# how is therapy going for you guys ? is it working ?



## TheSilentGirl (May 29, 2014)

how is therapy going for you guys ? is it working ?. my therapy isn't really working out for me, my therapist just doesn't understand social anxiety.


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## Caterpillar13 (Nov 10, 2013)

Not working, she just listens n then says n why do u think that or and what do YOU think etc. Its like she's just paid to listen... The only one advice she gave me was to use positive affermations n look in the mirror and say (for example) I am confident, I am worthy of love and I am happy... Told her I didn't believe those things but she said if I said them long enough I would believe them... That's it, otherwise she just listens.. (which is pointless really unless I had something I needed to say out loud n nobody to listen)


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## noimagination (Apr 28, 2014)

As much as mine is trying to help me, it just doesn't really seem to be helping me much. I get given little activities to do like try to get involved in a social interaction, but most of these have a bad result from my perspective so it just seems to make things worse.


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## BelowtheCurrent (Mar 14, 2013)

All my sessions just end with me ranting about my miserable life for an hour and her intervening with very few comments. 'why did you do this or that', 'do what makes you happy', 'you're a strong person' etc... I'm not sure really if it 'works' but I enjoy talking with someone who thinks I'm sane and just lets me unload everything without too much judging.


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## oood (Nov 1, 2012)

I think it's sort of working. I do most of the exposure activities my therapist encourages me to do and she's really happy about that, tells me I'm making great progress. But I'm also more depressed these days and she doesn't give me an opportunity to talk about it. Still I'm improving in terms of SA I guess.


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## csm2000 (Oct 25, 2013)

My big issue w therapy is our "relationship". And I know the problem is *me*. I have a huge wall up and resistant as all get out. It's coming on two years, and there are weeks when I feel comfortable with her and weeks when I don't, but my S/A seems at its worst in there because I'm *aware* that the objective is to knock down the wall and be fully open and vulnerable. OH NO NOT THAT YOU CAN'T MAKE ME !!! EEEEEE! Anyway, I have alot of residual issues from abuse and neglect in addition to the SA crap, so the weeks when I do throw out tidbits of self, inside I wish she would leap on it like a rat on a cheeto instead of letting it go by. Again, probably my fault because I err on the side of subtle thinking that people are getting what I'm saying versus going in and saying "HEY! I think we really need to talk about THIS." So, in short, I'm getting out of it what I'm putting into it. I want to work harder. I'm just...afraid! Honestly, I think it has helped me considerably in the world of self awareness, but change, not so much.


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## Pompeii (Aug 25, 2013)

Group therapy is the business. It's been life-changing so far.

Individual therapy is not the business. I've temporarily given up on individual therapy while I consider whether to seek a new clinical psychologist or return to the one I was seeing up until recently.


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## csm2000 (Oct 25, 2013)

Can you share what u like about group?

My S.A. is so unpredictable I could go in to a group and feel fine.
I would like to learn what triggers it.

I kind of like the 1:1 attention in therapy...


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## loneliness (Oct 3, 2013)

My therapist didn't really offer me any practical advice for my problems. She was just a shoulder to cry on, somebody who listened. That's nice to an extent, but overall it felt like a waste of time, so I left.


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## Yer Blues (Jul 31, 2013)

It has helped to some degree. I guess talking to an unbiased person will help and give you a different perspective. I just wish she'd slow down with the exposure stuff. 

The Effexor has made some difference as well.


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## ShatteredGlass (Oct 12, 2012)

It's kind of working. I always feel better after a therapy session, and my therapist does a good job of sending me back into reality. He's not really getting me to actually do anything or face my fears or anything though. He pretty much just says stuff like everybody gets anxious and people are likely not judging you and whatnot.


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## W A N D E R L U S T (Oct 2, 2012)

I don't have one...I find it immensely awkward just telling someone that I have SA. :blank
But I will try self-help first!


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## AceEmoKid (Apr 27, 2012)

My current therapist is alright, I suppose. I've only had 4 or 5 hour long sessions with him thus far. Originally I had attended for anxiety and depression, but almost immediately it turned into discussions about my rapid mood cycling and issues with my mother, who to my therapist, seems the main source of most of my problems. Most of the time I just let him ramble on, only answering briefly when he directs a question at me. I pretty much zone out half the time, as if in lecture hall at school. He means well, though. I just don't think I'm getting much useful out of it yet; just a lot of packets he reads from word for word that certainly deal with issues I have, but don't give helpful advice or techniques on how to combat them. I think I have to give it more time though. Supposedly the first few sessions are just about orienting the therapist toward your main issues, then afterwards will they begin tackling them.


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## Blight (Jul 9, 2013)

I rather like my therapist. Although I think that may just be because her voice is reaaallllyy soothing and our sessions are the one time I get to speak my mind. On the other hand, I don't know that she's all that helpful. It's been a year and things don't feel like they are getting better.

She almost never actually gives me advice. Even when I outright ask "what should I do?", she just kind of answers "What do you think you should do?".


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## Tadashi (Oct 17, 2012)

So-so... My therapist is really nice, she really understand how I feel and always encourage me to solve my problems. Thanks to her I return to write one important paper for my graduation.

But I really know the biggets problem is me. I'm very insecure and a I feel kind guilty when I go to another session and show no evolution.


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## Kind Of (Jun 11, 2014)

If your therapist doesn't understand the topic... time for a new one. I managed to find someone understanding, and it's no miracle but it's helping.


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## Kind Of (Jun 11, 2014)

If your therapist doesn't even understand the topic, it's time for a new therapist. I found someone who does, and while it's no miracle it's helping at least a little bit. I don't know how far it's going to take me.


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## rayrae7 (Aug 26, 2013)

I quit going to my therapist, because she was just so fake. She was trying to be my friend right, but in this over the top way, like we are best buddies and I'm not paying her for her time at all. It was so corny. Really, it didn't help much, which makes me sad cause now I don't know what I should do. . .


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## Socialite (Jun 17, 2014)

Therapy has helped me with depression but not anxiety. 
I have a very nice therapist but telling me to go out and socialise isn't exactly helping. There is not much opportunity for me to socialise. 
Then my main problem with phone phobia meanwhile is getting worse and worse and the pressure is on at work. Meanwhile she tells me la la land stuff about breathing and staying in the moment, when I need advice on how to change my thought processes.


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## soulsurviver (Jun 17, 2014)

I had psychodynamic therapy 5 years ago, it worked very well and I felt secure in myself for the very first time. Unfortunately 3 months after therapy ended, 3 of my relatives died and I started to unravel again. My therapist would not let me see her again as she was worried I would get over dependent on her. I have never felt stable since, and no other therapist has been able to help me, not even other psychodynamic therapists


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## Jayndoe (Jun 19, 2014)

I've been in therapy for a few months. I like my therapist. He's my biggest supporter and biggest cheerleader. HOWEVER, I don't really feel like I'm getting anything out of the sessions. I go once a week. When I told him about my social anxiety he said he used to have to participate in social functions for a previous job and he HATED it. Then, went on to explain why he hated it and closed by saying, "So, I don't know if I'm really the person to talk to about it. I just say, if you don't like doing it, don't do it." Yeah. This was about the same response I got when I requested some help for a nervous tic I have.
Now, through my life I have read a LOT of psychology and self-help books. I am capable of very rational and logical thought. I have been able to change a lot of things for myself because of those things. When I go into therapy and inform my therapist of some new, more adaptive way of thinking or behaving, he encourages me tremendously and compliments me and flatters me on my resiliency and self-awareness and insight. While that feels great for my fragile ego, it is doing nothing to help me with my other issues. I am so averse to anything approaching confrontation that I cannot bring myself to tell him he is not really helping me in any measurable way. He asks me for feedback at every visit and claims to really want to know if he is not helping, but I just cannot bring myself to tell him the truth. I don't know how to make myself do it even though my mental and emotional well-being is rather dependent on it.


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## felina (Jun 22, 2014)

Like writing, or making art, when it comes to therapy I'm trying my best to trust the process. I've been going weekly for maybe three months now. I do leave most sessions feeling a bit lighter and more energized for having vented and processed for an hour. I'm just so impatient for *progress* and *results*, though. Which is not really how it works I guess. There's a long-term treatment plan and it seems more of the 'skills' stuff comes later. First we want a handle on what my brain does and how it does it, before we work on really changing some of those processes. 

I do really like my therapist, though. I was anxious when my case was assigned to someone who's probably a few years younger than me. She obviously has her **** together in a way I don't, between the degree on her wall and the rock on her finger. I thought I'd just feel like crap putting all my stuff out there with someone who was more like a peer than an authority figure, like I'd be comparing myself to her all the time and feeling bad. It's actually nice, though -- someone who gets where I'm coming from.


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## lyricalillusions (Nov 29, 2008)

I like my therapist. She's a good person and I like talking to her. But it doesn't help with my problems at all. Medication helps immensely, but therapy, not at all.


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## Nimue (May 6, 2014)

I am sorry for all of you who are not having luck with therapy. For me, I've been in therapy since Nov 2013 and on medication since 2003. Both are helpful. 
My therapist is a specialist in trauma and that seems to be a good match for me. I trust her and even though a few weeks ago she triggered a panic attack, we have a good relationship. She has suggested things such as drawing, journal writing, reading books (The 4 Agreements is wonderful), making lists, etc. When I bring up something, she jumps right on it and stops my rambling to focus on the why behind my feelings. It's helping a lot and giving me confidence.
BUT....I would never be comfortable talking about it unless I was medicated. For me, I need both.


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