Finding a therapist

[philosophe]

Originally Posted by texas_jack

Maybe ask your primary care doctor who he likes.

Definitely the right advice.

Also, what are you looking for? What are your resources? How much time do you envision committing to therapy? Cognitive behavioral therapy is quite effective for some things, but so is insight-oriented psychodynamic therapy. And there is always psychoanalysis.

Last but not least, meet a few therapists for an initial session before making your decision. You need to find a good match.

 

[MrG]

Originally Posted by dl20

You musn't be very far into your program as your info is way way way off. In fact, research training and clinical experience are generally far better at PsyD programs than your average PhD. "undistinguished faculty"- nonsense, I've been instructed by the best names in the field for the last 7 years.

While there may be a few bad apples in the bunch, I dont know of to many legit doctoral programs, PsyD or PhD that are "degree mill schools." By the time I get my PsyD in May ill have racked up much more supervised clinical hours than most PhD programs require, written and defended my dissertation and have gotten a good bit of teaching experience. My experience in the field, while admittingly anecdotal, is that many PhD students, particularly from top tier schools are seriously lacking in their clinical skills.

PhD's love to crap on PsyD's because from what I understand, PsyD's for a while (many years back) was an easier route to, essentially the same end.

RE: the original post, yes, go see a psychologist, not a MA/S, run from clinical social workers. The Abct is a good resource which limits (does not eliminate) your chance of finding a crackpot clinician.

DL

So I was right the first time? This makes sense to me, given I Googled "PsyD" after reading the prior post, and I found perfectly respectable universities that offered the degree. The professional doctorates with which I'm most familiar are the DPAs (doctor of public administration). In PA, the practitioner/researcher distinction is between DPAs and PhDs in public administration, respectively. As such, a DPA is more appropriate for the practitioner, just as a PsyD would be in this case. I was very confused as to how it could be so different, but I just figured psychology was somehow weird. It's good to know it's not.

 

[Tardek]

Never trust a therapist.

That's my professional opinion.

 

[Johnny_5]

Walk into your local bar.