[youwillrise]

i hope i am putting this in the right forum...if not, feel free to move.

is this hard to find? i am currently seeking an md/psychiatrist, but i want them to also have good psychotherapy skills and not just throw meds at me. i want a psychiatrist specifically incase meds will be helpful to me (i havr mostly avoided them out of fear), but i dont want someone who will just prescribe a bunch of stuff. i have been to a psychiatrist years ago and id say he was soso at psychotherapy/counseling, but not exactly what i was looking for...and more recently, i was seeing a psychologist who was okay, but still not the complete package i was looking for.

i know that psychiatrists are medical doctors and thats probably the bulk of their education and experience, but how much are they given in the way of talk therapy and such?

should i just seek a psychologist and then talk to a regular doctor about meds? talk therapy doesnt generally work alone for me. i need something to supplement, but like i said, i dont want meds to be my entire treatment.

im also looking through my insurance book for doctors and looking them up online because i like to know what other people think of them and some reviews are really turning me off. maybe im just finding excuses to be picky...but i need to be picky with something like this.

i dunno.

[unlockingsanity]

From personal experience, I'd vouch for a therapist and a psychiatrist (Pdoc).

They both have their own areas of expertise. If you can find two who are willing to work together (eg. communicate about your progress), that is especially helpful.

[someone321]

Actually my therapist is also a psychiatrist, so he can do both: prescribing meds and running the therapy... I am sure that there are also therapist in your country who are psychiatrists at the same time - then you can have two in one

I have a very good psychiatrist who is also my psychotherapist. I see him twice a week for therapy, and he also manages my medication. He has gone through the same training as other licenced psychotherapists, on top of his psychiatric specialisation in med school.

Whether it is easy to find such a person probably depends on where in the world you are located. Since you mention insurance I suspect you are in the United States?

For me it's great to have both a pdoc and a therapist in one person, though others on this forum have treatment teams which work well together, so that is also a possibility.

[Elektra_]

well i like that idea too... a psychiatrist with training in psychotherapy but u know.. they are rare. if u cant find one with 2 aspects then find a psych and a therapist that specializes in the issues u have. i dont think a regular doc is good to prescribe meds for mental probs. tc

[youwillrise]

yeah,

that's what i want. i know they exist, but i feel like psychiatrists who are also GOOD at psychotherapy are harder to find.

i also want to avoid paying 2 different copays. i dont really have the money or the time to make lots of separate appts with separate doctors/therapists. it's just hard! i'm generally very picky and indecisive with everything.

i just want to make sure i'm making smart decisions. of course, i wont know how the doctor is until i work with them, but ((shrug))

it's hard to find because the emphasis has been changing in psychiatry for a few decades. Around the early 80's the APA started emphasizing diagnosis and medicine as treatments while physiotherapist became more popular. Why have psychiatrists if there are therapists already? Basically a career saving decision. Insurance companies also help by not paying so much so dr's think they need to see two patients an hour. Or more. Essentially they don't get paid for talk therapy unless they work out of network in which case they design their own model. This is more and more popular.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[someone321]

Originally Posted by youwillrise

yeah,

that's what i want. i know they exist, but i feel like psychiatrists who are also GOOD at psychotherapy are harder to find.

i also want to avoid paying 2 different copays. i dont really have the money or the time to make lots of separate appts with separate doctors/therapists. it's just hard! i'm generally very picky and indecisive with everything.

i just want to make sure i'm making smart decisions. of course, i wont know how the doctor is until i work with them, but ((shrug))

In my country first you have to be a psychologist or psychiatrist and then you can become a therapist, so in theorey chances are 50:50; however, of course there is more therapist with psychological background... Thus, there are more great as well as terrible therapists with this background I think - everything is actually the matter of luck I think...

What is interesting is that here where I live, if your therapist is a psychiatrist, every insurance has to reimburse you 90% of the therapy, if a T is not a psychiatrist and doesn't work under the direct psychiatrist supervision there is no reimbursement... i'm actually curious why...

[Canyon]

In America, it is hard to find a Pdoc that also does therapy. There is no requirement for them to do psychotherapy first here. They go to regular med school and then do specialty internships and fellowships in the specialty that they are going in to.

[curious george]

Originally Posted by youwillrise

...but i need to be picky with something like this.

Dear You Will Rise ... I like your username ... Thanks for posting this!
CONGRATULATIONS! EXCELLENT SELF CARE ON YOUR PART! I completely agree with you! Good psychotherapy skills PLUS not just throw meds at you! And YES, CONTINUE TO BE PICKY! YOU ARE WORTH IT! and yes I was shouting that, so you could hear that it's okay to be picky ~ this is YOUR life so LOVINGLY LIVE IT!

In general, I have found that it's difficult to find even JUST ONE mental health care professional, who is: #1 Mentally healthy, #2 Has excellent skills as a talk therapist, #3 Can purely care & put the mental, emotional, physical health of client/patient FIRST. So if you can find ONE PERSON who can do both ~ be an EXCELLENT psychotherapist AND is a psychiatrist as well, then you've found something EXTREMELY RARE!

If you can't find ONE PERSON who can do both, then find TWO PEOPLE WHO ARE EXCELLENT ... ONE FOR EACH ASPECT ~ an MD & a psychotherapist.

Whatever you do, do NOT settle for "just okay" in one or both people. I've had situations when I've settled for just okay, and it usually doesn't improve my situation. Then I continue to wonder WHY I'm doing any therapy at all, and then I get even MORE depressed. So believe me, do NOT settle! Take the time to find EXCELLENT assistance!

Continue to be picky & believe that the "right" person/people" will come into your life. The saying that comes to mind: "When the student is ready, the teacher will appear."
(... my previous dilemma was this: I think I'm ready, so why hasn't the SUPER HELPFUL teacher shown up?!!)

Well, the good news is, it took me a looonnnggg time! THANK GOODNESS & THANK GOD, I have finally found an EXCELLENT T! YAY!!!

Keep going. As your name says, YOU WILL RISE. I will keep positive thoughts for you! Keep in Touch! oxoxo

[looking4polaris]

I have a pdoc who also does therapy and I really that set-up. My med management has never been smoother.
In the USA, you can check apsa.org Of course, they aren't all MDs, but those that are also MDs have extensive training in (often many types of) psychotherapy. Might be a place to start, anyway.
Good luck!

[willowbrook]

I have a fantastic Pdoc who also does Psychotherapy,and therapy in general, in several different modes. He's never just thrown pills at me, whether I'm on medication or not is a decision made by me after I've weighed the pros and cons, and we've discussed all the options. He tends more towards a holistic approach as well, so a combination of medication, if I choose to take it (right now that would be 'yes'), Psychotherapy, Mindfulness, Spirituality and just generally being an all round super nice person, who can make me laugh and feel relaxed. Right now his 'prescription' for me is Yoga, starting off with 3 poses, and building from there. Like I said, he's more of a holistic, east meets west, kind of a Pdoc - not just a 'throw pills at it and hope it goes away' kind. So they are definitely out there, good luck in your search.