Does therapy even work?

[Harleyyy]

Therapy as a method for curing mental illness has always intrigued me.
If we start by neglecting that it literally costs so much,
I understand how sharing feelings may lighten your mind up
But that is for way lighter cases of depression i guess
Your problems and feelings can't go away just by telling someone how you feel and them giving you some petty advice
Personally, i dont feel comfortable opening up to anyone at all and even if i want to i stop myself instantly, i dont know why.
No offense if you feel better in therapy, even if it makes a little bit of difference in your mood, go for it! Whatever helps.
But these are just my thoughts

 

[rasputin]

Therapy as a method for curing mental illness has always intrigued me.
If we start by neglecting that it literally costs so much,
I understand how sharing feelings may lighten your mind up
But that is for way lighter cases of depression i guess
Your problems and feelings can't go away just by telling someone how you feel and them giving you some petty advice
Personally, i dont feel comfortable opening up to anyone at all and even if i want to i stop myself instantly, i dont know why.
No offense if you feel better in therapy, even if it makes a little bit of difference in your mood, go for it! Whatever helps.
But these are just my thoughts

I'm with you on this one. I've been in therapy on and off for 10+ years. Getting on Wellbutrin did more for me than a decade of therapy ever did.

 

[GoodPersonEffed]

It depends on the therapy modalities and the practitioner. I've gotten excellent benefits from therapy, and I've also had some ineffective and even downright harmful therapists.

 

[Arrow]

therapy didn't do much for me, eventually i just stopped going. i know people in my family have benefited from it but for me it was just a waste of time.

 

[Cosmiq]

I think it depends on what you go in expecting, and your knowledge about the different approaches and treatments. Even if you go in believing you'll get better and wanting to participate in whatever work is necessary if you don't have the right therapist it won't work. This goes beyond just the personality of the therapist, and more about how skilled they are too. You can find loads of info out there about how often trauma goes unnoticed and is often misdiagnosed as something else.

I think it's sort of helped me open up because I before it wasn't just that I didn't want to but that I didn't know how anyways. My parents and most adults valued silence from children and never cared about exploring our feelings. That we should be fine and should only feel happiness and be grateful that we had the basic necessities because children in Africa were starving.

I think therapy has helped just not in a way that was expected. It helped with a deeper understanding of myself and explore my inner self which would seem good to the average person if my inner self wasn't saying "You should ctb, because distracting yourself will never work" It's made it so I can explain where a lot of my feelings come from, and why I don't believe I can be talked out of it now and why I know that the pro-life people are all bullshit. Now I feel a bit more comfortable be honest about how awful and shitty everything.
I think this is largely to do with being able to talk to someone and having the focus be entirely on you, and you don't have to pretend or balance out caring about the other person when just want to vent. That you can pretty much say anything and not be made to feel guilty or ashamed, though actively planning suicide or homicide is kinda out the question lol. The reason that talking can help is that for many it's the first time they feel validated or that anyone made them feel like their words mattered. I'm still seeing my therapist, and she's the only person I've talked to longer than 10-15 minutes in the last 5 months. I told her I wanted to quit a few weeks ago, that I didn't see myself improving and honestly was tired of even trying. She just said to let her continue to be there for me, so I have, but she doesn't realize that I'm saying I'll let her be there for me until I ctb. And she probably thinks she just holding off until I want to try to get better again.

I also think medication plays a huge role in it. No medication has felt like a massive improvement, but they have helped alleviate certain things and have left my mind a bit less foggy.

I do see your point of view too though, and totally understand it. The cost and time it takes to find a decent therapist isn't worth it for a lot of people. It can be very painful and exhausting which can lead you to feel worse too. There's the risk that you may get a bad therapist too, which means you reveal your biggest secret to someone you trust only for them to say something doesn't leave you feeling comforted.

 

[TimeToBiteTheDust]

No. I feel better now with the lockdown than before when I went to therapy. That didn't help. If my problem is mental I can solve it by myself. For me it was a wasted of time and money. But I know it could be helpful for other people, but that is not my case. For some people it is useful and for others it isn't. I felt suicidal before and after therapy, so...

 

[BitterlyAlive]

It hasn't really helped me, but I also haven't ever really clicked with a therapist. I'm too quick to find something I don't like about them and I let it ruin my trust. Yeah, it's pretty ridiculous.

There's someone I really want to go to for therapy but I could never do it due to a past history with the individual. It sucks because I think they could actually help...but ethics are more important.

Supposedly the modality doesn't matter too much as long as you have good rapport with the therapist. But I've never gotten that far, so I can't really vouch for it. Sorry. :/

 

[AnxietyAttack44]

Therapy doesnt work for me, it actualy worsened my case

 

[Jessica5]

Of course not.

I always find it funny how therapist is spelled The Rapist. I think therapists basically try to rape your mind.

 

[Thirdtimesthecharm]

Did nothing for me. Mostly because I can always tell how they dont give a fuck. And If you even dare mention suicide your ass is off to involuntary hospital pronto. Honestly my opinion they're all chumps just looking to earn a quick penny

 

[Pan]

Therapy, if you think about it, could be considered a form of propaganda and indoctrination. After 11 years in psychoanalytically oriented psychotherapy, it was my therapist who had difficulty separating f I'm me, not the other way around. He, like so many therapists, was sick himself. While they may not be cure-all's, meds did more for me than he ever did.

 

[DeathIsTheWayOut99]

Mental illness isn't something that can be cured, similar to that of diabetes or other illnesses. Therapy helps you to accept your illness, the positives and negatives it brings, and helps to create tools you can use to live life. That being said, it is not easy

There are many things my mother did to me my therapist doesn't know about. Such as when she tired to kill me, all the times she verbally abused me in public and how nobody stood up for my child self. I have been in therapy for 5 years and wonder if it is even worth it to continue

 

[Pan]

Believe me, I feel for you and can totally identify with your pain. Trust, it would seem, is the key. But what if parental abuse itself undermines a sense of trust?

 

[DeathIsTheWayOut99]

Believe me, I feel for you and can totally identify with your pain. Trust, it would seem, is the key. But what if parental abuse itself undermines a sense of trust?

This....so much. Thanks to the abuse from the people who were supposed to love me along with many others outside my family, I dont want to trust. I feel one bad experience will be enough to push me over the edge

 

[Pan]

Yes, I can relate to that. We learn to trust at our mother's knee, so to speak. But what if that knee, if you will, is absent, or worse? I cannot say that I love my mother; her verbal abuse made me wither and dry up. I resolvedthat I would never have children, for fear of becoming like her.

 

[sadbunny]

SO far I have not found a good therapist. I'm not sure how talking things out to someone who is just listening to get a paycheck is helpful

 

[Pan]

Therapy doesnt work for me, it actualy worsened my case

Yes, I know of many people whose difficulties worsened when the entered therapy. Sometimes, scabs shouldn't be picked, so to speak. For example, I was specifically advised to stay away from cognitive/behavioral therapy, because many people get sicker rather than better.

 

[Close_to_freedom]

I've seen many therapists. I have a good one now who doesnt do talk therapy (which is useless). It's a shame my ibs is so bad that I'm going to have to ctb. My psych problems could've really improved.

 

[Pan]

M late wife-bless her- suffered from ibs and was barely manageable. It took a considerable toll on her health. Sadly, there is no cure for ibs and can worsen with age. She tried medications, diet—nothing seemed to work. I blame the ibs for contributing to her mental/emotional decline

 

[willitpass]

i've been in therapy since i was 7 or 8. i've been in stereotypical therapy, group therapy, inpatient therapies, intensive 5 day a week therapy, right now i'm in DBT therapy. that's all combined with a cocktail of many many medicines and a trial of ECT. none of it has helped for more than a year. i've been depressed since i was 9 and have had one single year of remission in 11 years

 

[Pryras]

Depends on the therapist and the individual. No one can really change or help you through something unless you make the decision to recover. And with that you have to be mentally prepared and willing to make that change for yourself. For most us, that's incredibly difficult since a lot of us don't want to get better. We want to leave this existence even if things do get better.

I definitely lucked out with my therapist, who's an old neighbour of mine and treats me like a younger sister. I feel genuine empathy from him when we're talking and I always feel a bit better after a session. Problem is, the feelings don't last and I'm not exactly in the mindset to change...much less convince myself that I deserve anything

 

[Pan]

That must be so hard particularly when the "pay off". was a mere one year of remission.

 

[IrRegularjoe]

I would say no to therapy in my case. My illness is non curable. I don't like clinical settings. Where everything is textbook and impersonal.

 

[Pan]

When viewed objectively, it would seem to me that therapy is almost akin to indoctrination into a cult. To believe the cult leader's message, hope, faith and desire are necessary. Without them, everything falls flat.

 

[Velia]

I've been in and out of therapy for many years now, with my current therapist for a year. She seems to think its helping me but I've actually been getting steadily worse. I just don't tell her how much I think about suicide and how it's actually a relief for me that there's a way out. There's a big disconnect from real life and therapy and whenever I leave the session I am immediately hit with how bad things are irl and no matter how much I try life never gets better.

 

[Harleyyy]

This may be controversial for therapists are known as medical proffesionals but it throws me off as this kind of thing requires emotion and actual understanding to heal, according to me. Paying someone just so they listen to you instantly throws me off, in the back of your mind you know they dont actually have a connection with you (most of the times) and they are just doing this to get a livelihood
I think a personal connection with someone and someone who really cares and loves you will help with these situations, which is very unusual to find.
Also you cant share everything with them as they have obligations to report serious suicidal and destructive thoughts so that you dont become a "threat" to others and yourself.
For me i feel like it's like paying to have a friend that listens to you.
BUT as i said before, if it helps you please keep on going! These are just my personal thoughts. Do whatever helps you.

 

[Desi]

An interesting article in the Guardian today about psilocybin treatment ( psychedelic mushrooms) giving better results against depression than psychotherapy.
The future ?

We can no longer ignore the potential of psychedelic drugs to treat depression | Robin Carhart-Harris

At Imperial College we’ve been comparing psilocybin to conventional antidepressants – and the results are likely to be game-changing, says Robin Carhart-Harris

www.theguardian.com

Therapy did'nt work for me. I might be to blame. Couldn't tell the truth or ´not all of it, at least. I w1s irritated at some of the tricks he used with me and that I recognised. At some point, i was agonizing in the room needlessly, i killed it off, it wasn't going anywhere.

 

[Aliali1992]

NEVER listen to anyone who says it never works and it is a hoax or it definitley works and worth it.
It depends on a lot of variables...of course what therapy, the therapist...but most importantly you...every psychiatric disorder has three factors..genes..the enviroment(family, childhood,school) and triggering events(trauma,neglect).if genes play a larger role in your case than enviromental factors then there is not so much you can do with therapy. If you have good genes (for example you don't have tendency to stay depressed and pessimstic since ever) you have a better chance to respond to therapy.
Secondly at what age did you start therapy? Young people at to mid-twinties have better chances. I was also told by a therapist that someone who had a disorder earlier can develop better tools to deal with it compared with people with late onset.
Also what disease you have play a role. personality disorders rate badly in therapy especially CBT.
Research shows overall benefit to CBT in treating depression...sometimes like meds othertimes even better. When a personality disorder comes into play it is totally another story.
So if you have on of them you have bad cards..some of them have a worse prognosis than others...you might have one to some degree and it still not diagnosed and it complicates everything. It doesn't mean it is hopeless...in BPD by far the most researched PD they have many therapy options with good results.

 

[ERASED]

Therapy as a method for curing mental illness has always intrigued me.
If we start by neglecting that it literally costs so much,
I understand how sharing feelings may lighten your mind up
But that is for way lighter cases of depression i guess
Your problems and feelings can't go away just by telling someone how you feel and them giving you some petty advice
Personally, i dont feel comfortable opening up to anyone at all and even if i want to i stop myself instantly, i dont know why.
No offense if you feel better in therapy, even if it makes a little bit of difference in your mood, go for it! Whatever helps.
But these are just my thoughts

To me....therapy only will work if you had someone physically active with you everyday to help. Meaning they are there with you in the mornings to get out of bed, help you with brushing your teeth, help you with cleaning the house etc. ACTIVELY INVOLVED IN YOUR LIFE for it to work. So no.....just someone there telling and talking to you doesn't help. But that's just my opinion of it because I've done therapy and it didn't work.

 

[Desi]

Never had my genes checked.
But what i sure know is i come from a family with innumerable cases of severe anxiety and severe depression. Suicides, too. Even my sister, who is probably the least fucked up of the family, I learnt from her she had psychotherapy to settle down some issues related to family history, so...
could be just that, in the end.