difficult child's ever refuse therapist or psychiatrist

K

Kjs

Guest
appointments? difficult child had a therapist appointment on Friday. He told me it is nothing but a waste of money. All he ever does is ask me who I am mad at this week and who I am not getting along with. he said it is the same thing everytime he goes.

The last two times therapist had myself and husband there. therapist said it was the most difficult child had ever talked.

difficult child does the same at psychiatrist. However when I go to psychiatrist I feel very rushed. psychiatrist talks very fast and quickly fills out prescription and shoo's us out the door. I don't really get to say anything, and difficult child rarely volunteers anything.

Don't know what to do. When I talk to difficult child about therapist, he says they do nothing except talk about who difficult child's not getting along with at the time. (we are not in the room)
difficult child tells me when school was in session they mostly talked about how he hates school. difficult child says he doesn't want to go anymore and it is nothing but a waste of money.

So..what do I do? sometimes I feel that if he has an appointment and he would rather be doing other things-then it turns into a big fight to get him there. Not sure if he doesn't want to go because it interferes with "his" time or if he really feels it isn't helping.
Honestly, difficult child tells us who he isn't getting along with at the current time,(which changes every other day). So, why do we need a therapist for him to tell?
I HAVE tried other therapist's and counseors on and off for years. All with the same outcome. They do nothing. They talk about who he isn't getting along with and that's it. He would refuse to talk when he was younger.
Do I just quit?
 

nvts

Active Member
We had a few ineffective therapists, etc. I made appointment and went on my own to discuss what outcomes I expected. Turns out that they weren't too clear as to what MY goals and objectives were for our difficult child. Once I set the bar, it seemed like we were making at least SOME progress.

Hope it helps! I wouldn't throw in the towel just yet. Take a look at the others that you've had in the past vs. who you're with now. See if you're actually taking him to basically the same type of therapist over and over again. Try looking into different types of therapy. You may be taking him to someone who specializes in something other than what you son has (ie: they are primarily for grief etc.). They are supposed to provide you with a treatment plan. If they haven't tell them you want some sort of documentation spelling out the short term and long term objectives. You're the one that they are supposed to be consulting with (especially when ODD kids tend to "embellish" on issues).

Good luck!
 

BusynMember

Well-Known Member
As one with bipolar, no psycologist, therapist, or social worker helped me one bit until I saw a Cognitive Behavioral Therapist. THAT helped A LOT. Instead of rehashing who I hated or loved or what I had for dinner, he actually taught me coping mechanisms that I still use today. Purchase the book "Feeling Good" by Dr. David Burns to see what you think. The book alone helped me. I saw umpteen therapists before seeing one for CBT, and I used to think they didn't have a clue. And they really didn't, at least regarding me. I haven't seen a therapist now in fifteen or so years. medication stability helped me, plus my year with the CBT. I just don't feel the need to see a therapist anymore. Hope this helps.
 
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