Psychotherapy Experience
Choosing A Therapist
What’s the difference between Counseling Psychiatry and Psychology?
Psychiatrists, Clinical Psychologists and Psychotherapists have all been professionally trained to help people with psychological distress or mental illness.
Psychiatrist
- A Psychiatrist is a medical doctor who has completed a specialty in Psychiatry, following their training as a doctor.
- Whilst Psychiatrists, Psychologists and Therapists often work together in the treatment of patients, Psychologists and Therapists are not authorized to write prescriptions, but may refer a client to see a psychiatrist for medication.
- Psychiatrists will remain part of the support network for the patient whilst they are on medication or if they have been deemed high risk.
- Your psychiatrist will monitor your medication and change it if required and will act as your advisory should you have any questions relating to the medication, such as side effects, dosage and if or when you should increase or decrease it.
- Bullet Point
Psychologist/Psychotherapist
- It is normally a psychologist who will carry out on-going therapy (although some Psychiatrists opt to do additional training in a particular therapy, such as systemic therapy or cognitive behavioral therapy.
- Therapy may include treatment for a variety of mental health concerns such as anxiety or depression, so it is worthwhile checking with your therapist to find out what area they specialize in.
- Psychologists are also able to carry out specialized assessments, such as intellectual or cognitive functioning, which may include screening for a number of concerns, such as ADHD, ASD or dyslexia.
What is the difference between a Psychologist and a Coach?
There are some major differences between these two areas but overall the goal of both is to help the client function better in their lives.
Some of the differences include
- A Psychologist is specifically trained to work with mental health concerns, focusing on pathology and illness. Coaches tend to make healthy clients better.
- Coaches tend to work to time-limited interventions, whereas therapy can be open-ended and on-going.
- Psychologists often work to a prescribed method and follow a particular clinical model, whereas Coaching has few tangible rules and is more focused on empowering functional individuals.
- Coaching is often for those individuals who want to make change in their life, rather than need the change. Clients of psychologists may constantly battle aspects of their life that need to change in order for them to function.
- Coaching rarely asks about childhood or early life experiences, it focuses primarily on the future. Therapy looks into the past to see how those early events may have shaped the individual you are today. Therapy also strives to heal those unpleasant experiences and the beliefs you hold about them.
How do you know you are being treated by a good Psychologist or Psychotherapist?
When sourcing your therapist, make sure they work for a reputable clinic. You may want to visit the clinic first and get a feel for the environment. Most Therapists will have a biography on the clinic website, so you could check this first to view their training and specialties.
When meeting with your therapist, you may want to ask them some questions. Useful (and completely acceptable) questions include:
- What level of training do you have?
- Where did you receive your training?
- How long have you been practicing?
- What is your area of specialty?