So I went to see a psychiatrist to try and help deal today.

[hello678]

I made the appointment about a month ago when things were very very fresh. It just takes so long to get one I thought i'd go follow up and see If it helped me progress at all.

 

Unfortunately It didn't seem too. I told the guy the entire story, he related about how 'bad' it was of her, what shes doing etc. And try and worked out a mental profile of me, he said that I have a very strong moral code and like to associate with 'higher level' people. He also called me out on calling both the ex and her new boyfriend "id iots" constantly saying that I felt higher than people etc.

 

Overall, he suggested I should let myself calm down and than talk to her about what she done to me.

 

He booked me in for another appointment, since its covered by health insurance i'll go, but I can't say he really helped me very much / at all. And the idea of talking to her about... anything makes me more angry than helpful. I guess they sometimes don't know what to say, but I was rather unimpressed.

[Eocsor]

When I went years back after my divorce, it took me three trys before I got one that could help me. You have to understand that they are just people with ideas as well. Psychiatrists are great when it comes to prescribing anti depressants, or anxiety drugs to help that aspect of your problem. I found Psycholgists much more helpful when actually talking about the breakup. The two Psychiatrists I visited were very opinionated and seemed to think they could solve things quickly. I went to a psychologist who a friend recommended and we worked through the issues over a number of weeks and it was quite helpful.

 

One of the psychiatrists suggested that I simply date someone else to get over the ex which most mental health care providers suggest is the wrong thing to do. At the end of the day, they can't really tell you anything you don't already know. They're just people with opinions like everyone else and unless there is some underlying chemical imbalance in your brain they can proscribe drugs for, or a deep seated trauma they can help with, they're simply someone to vent to. The psycholgist I finally found was someone I could talk to and complain to and who would basically re-inforce the healing behaviours I needed to follow in order to get better. Not much different from the advice you get here.

[endy]

Eocsor is definitely right. They are just people as well. Not all of them are going to be able to help us or explain things the right way. Just like some people on here you are more compatible with or understand them easier. I've thought about going to see a shrink, but I know I can handle it myself. If I felt it would take longer than going to see a shrink I would have probably went. I don't think you really need to. If you read those books, basically you are going to see what you need to about yourself and change it if you feel the need. In your situation it's probably a lot more about her needing a shrink than you do bud. Chemical imbalance relates to depression, alcoholism, a.d.d and adhd, bi-polarism, drug issues etc. Do you really think you have any of that?

 

You are just at the anger stage of grief/abandonment. You'll be just fine. There are some people here that do GET STUCK. Like the abandonment process is taking way too long to heal and get over. This is when I think you either need a shrink, or you need to get a book that walks you through the healing behaviors like said above. That is only if you are having a major issue getting over it.

[IrishGrl]

You might find sessions will be more helpful as they progess, thats how it was for me. It is good to get help and get an unbiased opinion sometimes. I saw counsellors while I was in college, after a dear friend of mine, who was also my boyfriend committed suicide. It helped me alot and brought up alot of other issues. But now I am back to hurting so much again over my recent breakup from my boyfriend.

[RecentlyAlone]

I saw a psychologist twice after my breakup. She's a sweet lady but I'm not sure if it's for me. The second time and last time I saw her (2 weeks post break up) she recommended a psychiatrist to me to go on antidepressants. I was so surprised at that I actually made a post about it asking others if this was normal. I decided that is not something I want to do...however 2 months later I just booked an appointment with who she recommended. I still don't want to go on antidepressants and I'm still uncomfortable that she even suggested that but I decided getting something perscribed to help me sleep is better than tylennol pm every night. So, I'm not really trying to pour my soul into him I just want help sleeping! I'm sure talking to a psychol or psychia can be really helpful for a lot of people, but I think most of it depends on the doc you find. I also heard that, not just mine, but many of them are really quick to put you on meds which I don't like.

[Eocsor]

Well, agood nights sleep is a great way to combat depression. Thers nothing worse than being constantly exhausted because it drags you down. And there a lot of different options they can put you b these days. I took Lorazopam. It just relaxed me, took away the tension,

[metrogirl]

I think if you are just struggling with the breakup and need to talk it out, a pyschologist would be a better route to go. The shrink is better suited to treat you with meds if that is what you need.

[Tryptophan]

When doing a mental profile, what Psychiatrists do is consult their precious Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, IV-Text Revision, it was made by the American Psychiatric Association, and it is pretty straightforward if you do have a mental disorder. However, it has caused Psychiatrists to always work by the book, and they just kind of try to shove everyone in one of their criterias, even if they don't necessarily fit it.

From what you said, "having a strong moral" code is actually characteristic of OCPD, and associating with "higher level" people is actually characteristic of NPD. From this you can see they do stick by the book and they don't create a specific mental health treatment that fits YOU. That is why many people tend to choose psychologists instead, who ALSO use the DSM-IV-TR but they also do train Psychotherapy, counseling, behavioral and cognitive therapy, etc. Psychiatrists, at the end of the day, get an MD and tend to look at things more on a Disorder-Treatment basis. Psychologists will try more to look at from different perspectives and try to help you more in a humanistic way because through training they learn that things aren't always so clear, but rather occur on a continuum. That's what good ones do, anyway. Give the psychiatrist a try, and see if his perspective works because it might work, but be open-minded to the treatment. If not, try to find a Psychologist or a Licensed Mental Health Counselor who instead of looking at things from a clinical perspective, look at it from a counseling, everyday problem, type of thing.

[lovesforlife]

I am seeing a therapist (it is almost one year after the break up and I've gotten progressively worse so I started seeing her a couple of months ago but have only gone twice - skipped two appointments). I don't find it particularly helpful because she is a psychotherapist and we just talk. I want tools and commentary on what I can do to get better. I am having a lot of panic and anxiety that is making me think I may benefit from medication, but I will first attempt increasing my exercise because that helped me a lot immediately after the break up - and just keeping busy at work.