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Is it a requirement to be a nutjob to become a therapist?
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<blockquote data-quote="BusynMember" data-source="post: 642108" data-attributes="member: 1550"><p>Suz, I've been to many. Some were crazier than the sickest patient they probably had. A few good ones that used cognitive therapy and/or dialectal behavioral therapy saved my life. I'd say, more were unhelpful than helpful, but the helpful ones were golden. Andl, yes, it was hard to find them. I found talk therapists useless. In the US, they have dumped Freud and I think that's a good thing, but still...many try to find out why you are, say, anxious by talking ad nauseam about your childhood, and I always believed my problems were largely inherited and I needed coping skills more than countless trips back to Memory Lane.</p><p></p><p>Now I'm going to add a bit of humor here. I also worked at a medical answering service before there were cell phones and auto messaging, and many of the psychiatrists (more than the tdocs) were absolutely nuts. One psychiatrist had two kids in mental hospitals and seemed to never sleep and spoke very quickly. I worked with my best friend and we jokingly diagnosed him with bipolar. He burned out partners faster than candles. Nobody could keep up with his pace! A few psychiatrists had absolutely NO empathy. NONE. We used to joke about that too. In particular, we used to like to make up fake dialogues about a real doctor I will call Dr. L. He was the most coldhearted psychiatrist we had; maybe on earth. My friend and I would do little made up scripts with each other sometimes after talking to him, then we'd crack up laughing. They would go something like this:</p><p></p><p>Friend: Dr. L! Dr. L! Mrs. Smith is standing on the roof of her house threatening to dive to the ground head first! Her husband is frantic and wants you to call him ASAP to tell him what to do until the police can get there.</p><p></p><p>Me: (faking his British accent...he was from S. Africa...and with no expression) I just sat down to dinner. I will call him when I'm finished eating. (hangs up)</p><p></p><p>Friend: (pretending to call Dr. L. again because distraught fake husband called back) Dr. L! Dr. L! She killed herself!</p><p></p><p>Me again, faking accent and annoyance as Dr. L: So why did you call me back? There's nothing I can do. I'm out of contact for an hour now while I spend time with my mistress. Bye!"</p><p></p><p>Wish this was a gross exaggeration. And, of course it is..., but not as much as you'd think!</p><p></p><p>I actually lost a lot of respect for doctors in general at that job. We got to know the doctors AS THEY WERE and it was often not comforting, like the Oncologist who used to swear every time a cancer patient called him up after hours. The adoration people give doctors often goes to their heads.</p><p></p><p>Our therapists were a mixed bag. Some were really kind and nice. But one psychology group, our biggest, was a soap opera. The head of the group had dumped his wife of twenty years to marry his much younger colleague, who was also on our answering service. Both were allegedly, as rumors went, heavily into serious drug abuse. That drug use allegedly permeated that entire group. Yet they were the busiest group with the most patients of all. Heaven help them all, is all I can say.</p><p></p><p>Sometimes the head psychologist's ex wife would call us demanding we find him and make him call her RIGHT NOW and he would tell us "She's nuts. I'm not calling." And she'd call back and say, "He'd BETTER call. You tell him that." And it would go back and forth. We were in the middle of their tiff.</p><p></p><p>The job was not only very enlightening and often funny, but it made both of us realize how very human our healthcare worekrs are. And since, I wanted to believe these people were more balanced and smarter than I was, it has made me cynical of the entire medical profession.</p><p></p><p>I doubt that answers your question, but maybe it gives you some insight from another point of view. by the way, I loved that job. It was exciting and also very humorous.</p><p></p><p>Tell your son not to give up, but to be very picky. He sounds bright. You don't want him to end up with somebody who isn't half as smart as he is. That happens (sigh). I wish him the best and lots of luck <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite2" alt=";)" title="Wink ;)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=";)" /></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="BusynMember, post: 642108, member: 1550"] Suz, I've been to many. Some were crazier than the sickest patient they probably had. A few good ones that used cognitive therapy and/or dialectal behavioral therapy saved my life. I'd say, more were unhelpful than helpful, but the helpful ones were golden. Andl, yes, it was hard to find them. I found talk therapists useless. In the US, they have dumped Freud and I think that's a good thing, but still...many try to find out why you are, say, anxious by talking ad nauseam about your childhood, and I always believed my problems were largely inherited and I needed coping skills more than countless trips back to Memory Lane. Now I'm going to add a bit of humor here. I also worked at a medical answering service before there were cell phones and auto messaging, and many of the psychiatrists (more than the tdocs) were absolutely nuts. One psychiatrist had two kids in mental hospitals and seemed to never sleep and spoke very quickly. I worked with my best friend and we jokingly diagnosed him with bipolar. He burned out partners faster than candles. Nobody could keep up with his pace! A few psychiatrists had absolutely NO empathy. NONE. We used to joke about that too. In particular, we used to like to make up fake dialogues about a real doctor I will call Dr. L. He was the most coldhearted psychiatrist we had; maybe on earth. My friend and I would do little made up scripts with each other sometimes after talking to him, then we'd crack up laughing. They would go something like this: Friend: Dr. L! Dr. L! Mrs. Smith is standing on the roof of her house threatening to dive to the ground head first! Her husband is frantic and wants you to call him ASAP to tell him what to do until the police can get there. Me: (faking his British accent...he was from S. Africa...and with no expression) I just sat down to dinner. I will call him when I'm finished eating. (hangs up) Friend: (pretending to call Dr. L. again because distraught fake husband called back) Dr. L! Dr. L! She killed herself! Me again, faking accent and annoyance as Dr. L: So why did you call me back? There's nothing I can do. I'm out of contact for an hour now while I spend time with my mistress. Bye!" Wish this was a gross exaggeration. And, of course it is..., but not as much as you'd think! I actually lost a lot of respect for doctors in general at that job. We got to know the doctors AS THEY WERE and it was often not comforting, like the Oncologist who used to swear every time a cancer patient called him up after hours. The adoration people give doctors often goes to their heads. Our therapists were a mixed bag. Some were really kind and nice. But one psychology group, our biggest, was a soap opera. The head of the group had dumped his wife of twenty years to marry his much younger colleague, who was also on our answering service. Both were allegedly, as rumors went, heavily into serious drug abuse. That drug use allegedly permeated that entire group. Yet they were the busiest group with the most patients of all. Heaven help them all, is all I can say. Sometimes the head psychologist's ex wife would call us demanding we find him and make him call her RIGHT NOW and he would tell us "She's nuts. I'm not calling." And she'd call back and say, "He'd BETTER call. You tell him that." And it would go back and forth. We were in the middle of their tiff. The job was not only very enlightening and often funny, but it made both of us realize how very human our healthcare worekrs are. And since, I wanted to believe these people were more balanced and smarter than I was, it has made me cynical of the entire medical profession. I doubt that answers your question, but maybe it gives you some insight from another point of view. by the way, I loved that job. It was exciting and also very humorous. Tell your son not to give up, but to be very picky. He sounds bright. You don't want him to end up with somebody who isn't half as smart as he is. That happens (sigh). I wish him the best and lots of luck ;) [/QUOTE]
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Is it a requirement to be a nutjob to become a therapist?
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