In era of pills, fewer shrinks doing talk therapy - Mental health- msnbc.com

Having had both medication and talk therapy with a psychiatrist I have to say talking helped much more than popping a pill. a pill takes care of the immediate darkness of depression/anxiety but talking and having the support of the "shrink" has helped me much much more.

Psychiatric outpatient care has now become the 'drive-thru' service of the medical industry. It used to be an hour of face to face interaction from a comfortable couch in a quiet office setting. This cognitive approach to healing the psych has been replaced with a 15 minute jam session littered with prescription pads and clock watching.

I spent the last 8 years combating depression. Feedback from my psychiatrist was brief and the emphasis for those 8 years was the latest trends in what the FDA was pushing in capsule form to take care of what my shrink and the healthcare industry seemed unwilling to address: what options I had beyond anti-depressants.

After years of confusion and despair about my condition I discovered other options such as cognitive therapy from a licensed psychologist and nutrition management from a naturopath. These things were never approached by my psychiatrist and my health insurance network was willing to provide only limited or no reimbursement for these methods. They seemed to only encourage what was provided from a pharmacy.

I have been seeing a psychotherapist and naturopath for 3 months and I have never felt better. It cost me more since my health insurance does not recognize naturopathic medicine as conventional and is much more limiting on my cognitive sessions than they are with my psychiatric and pharmacological management. However, I find the added expense a small price compared to what I endued from the world of anti-depressants. What the world of psychiatry and pharmacology could not provide for me I found through a much healthier and holistic approach: the simple art of human communication, good diet, routine exercise and a well balanced regiment of vitamins.

There is a lot to be said about giving respect to measures than have been proven time and time again. We are so quick to believe that with all of our technological advancements that we have found easier ways to ease the suffering and fears of the human psyche by cramming it into pill form.

Everyone has to discover what is right for them where their health is concerned but my suggestion now is to look at what has been tried and proven effective over the years before following the latest in medical trends.

I'm glad I went about 12 years ago, when pills weren't used nearly as much. I don't know if I would've been prescribed them, but talk therapy helped me work out my issues, instead of them being masked by a prescription.

Especially children and teens are so over-medicated. So much is simply unnecssary, but the government condones this and even encourages it by the shady practices at the FDa and collusion with industry and academe. On the other hand, this type of abuse and experimentation was all the rage during the Third Reich.

As a mother of child that is bi-polar (early on set at age 4 now 19) you have to have both. The medication keeps my daughter from hearing voices and having racing thoughts , plus server mood swings. talking helps her understand what she is feeling. I'm glad my daughter goes to one of the top hospital in this field (Washington University School Of Medicine, St. Louis Mo) that still continues to use both methods.

I have been in therapy for 30 years and my best care came when I was able to see my psychiatrist every two weeks for talk therapy and, of course, he monitored my medication also. When the insurance companies changed their policies in the 1990's and no longer deemed it an acceptable practice or profitable for psychiatrists to do psychotherapy, but only basically allowed 20 minutes every three months for medication management, it did me considerable harm. What can you do? You just go with the flow. I can say 100% that seeing a psychologist for talk therapy and my psychiatrist only for medication mangement is detrimental. But who am I to say? I am only a statistic.

The biggest loss to these charlatans was the invention of Viagra. In years past all doctors would tell a man that the reason he couldn't get an erection was some psychological problem. That was bull@!$%# then and is bull@!$%# now. Permitting this type of psudo doctor to prescribe powerful drugs is near criminal and anyone who takes them is stupid.

As a psychologist and counselor I think it is important to address mental health issues by helping the whole person. Prescribing medication is an important part of the treatment for many people, and it is less effective as a stand alone treatment. A confident psychologist will collaborate with all professionals involved in the person's treatment. For example if a client is seen for an eating disorder a psychologist would consult with; cardiologists, dieticians, psychiatrists, family social workers, physical therapists, and provide individual therapy for the underlying mental health issues.

While I agree that meds are often overprescribed and viewed as a quick fix by insurance companies, there are clearly several conditions that cannot be effectively treated without medication (generally bi-polar and schizophrenia). I think part of what is driving the trend of psychiatrists backing away from psychotherapy is the cost to the patient. I work as a mental health counselor providing psychotherapy. Most of my clients who are on medicatin get the all-too-hurried 10 minutes appointment from the psychiatrist. Paying for an hour of psychotherapy from a psychiatrist is way beyond what their pocketbooks (or their insurance companies) will allow, so they seek therapy elsewhere (through master's level therapists rather than medical school-trained doctors). What this means is that there is a greater need for communication and case management between the providers.

I am a clinical social worker in private practice. The decrease in psychiatrists providing psychotherapy is an insurance/economics issue. The insurance companies can pay a psychiatrist for 15 minutes or a master level therapist for a 45-50 minute session. We are almost two thirds cheaper. I work a lot with psychiatrists, and coordination of care has never been an issue. (Finding a good psychiatrist is almost impossible.)

This is pretty simple: Psychiatrists have no real "people skills", as someone who has sat, sobbing in a shrink's office, I should know. One shrink wrote two Rx's for the exact same medication, same dosage, but one for evening and one for morning. When I asked why he couldn't combine them into one Rx, (They were the highest tier of my Rx coverage) he, thinking I was stupid rather than just crazy, said he was trying to save my insurance company some money. What about me saving some money, you rich little twit.
He finally rewrote it, using his Drug Company Pen.
Psychiatrists usually fall into the lowest percentile of their graduating classes. They can't be trusted to take care of the body, because they could kill someone. So, we entrust them with our big ol' useless BRAINS.
Bottom line, folks, it's drug companies getting rich and pushing chemicals on people (WAY too many children) for problems that can't even be measured by brain scans, blood tests, or any other medical method. Temper tantrums in children are not a symptom of bipolar disorder. Also please note that some drug companies have more lawyers than chemists.
Read Blaming the Brain by Elliot S. Valenstein, Ph.D. and Toxic Psychiatry by Peter Breggin, MD if you want your eyes opened.

I think it has changed since I worked as a psychiatric research assistant in the 70's and 80's. The advent of managed care has made a great difference, not at all positive in many cases. The best treatment for schizophrenia, depression and OCD is a combination of talk and medication. Yes, the era of the couch is dead or dying because few people can afford the money or the time. But the era of relationship between therapist and patient still lives. Throwing a prescription at a patient and saying he or she has been treated is a recipe for disaster. No matter how effective a pill is, the patient has to take it. Nothing destroys compliance more than a dismissive attitude or something that says "You are your symptoms."

I am a Licensed Professional Counselor, and I have a Masters degree. If I went to medical school, I would want to maximize my earning potential, and I don't blame docs for doing meds only. Most doctors that have a good head for meds have absolutely NO counseling skills whatsoever. And it makes sense, since they have a MEDICAL degree, not a educational one. I don't think M.D.'s are required to take one bit of counseling theory as part of their education. Think about it this way- how many brilliant doctors have you met that come off as Autistic when it comes to beside manner? Plenty. But that doesn't mean they don't know what they're doing when it comes to meds.

If you find a doctor that works your meds right, then don't worry if he doesn't seem to care about your childhood trauma, and leave the counseling to those of us who have studied it.

to eros: The new medications are blessing for those who truly need them like your daughter. However, my concern is over the massive amounts of depression pills prescribed for everything from a failed marriage to a hang nail by family doctors. Those who have not been trained in matters of the mind seem to be having a field day with these medications. My sister was given pills for her depression by her family doctor. She was told that they did not have any withdrawal symptoms and she could stop taking them at any time. That was far from the truth. She had frightening brain flashes, nightmares, and and anxiety attacks. She was told that she should just stay on them. She finally was able to ween herself off the medication by carefully reducing the size of her dose over time. All of this could have and should have been avoided.
We all need to get some common sense around this issue.

As a client long ago, I know what "therapy" is, you go in and sit tell your troubles, and find solutions.... easy enough, it really worked for me! That was back 20 years ago! Last year I took my son here to a place called River Valley, for therapy and to be tested for dyslexia..... I got neither! My son has been diagnosed with ADD, to which his DR. has put him on concerta, all well and good, it works, and he is doing better in school, at this time he had been taking the concerta for, aprox 4 years. When I went to River Valley, I was told it was "Procedure" to have my son see their Dr. and for him to "review" what meds. my son was taking. OK, well I thought it was a good thing, This Dr. demanded that I change my sons script of concerta, to Ritalin (spelling) and add 6 other medications, because in a matter of 22 minutes he determined, that my son was Bi-Polar, depressed, and needed meds to "help him sleep"!!!! I refused, because I suffer Bi-Polar, and other ailments, and my son is NOT Bi-Polar, nor is he the other things the Dr. was trying to diagnose him for! This Dr. told me if I did not comply he was going to call Social Services and report me as a "Bad mother"!!!!! he also stated he had the authority to have my child removed out of my custody! Sad really! I know my rights and will stand for them, I looked at this man and calmly said, there's the phone, I'm sure the number is in the book! When he didn't respond I left the office. I then talked to my sons Dr. he was MAD to say the least and reassured me that if I was reported to Social Services he would stand by me and I did the right thing. It is sad we live in a state where we think a pill cures all. What exactly are we paying the therapists for? they are not giving no one "therapy" they in my eyes are glorified drug pushers! that is my experience with meds and therapy we need to get back to basics before we destroy all that is good. Anna

$200.00 for 45 min. session, union rates! The parasites feed on human suffering and exist for their own benefit - not their 'patients. Pills may help to ease pain; but I doubt any friendship advise is worth $200.00. The sooner Psychiatry is removed as an accepted medical decipline - the better. Does anyone really believe one-on-one 'talk' or god forbid, hypnotism, has any scientific benefit for people living through real problems? Psychiatry creates a climate of fear, lies and stigmatuization. Such attitudes derive from Psychiatry and not public attitudes. This serves the benefit of these 'doctors' in that it silences all critism. As Tom Cruse and others found out; speak out against these frauds and be prepaired to pay a high price.

Talk therapy has always and will always be, in my opinion, the best route to go. While I understand there are some people who may not respond well to talk therapy; talking and putting into practice those things discussed helps an individual learn how to cope or look at a situation in a different way. This is something that our society is seriously lacking these days. In a "fast food" generation, we want our situations taken care of quickly; hence, it is easier to take a pill to "make it go away". Unfortunately, when the effects of the pill wears off, the problem and/or situation is still staring the individual in the face.

At one point in my life, I was diagnosed as borderline depressed but when the doctor suggested pills, I turned them down and I'm glad I did. A year later, I wound up learning a lot about myself. I learned my "trigger points", how to say NO and I learned how not to feel guilty when I say no. I don't think I would've come this far if I had been taking a pill. It would have been like treating the symptom but never getting to the root of the problem.

I was getting pills (Lexapro, and then an assortment of bipolar disorder drugs that never worked) for 3 years before discovering that my depression and supposed bipolar disorder was caused by, get this, an ALLERGY to DAIRY PRODUCTS. I know another coworker who in her past had gone through a similar depression thing just to discover that she also had a dairy allergy. HOW COME THE SHRINKS NEVER CHECK OUT FOOD ALLERGIES? I'm sure there are more people out there who have a food allergy that's causing their depression/bipolar symptoms, not some "chemical imbalance" that can be treated 1-2-3 with a pill. And sure, the Lexapro worked in the very beginning, but then it got a whole lot worse after that, especially with my shrink's misdiagnosis of a bipolar disorder and the subsequent medication (Abilify, which nullifies the ability to function, some other Carbomazacrap, etc). And it's pretty simple. Let me eat a dairy product, and you'll get Mrs. Hyde within the next 12-24 hours. It's a delayed allergic reaction but potent enough to change my mood. Now I've been completely dairy-free since April, and I'm also completely off the meds (since June) and I've been feeling great with no depression symptoms, no suicidal thoughts, and no cutting...as long as I stay away from dairy.

THEORIES OF THE MIND use of medication cause n affects many whom beleive their is a wonder pill are very dellusional or the theries of the mind the same as all can therorise on the mind the chemical balance first the true funtions of these chemicals we can only speculate as sure you can increase dopamine levels and sadaite also stimulate we all know but really their is no long term benifits doing so as making people into drug addicts may serve the drug companies as for drug related suicides as some pateints dont know if their comming or going as delluded walking around clouded minds reality is only a mythe as when your an addict many loose direction in hope some wonder pill will come up if we look into cultures we see how they delt with so called pycosis or dellusions all our faiths are bassed upon visionaries now if we look into prospects of a world of drug addicted zombis this is the reality of chemical cocktails the so called solution magical fix if we see beyond the normal or hear things its a part of the mind that is to be studied as sure most draw negertive forces through a clouded mind either through alcohol or worse drugs these people whom open this part of their minds usually go for magical fix to shrinks when opening these ellements through drug experiances truth is its self inflicted in some cases then a expectation of another drug to fix as most go down the path of heaps of medication and dellusional self orintation as many commit suicide with asperations of self worthlesness and self delluded pitty but regard them as delluded as for their minds disfuntional but of medication in many cases as a clear mind we all know reasoning is easier as if you were drunk decisions are difficult so in same way drugs do the same to a degree of beyong duty of care really one must first look at in take what are we doing to cause the problem we dont understand when did the first syntems appear after certen foods reaction or after experimenting in drugs or alcohol as the torment may be avoiderble by self awareness of ones mind then meditation if their is something in their the mind makes one diffent to others maybe self discovery may be a drug free option as I have experianced many things out of the normal myself through silent inner peace and endevouring to understand we all differ in levels of knowlage and understanding their is a greater wisdom than a bottle of pills it is written in all bibles and quonans seek you will find knock I am their mind doctors or mindless we must out to the question many would find comfort by studing cultures and free themselves from chemical cocktails and seek higher understanding an d greater knowlage than so called wonder drugs

Doctors who are too lazy and self absorbed with personal wealth are sad indeed, as they took an oath to treat their patients to the best of their ability. Just maybe the time has arrived to resurrect the original version of VALLEY OF THE DOLLS.
WHY, it depicts how those lovely different colored "DOLLS" can really affect a person, especially those who become dependent upon them; rather than dealing with their mental, emotional and behaviorial issues, of which they sought Professional HELP with. IF they wanted "DOLLS" they could go to most inner city street corners and get their fix.
Today's "DOLLS" have the same affect as they did back then, the only difference is that NOW the Drs. also depend on them, as a way to avoid actual work with the patient. Hence, offering the Drs. much more time to play and spend their hard earned money

My question is, "How and why did the medical profession allow health care to become the domain of "administrators?" It has caused a "schism" within the Dr.'s themselves, where cost$$$ (from my perspective) has become a larger consideration than effective "physician controlled" treatment! (I am not a Doctor).

I recently became disabled, (having seen a physicatrist for PMS earlier w/insurance) moved to another city, now on Medicare, and at first was seeing a counselor and a physiciatrist. Soon was not able to afford the counselor, so seeing the doctor only. He is young, a fairly good listener, but again all you get is the requisite 15 min visit. (county oriented) He determined the medication I was on was no longer working since I had been on it for a while, so changed me to Cymbalta. Being of the "older generation" I know that it usually takes at least 30 days for your body to adjust to a new medication. So not realizing it, I was having severe allergic reactions to the meds. Went to my regular physician, thinking I had a blood clot in my leg because of the severe pain thinking it was the new meds, not so> Went to my physiciatrist for my evaluation and was very surprised when he told me I 'was lucky to be alive' and he diagnosed me with Seratonin Syndrom. Researching this medication I found where a 19 year old female, hung herself with only one dose (being on a placebo at first) while being a test subject. So I sincerely believe that being able to talk to a "good" counselor is much better than medication - where you can end up being dead, or as I am, now so crippled with the side effects of this "approved FDA" medicine, and no help in sight.

I guess it's easier to medicate people, than help them with their problems. Shrinks should be ashamed and not even call themselves physicians or psychiatrists.

They are a joke, using drugs and chemicals to dope up their patients...victims.

I have been in therapy and been on medication. For me, and I am the only person I can truly speak for, it was the perfect combination. My therapist has an MSW. Not a PhD. I was fortunate that my insurance even paid for me to see her -- most insurance companies are now "requiring" you see someone with far more letters after their name than is always necessary. She determined what I was dealing with -- situational anxiety and mild-depression -- and suggested we try the therapy with medication. She gave me some ideas on what meds might be of assistance and then sent me to my Doctor. Armed with some knowledge, I was able to approach my Doctor with my needs and suggestions. Fortunately, my Doctor was willing to sit with me for the time it took to look at a variety of different medications, the pros/cons for each, and come up with the medication that was best for me. I took the medication for about seven years and was in therapy as needed. I was able to work through the problems I needed to work through without experiencing the extreme highs and lows that had come before.

I consider myself very fortunate. I had insurance. I found a therapist and Doctor who were willing to listen to my needs and concerns. There are a great deal of people in the United States and, more than likely, around the world who are not as fortunate. While I believe there are counselors, psychiatrists, and psychologists who are caring and concerned about their patients well being, insurance companies and drug companies have far too much control and influence over what they are (or are not) able to say, do, or prescribe. That is the unfortunate state of affairs.

Until "patients" are willing to stand up and speak out, the bad will outweigh the good. I just fear what we are losing in the process.

Are you kidding me? I'd much rather have someone to talk through my problems and stress with than to be medicated and just masking problems! It's scary... all the medications out there for every little thing. I think medications should be the last resort.

My mother and her side of the family have a history of depression, bi-polar, etc. She's even tried to "off" herself on several occasions... She has a doctor for every little thing. When she meets with her psychologist, or shrink... it's usually 15 minutes tops. And most of the discussion is about meds... to increase, decrease, try something new, etc. I can't tell you how many meds she's on. It's ridiculous! And especially to give all these to someone who has been suicidal in the past is scary! And then there is a need to go on further medications due to side-effects from other pills.

She is definitely not the same woman I remember! She's got all these additional cognitive problems now. It's sad! And she hasn't worked in I can't tell you how long! She's on disability. And it makes me quite upset! It's depression, bi-polar... there are many other people out there that are capable of still being employed and having the same problems.

I just recently moved back into the area that all my family lives, and trying to find a job? Yikes! I was getting offers from Pharmaceutical companies left and right, but I just couldn't be a part of this evil wheel, this horrible cycle our country is caught in.