How to know if you need to see a Psychiatrist.
You should seek psychological counseling or therapy if you have stress, anxiety, depression or other disorders that seriously affect your life. In the most serious circumstance, you pose a threat to yourself or others; the stress is debilitating to the point of considerations of suicide or of harming other people. You might be affected to the point that you resort to substance abuse or other habits harmful to your health. In the less serious situations, your stress might be negatively affecting relationships in your life or jeopardizing your job or having some other affect that might be difficult to recover from over the longterm. In the most common circumstance, everyone experiences stress; personal, family, job related, a death of a friend or family member, a diagnosis or a serious disease or disorder … and at times in our lives, we become temporarily overwhelmed by these stresses and lose our ability to cope in a healthy manner. Some of the above circumstances require immediate and aggressive treatment. Most don’t require aggressive treatment, but would benefit from the help of a licensed professional. The qualifications and services offered differ between psychiatrists, psychologists and other mental health professionals.
A “psychiatrist” is a physician (M.D.) who has studied, and been trained to treat, mental illness. They can provide advanced levels of psychotherapy, using diagnostic studies, a host of advanced resources and they can prescribe medications used to treat mental illness.
A “psychologist” is a clinician who has studied the human mind; investigates cognitive thinking and patterns of human behavior. They practice is a very wide range of settings as counselors, school psychologists, industrial psychologists, forensic psychologists and many other positions. In the strictest definition, and generally accepted, the “psychologist” has a doctoral degree in their field (Ph.D)
A “counselor” or “therapist” are professionals trained to treat patients by addressing mental health problems from past, present and future issues that affect their lives and relationships with others, their general sense of wellbeing and more. The educational backgrounds, and qualifications, of counselors varies greatly. Most will have a Masters level education (M.S.) and be licensed counselors , but some may not. Many professionals with less education may still be perfectly acceptable and successful in helping you resolve your problems, but you may need to do some more research when finding and utilizing the skills of these counselors to be sure that you access someone who is qualified to do the counseling, but also trusted and respected in their field.
Making the first step is the most important! If you need assistance, making any step to call a mental health professional should result in your either getting assistance, or getting the proper advice to guide you to help that is appropriate for your concerns. There are no hard fast rules about which disorders require exactly which professionals, but more serious disorders, such as major depressive disorders, Bipolar, psychotic or schizophrenic disorders may require the assistance of an MD, a psychiatrist. Other disorders, such as Post Traumatic Stress, situational anxiety or depression, substance abuse issues and others, may be handled by Psychologists or counselors.
How do you know who to call? There are a number of resources readily available to you. Search the American Psychiatric Association for help, call the local hospital and speak to the staff on the psychiatric unit or ask your primary care physician for a referral. Self help groups in the local area usually have information about available professional assistance that would benefit you. Your insurance company will generally provide a list of providers that fit your needs. Ask friends and family most people have either used some form of counseling or know someone who has and a word of mouth referral from someone who achieved success is nice to have.
The most important step is seeking assistance and having a positive attitude! By calling these resources and outlining your basic needs, you should be guided to the professionals that will best address your needs.
