i just read some advice that said search out a social worker (LCSW) for a therapist because they are focused on the person ... not just a diangosis or label.

my last T was not a social worker and she terminated me on the phone after a flashback. very cold and uncaring and unethical and mean.
i feel like a bad person because of it and her response and she has done major harm to me right now.

but i once heard that social workers have less training in therapy?

so im confused???

what is your T's background????

I think that was rather one-sided and narrow-minded advice that you read. It's clear from many many threads on this forum that many Ts are certainly focused on the person, and many Ts don't even want to give a diagnosis (though they might have to, for insurance purposes).

I don't know about the U.S. system. In Sweden, a social worker who is not a therapist has no training in therapy. I've met with a couple of social workers within the mental health care system, and both of those were disasters: one told me that I had to cry when I told her about my father's death, or I would not have a sufficient level of emotion, and the other one said that it "didn't sound so good" that I had been contemplating suicide (this was 12-13 years ago) and "maybe I should try to find somebody to talk to about that". Yes, that's why went to see you you, you silly woman. I never went back to see her again.

But I think I was very unlucky in my two experiences. I'm sure there are lots of warm and empathetic social workers out there, but I have no reason to seek one out.

My current T is a psychiatrist, and has the 3-year psychotherapy degree, which is required in Sweden to practice psychotherapy, on top of that. He is empathetic, caring, and certainly sees me as a person. (And he does not want to label me with a diagnosis, and he doesn't have to do that either because there's no insurance or anything like that involved.)

Just my experiences. But I would be really, really wary of any advice that says categorically that people with profession x are like this, and people with profession y are like that.

[tinyrabbit]

It's my personal opinion that your last T was a poor representative of that profession - and I'm so sorry for the hurt you have experienced.

My T is a psychotherapist, not a psychologist or psychiatrist. I'm in the UK and I don't know if we have LCSWs here.

Unfortunately no qualification or training guarantees a person will do a decent job of doing their job. I'm so sorry this has happened.

Yes, what tinyrabbit says - nobody should have to go through what you went through, Stringcheese. It's horrible that that happened to you.

[unaluna]

If you were dissociating so powerfully that you scared your therapist, have you considered going inpatient? Or seeing a big burly guy therapist, or maybe someone who is in a larger clinic setting, where they won't feel afraid? That is, if you accept that this was the reason she terminated you.

[stopdog]

I am not certain the credentials are what ensure a therapist is going to have one focus or the other. If you have not tried an lcsw then why not do so? I think, and I find this an appalling state of affairs for their profession, it depends upon the individual therapist (and many experts have said this too - except they don't seem appalled by it) rather than their credentials. I see separate two lcsws and I hope they are not more caring at me as a person, but if you asked them if they are or not, you could get a different or two different answers.

[unlockingsanity]

My T is a social worker. She has a LOT of therapy experience (private/public practice, supervisor for many years, etc) Just because you are a social worker, doesn't mean you do therapy though. There are other jobs that you can do with a social work degree.

Originally Posted by hankster

If you were dissociating so powerfully that you scared your therapist, have you considered going inpatient? Or seeing a big burly guy therapist, or maybe someone who is in a larger clinic setting, where they won't feel afraid? That is, if you accept that this was the reason she terminated you.

i had a T before who knew how to deal with dissociation and flashbacks. oreintating me in the presnet, talking gently, etc.
i got little and scared when this happened. i didnt move towards T but was frozen asking her to stay away.
for all the months i have seen her, i have never acted violent or threatenting or scary. i am actually pretty shy.

this T was bigger and taller than me in real life.
the T had no idea what to do.

i didnt mean to scare anyone. its not something that is control unless lots ot therapy. flashback/dissociation is even known to happen in veterans.

[Littlemeinside]

I read your other thread and I am sooo sorry you had this happend to you.

On the advice about getting a socialworker as a therapist hmm... I don´t think they care more. They are not not trained to give dxés so maybe thats why i´t seems like it. The don´t have to undergo their own therapy as part of their training ect. And basically they are originally trained in socialwork and counselling.

If you need to do traumawork and dissociate in session, please don´t seek out a socialworker.

A therapist is not a protected title either. So you may have been a perfect example of what happens when underqualified people claim to do this and that.

Please seek someone out who are able to dx, can document traumawork as part of experience and have been through therapy as part of training themselves.

Dissociation is really scary in itself, no need to not get the best possible help you can get.

On a more personal note I once " scared" a therapist. She was used to dealing with anxiety/depression. Theres NOTHING wrong with us, it´s boils down to the training of the therapist.

Please don´t seek out a socialworker ( and yes I have a personal agenda on this one)

[Rzay4]

Could you return to that previous T why did you transfer if I may ask?

Social workers in the US have quite extensive training at least as my friends whom are currently studying and the social workers I know.

[stopdog]

The second lcsw I see specializes in ptsd. Both of the ones I see have been through their own therapy. The first one I see teaches courses on the dsm at the social work graduate school at a different university than the one where I teach.

[murray]

My T is a LCSW who has been a therapist for 30+years and specializes in trauma, whereas my previous T was a PsyD and did not handle trauma well. I think that the letters after their name don't necessarily indicate their skills, focus, expertise or their capacity to connect with the people that they work with. Everyone is different.

Originally Posted by Rzay4

Could you return to that previous T why did you transfer if I may ask?

.

i moved to another state. then i tried finding a T here.

My T is a psychologist and he cares very much about people. I have a friend who sees someone with a masters in social work and he also seems to care deeply about his clients. I think it is much more about the PERSON and how you get along with that person.

[BlessedRhiannon]

I think it depends a lot more on the person than the degree. My previous two T's were social workers, my current T is a psychologist. My current T has shown me more caring and understanding than my previous two T's combined. My current T has also helped me more than the previous two T's. My previous two T's did not make any effort to gain my trust and did not really listen to or understand me.

[healingme4me]

My current talk therapist is a LISW. My previous one was a Psychologist. I like them both, equally. I have had a mixture of the two, in the past. I had one Psychologist, prior to the former one, give me a psychological evaluation. That was people pleasing with some mild anxiety and depression.
It was my Psychiatrist, whom, I have been given an exact diagnosis from.

If you feel, like you are gaining from the therapeutic process, and learning coping skills, life skills, et al, then to me, it doesn't matter what their educational background really is.

I don't take it, as caring any more or any less. I just see it, as who went further than a Masters Degree. And sometimes, that doesn't fully matter, as each person in this world, has reasons, life histories, etc, that have resulted in their own educational path.

Some people, being human, delve into their trades with all their heart and soul, some people are just reserved, professional, and there's a saying about doctors, that could apply very well here...

What do you call a doctor who graduated at the top of their class? Doctor.
What do you call a doctor who graduated at the bottom of their class? Doctor.

[ar2004]

My T is a psychologist and is very caring and compassionate. She is not focused only on diagnosis but recognizes that diagnosing what is wrong is an important part of the therapy process. If you don't figure out what is wrong, it is hard to determine the direction that therapy should go.

Several years ago I saw a social worker for a few counseling sessions during a major life transition but I didn't want to go back to her this time because I didn't feel like I took much away from those sessions.

[Rive.]

I don’t find it very helpful to generalise thus. Needless to say it is not accurate either as reality presents a more nuanced tableau.

Sorry but a particular profession does *not* have monopoly in terms of caring. It is a person who cares, not their degree. This goes for anyone in the caring profession. Actually, that goes for any profession, period. Some will care and some won’t. Some will be incompetent (even more shame on them if they are in the so-called ‘caring’ professions) and some will be gems.

It will also depend on the theoretical approach they practise. This can all be ascertained during the interview stage: do you ‘click’ with them, what are their boundaries, what type of therapy do they provide, etc etc? Then you weed them out as need be.

[pbutton]

My T is a social worker and he specializes in trauma.

[Daeva]

Originally Posted by Stringcheese

i just read some advice that said search out a social worker (LCSW) for a therapist because they are focused on the person ... not just a diangosis or label.

my last T was not a social worker and she terminated me on the phone after a flashback. very cold and uncaring and unethical and mean.
i feel like a bad person because of it and her response and she has done major harm to me right now.

but i once heard that social workers have less training in therapy?

so im confused???

what is your T's background????

It has nothing to do with your T's degree, your T just wasn't a good T. However my T IS a Social Worker and I love her very much, she is wonderful

I've worked long-term with 3 different therapists with 3 different educational backgrounds and degrees. I will say that my current therapist, who is a psychologist, does seem to have a deeper and more specific/directed/chosen/theoretical (not sure what term to use here) than the other two with less extensive background/education and degrees, and I have probably made much more solid progress with him, but they each served there purpose at the time, were each very caring and dedicated therapists, and I wouldn't have traded any of them for the world.