# Cognitive Behavioral Therapy?



## Tom90 (Mar 28, 2012)

Im seeing a psychologist and ive gone four times i think so far. I dont get what im supposed to accomplish from going. All he does is ask me questions like "why do you feel misunderstood?" or "what is anxiety to you?" and other questions like that then when i answer he'll look down nod and say "mmm ok" and this will go on for one hour and then he gets $100 cash from my mom because we dont have insurnance.
Is this supposed to happen when you see a psychologist? How is this supposed to help me? 
The only medication i want is xanax or valium or any benzo and if i see a psychiatrist i was told i would be given SSRI's and i dont want that because they have lots of side effects and you dont notice a difference. I also dont like the idea of taking one a day because thats how addiction begins. All i want is some xanax for emergencies ill only use like 2 or 3 times a month. I used to buy off a kid and never got addicted.


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## Implicate (Feb 1, 2011)

You don't just get to go to a doctor and walk out with benzos because you think that is best. Benzos are one of the last lines of defense, after other options have been exhausted.

Saying that there is no difference with SSRI's, especially if you have never taken them seems silly. Everyone is physiologically different, and not everyone suffers from side effects. SSRI's are also not addictive, unlike benzos.

If you are unhappy with your psychologist, by all means find one that better suits you.


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## Tom90 (Mar 28, 2012)

Implicate said:


> You don't just get to go to a doctor and walk out with benzos because you think that is best. Benzos are one of the last lines of defense, after other options have been exhausted.
> 
> Saying that there is no difference with SSRI's, especially if you have never taken them seems silly. Everyone is physiologically different, and not everyone suffers from side effects. SSRI's are also not addictive, unlike benzos.
> 
> If you are unhappy with your psychologist, by all means find one that better suits you.


Hes the only one near me and my doctor told me if i dont see a psychologist then i can forget meds and if i forget meds and a psychologist then i get no help. I would rather have a crappy psychologist but recieve some meds and be under supervision of my psychologist. I just want to know if what i said is what a psychologist does? Is that what they do? I dont know what im supposed to expect of a psychologist.
Also i have a friend on SSRIs who will panic if she forgets to take her zoloft i dont want to be dependent on a stupid little pill every single day.


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## Bryan II (Dec 9, 2012)

I'm on benzos and an ssri. first of all, ssris can make a huge difference! you are really wrong about that. they do have side effects, but they aren't that bad, just annoying. 

second, doctors usually only give benzos when the anxiety is so bad that it is ruining the persons life. not to people who just get nervous a few times a month, and definitely not to teenagers who just want to get high.


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## Bryan II (Dec 9, 2012)

and yes, that's what psychologists do. he's trying to figure you out because he can't really do much to help you until he does. you've only gone 4 times. just keep going.


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## pohutukawa (Jan 14, 2013)

*zach90: * I don't think it should take that long to find out about you, esp since they're professionals.

My psychiatrist only questioned me within the first session, very brief, and my psychologist very succinctly told me in our first session what she thought was wrong and we proceeded with CBT. At first I felt a bit odd because I didn't expect therapy to be like that. My psych (I didn't see my psychiatrist much because I didn't take meds) just guided me in realising the flaws in my negativity thinking and helped direct me towards more helpful, positive and/or realistic thinking.

Bryan could be right, the psych could be figuring you out. Perhaps you can ask your psych what he has learned about you at this point in time and what he intends to do, so it's more of a two-way street.

Actually, before I saw my psych, I went to one of those neighbourhood counselling centres and saw a counsellor. While she was nice and encouraging, she came off to me as a little patronising, because when I told her about my troubles and what I thought, I knew my way of thinking was wrong, I just didn't know how to fix myself. She would nod, agree, but not really say anything. Every time I felt the place, I just felt like I vented, and not any better. I decided to stop after a few sessions and went to see a real psychologist.

(My real regret is stopping after a year coz I thought I could do fine. While I'm not as bad as I was, I'm still not really there yet and unsure if I should go back, because of the cost.)

Also, I think you shouldn't take pills (if and only if you aren't full-blown terrible without it, I mean) but try to correct your thinking about it all by yourself. You'd feel waaaay better about yourself when you succeed. Coz you'd have done it without the help of meds.

I hope this helps.


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## pohutukawa (Jan 14, 2013)

Sorry, **left the place, not felt the place.


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## Tom90 (Mar 28, 2012)

So what happens if you miss a dose of your SSRI one day? Does it affect you bad or can you just play off the whole day? I really dont want anything that would make me dependent and honestly isnt it better if my doctor just gives me the benzos now?
Think about it if the ssri just gets me dependent and eventually stops working my anxiety will get worse unless i continue taking my ssri for the next 5 years which me and my mom dont want to be doing. Wouldnt it be better if my doctor just gave me some xanax. Like 5 a month because if im ever put on xanax then i must have developed horrible anxiety by then and ill have to be taking them 3 times a day. If i get it now and use it wisely i wont get addicted if i use it 2 or 3 times a month (its just for social events). If i take it 3 times a day then i will be addicted within a week and will go through horrible withdrawl same with ssri except ssri have easier withdrawl


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## Bryan II (Dec 9, 2012)

1. psychologists can't give you xanax anyways.
2. most people don't get withdrawls from ssris
3. why do you want xanax so bad? unlike antidepressants, it actually is addictive. the most addictive out of all benzos, actually.
4. klonopin is best for social anxiety, xanax is better for panic attacks. klonopin is a lot less addictive too, since it has a longer half life.
5. if you miss a dose, you just feel a bit different, as long as you don't have severe depression.
6. no doctor in their right mind is going to just give you xanax. because no matter if it's true or not, you sound like you just want it to get high on.


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## Tom90 (Mar 28, 2012)

Bryan II said:


> 1. psychologists can't give you xanax anyways.
> 2. most people don't get withdrawls from ssris
> 3. why do you want xanax so bad? unlike antidepressants, it actually is addictive. the most addictive out of all benzos, actually.
> 4. klonopin is best for social anxiety, xanax is better for panic attacks. klonopin is a lot less addictive too, since it has a longer half life.
> ...


I know psychologists cant give xanax out because i stated that i know psychologosits cant however my pediatrician can and told me he could prescribe anything he wants. My psychologist is going to talk to my doctor about a prescription and im trying to convince my psychologist to convince my doctor for xanax and not an ssri or beta blocker because i dont want an upset stomach all day.


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## sleeptonight (Jan 18, 2013)

zach90 said:


> Im seeing a psychologist and ive gone four times i think so far. I dont get what im supposed to accomplish from going. All he does is ask me questions like "why do you feel misunderstood?" or "what is anxiety to you?" and other questions like that then when i answer he'll look down nod and say "mmm ok" and this will go on for one hour and then he gets $100 cash from my mom because we dont have insurnance.
> Is this supposed to happen when you see a psychologist? How is this supposed to help me?


4 sessions seems like a lot for an assessment of SA, but he might suspect you have co-morbid diagnoses. If you're worried he's trying to take advantage of you or doesn't seem like the right fit for you, you could always ask for a referral to another psychologist.

Also, you seem to have pretty strong opinions about medication, but I just wanted to make sure you knew that CBT alone is more effective at curing SA than medication, or even CBT + medication. So if your psychologist is unwilling to help you get medication, he's probably doing so with your best interst in mind.


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## sleeptonight (Jan 18, 2013)

Oops, I just read the part about having no other psychologists around. I guess you have to stick with him. :/


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## Maslow (Dec 24, 2003)

I've been on a very low dosage of paroxetine for about seven years. I go days without taking it and have no side effects, and it keeps working. If I go too long I'll get brain "zaps," but then I just have to take one to get rid of it. I weaned myself off it last year to see what would happen, and all my old anxieties came back. I've resigned myself to the fact that I'll probably be on it for the rest of my life.

As far as therapy, you only get out of it what you put into it.


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