How effective was therapy for you?

[Inkup]

Hi All,

I've been fighting my demons (depression, anxiety and stress) for about a year now. I was placed on a mental health plan at the start of the year, seeing a Psychologist and getting on meds. I've heard from a few people dealing with the same thing as me that it took them time to find the right meds and the right psych. Meds, I felt, have helped but I still feel like life is a struggle. I am due to see my GP to hopefully switch or increase my dosage again. My Psych focuses mostly on CBT and at first, I found it amazing. But now I find it tedious and frustrating. Understanding the reasons behind my feelings was good but now its just so repetitive. I feel as though we just talk about the science and theory behind it all and I just don't feel any better. I kind of want to talk about whats happening and I how I feel, and I almost want someone to tell me to pull my head in!

I guess my question is, how effective was therapy for the rest of you? I have been suggested to see a new Psych or see a Psychiatrist instead. I am hesitant to go back through it due to the costs involved (after 10 sessions I feel more stressed about the cost). I honestly felt like it was a waste of time to me but I'm currently stuck on the same level and my mental health isn't improving. What worked for you? What types of therapy worked for you? Or did just talking to friends and family have the same effect for you?

Thanks in advance.

[blondguy]

Hi Inkup

Welcome to the forums and for having the courage to post too!

You have done everything so well with having such a proactive attitude towards your health and good on you

I had chronic anxiety in my 20's and my biggest mistake was not getting enough of it. After 13 years I saw a community mental health care worker (they are free) and he started digging around and made me bawl my eyes out as he touched on what was one of the main problems. Because he dragged me out of my comfort zone and asked uncomfortable questions he found out what was happening.

He was a psychiatric nurse and the best therapist I have ever had. He made me agree to see him weekly for seven months. The frequency of the therapy was the main benefit. Before the MHW I was just seeing a psychologist every 3 months thinking that would help. For me it didnt work. Finding the right therapist can take some time but well worth the effort

Psychiatrists are good but they still have more of a role where medication is concerned. The psychologists seem to be better at poking and prodding to help us find some peace.

It does take a long time and a heap of determination for the therapy to be effective. Talking about the science and theory is okay but being taken out of our comfort zones and treating the core issues is invaluable

I really like your attitude Inkup...There are many gentle people that can be here for you too. The forums are a safe and non judgemental place for you to post too!

my kind thoughts, I hope you can stick around Inkup 🙂

Paul

[romantic_thi3f]

Hi Inkup,

Welcome to the forums and thanks for your post.

I feel like I could write a page on this so I'm just going to stick straight to your questions!

Your first question was how effective was therapy for you?

For me personally; it varied. I've seen more than one therapist and each experience was vastly different. Some people used similar approaches like CBT, where as others explored many others. For me it's not the therapy approach but instead the actual therapist. Having and finding someone that you can click with is important.

As for what worked, I'm not sure that I can answer that. All therapy approaches are just 'models'. It's basically what the therapist draws from that and how they approach it. I learned CBT ages ago and I'm still practicing that now even though it seemed repetitive and frustrating too. I've also tried other approaches and am still using that now even though it was years ago.

Talking to friends and family did help; but it's nowhere near the same effect as therapy. My friends help me in certain ways; like hanging out or listening to me vent or cry, but they lack the skills that therapists are trained in. Therapists will listen to you cry or yell too; but they can support you and hold space for you. It's not just about listening to what's happening and how you're feeling, but working through that together. The other big difference is that it's all about you;- unlike seeing friends and family, you don't need to consider whether they are having a good day or a bad day, if they have a family/in a relationship, what's going on in their life and whether they like you or not. It's focused only on you.

It's hard to know what approach might suit you best. CBT can certainly focus what's happening in the now; like trying to make changes in your behaviour so that you can be in a better mood. The one big therapy approach focused on the 'now' is mindfulness. But ultimately, it depends on your situation.

The one thing that I would suggest is to talk to your therapist about how you're feeling. If they're a good one, they can hopefully give you more answers, explain where they're headed, or be open to changing direction into something that works for you.

Hope this helps

[geoff]

hi Inkup, a good question that I'm sure many would be asking themselves, basically if your sessions aren't going along as you had hoped, then ask your psychologist why you don't believe anything is working for you.
Sure they play the main role in counselling but this doesn't mean you can't challenge them in how it's going, some people respond well to CBT while for others it won't work, and it's up to them to decide what sort of treatment would benefit you more, as it seems pointless if you aren't responding at all to their type of therapy.
The psychologist I had seen for 20 years (workcover)kept changing her tactic, because if I was bawling my eyes out she knew that she'd struck a nerve, and then had to go around the topic a different way taking it slowly so that I was able to talk with her and finding out what the problem was.
Mental illness can not be cured immediately as much as we would love that to happen, maybe one day it will, but not now, and it won't just go away by itself, although the minor problems may be fixed by yourself, but these aren't the real problems associated with how you feel, that's why you need someone else to try and unravel what's going on in your mind.
Psychiatrists can bulk bill and you can also search whether there is a psychologist who also charges the government, I know that my psych did this for other people, so you will have to ask around, doctors, other people who you know are also suffering. Geoff.

[Inkup]

Been a while since I've been on here. Might be a good sign I guess. Thanks for the replies. They did give me a lot to think about in a good way. I did manage to get on to a bulk billing psychologist who do far I think is benefiting me.

[geoff]

hi Inkup, it's terrific that you have found a psychologist who bulk bills, and a lesson for other people to look out for, especially when their mental health plan runs out, thanks for letting us know, nd please let us know how you are getting on. Geoff.

[Sadwombat]

I don't know if you were ever a victim of crime in NSW but if you were you can get unlimited counselling for free for life through victims services. Other states have similar plans too I believe.