>>17164711
I think they do cognitive behaviour therapy that the psychiatrist prescribes?

I'm not sure.

>>17164711
borderline/depression/sperg here, I have a lot to share, so my apologies for the wall of text.

I wouldn't call them charlatans, but some aren't that good. many are competent, but even a fairly good therapist will have areas where they excel and areas where they don't, just like any other person in a job. if you happen to need help in an area they're not good at, they can seem incompetent.

they are best if you don't go to them expecting "answers" in the sense of, you tell them what your problems are and they give you an answer to them. you will end up doing most of the work yourself. a good therapist is more like a tutor for learning how to fix your own shit. they're also sometimes good to bounce stuff off of, if you're worried that fixing your own shit is causing you to become too self-involved. but we know there are no self-involved people on 4chan so you can disregard that :^)

often, if you have deep-seated issues like a personality disorder or a severe case of depression, anxiety, PTSD, etc., you may go to a therapist for a while, make progress for a year or two, then hit a wall. I'm pretty sure this is normal. so it's not unheard of for people to take breaks from therapy or switch therapists. I have done both those things when I felt I wasn't making progress.

some examples: I used to see a therapist for both individual and premarital counseling, as well as some hypnosis and some other less-proven (aka woo-woo) methods like neurofeedback. his couples counseling game is strong as fuck and I would recommend him to any couple. but for my one-on-one, his hypnosis and woo-woo stuff did more for me than his "traditional" therapy. there were times he seemed just a smidge out of his depth when trying to apply cognitive behavioural therapy. also some of the advice he gave me that wasn't helpful *at the time* is now making more sense to me. this happens sometimes in therapy too.

cont

You're much better off speaking to psychiatrists, as they've been to medical school and are much less politically entangled than psychologists.
Psychological studies published even in reputable journals can rarely if ever be fully duplicated, and the field as a whole has become extremely politically biased and often pushes an agenda.
If you need treatment, see a doctor.

>>17164787
one of the most helpful therapists I saw was a lady who I did CBT with. I think she was more effective because we clicked on a personal level (both youngest children, similar backgrounds, etc), so there was specific stuff she could recognise in me and advise on in a much more specific manner, because she'd been through it herself.

then there was a guy who was...competent I guess, but it was one of those christian counseling services that swear up and down that they will counsel anybody and be respectful of all faiths, but it wasn't long before he tried converting me. I didn't see him long.

then there was one clinic where I saw 2 different therapists there who were both green as fuck, right out of school. they'd have been fine as babby's first therapist, but for someone like me who was 35 and had been thru all the obvious shit and some of the non-obvious shit, they weren't helpful.

right now I am going to group therapy and it's pretty damn good if you're like me and tend to get too wrapped up in your own problems. again, groups vary in their aims, composition, and the strengths and weakness of the therapist/facilitator.

if you're reading this and you think you'd benefit from a therapist, give one a try. if after half a dozen sessions or so, you think they're not helping you, *tell them.* they might be able to change treatment styles. and if they really can't help you, they should refer you to someone who can. however, be prepared to do a lot of work yourself, because that's how it works.

>>17164808
You don't really speak to psychiatrists in any emotionally deep context. They are there to prescribe medication and monitor their effectiveness.

>>17164808
I agree with this somewhat as well, although many psychiatrists in my experience will not see you for hour-long sessions except at intake. after that, it's mostly check-ins to make sure your meds are working. (I am in the US, idk how it is elsewhere) the few shrinks I've found that will do so are expensive as shit, to the point where unless your insurance covers 100% of mental health services, you will be paying out the yingyang unless you only see them once a month or something. one shrink i saw was very good and did hour-long sessions but did not take insurance at all. I'd see him if I could afford it, but I just can't.

on the plus side, they can prescribe psych meds way way way more effectively than a family doctor can. it's like the difference between having brian eno produce your album vs. having your cat produce your album. so that is a huge plus. a good shrink will also not "push" meds at you if you're not open to them, and they will be more knowledgeable about other medical (but non-drug) ways to help your condition, like dietary changes, supplements, lifestyle changes etc. a therapist ideally would know that stuff but they won't be as well versed in it as a medical doctor will.