of smaller issues that many people go to mental health professionals for). Life Coaches are typically cheaper as well.

    Note that in any case (Life Coach or Mental Health/Psychologist); you may need to see 2 or 3 people to find someone who you are comfortable working with.

    I wish you well with this,

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  • [Old Memory]
    3 years ago

    I'm curious what you're seeing them for/telling them and how active and focused on improving you portray

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