Anyone anti-therapy here?

[asian.neet]

I'm one of those people

r/antitherapy on reddit has been extremely helpful in making me realize the mental health system is pretty much garbage let alone manipulative.

Anyone else?

 

[Engström]

I'm not outright anti-therapy, but the therapist I have now absolutely sucks.

I've had one great therapist in my life, years ago, and since then no therapist has come close. I find I work things out a lot better when I'm able to go for a long walk and/or listen to music, write, etc.

 

[loopdaloop]

Yes, I regret ever going to therapy because my parents use it againts me... because I went to therapy in the past I'll always be considered the crazy one... I wish I never went to get help

 

[WAITING TO DIE]

Therapy never did me any good. I think most of it is just trying to brainwash yourself into thinking that things are not as bad as they seem, or will get better.
I'm in the UK and most of the so - called therapists who work for the NHS are fucktards.

 

[reallysleepy]

I wouldn't say I'm antitherapy but I'm not a fan. I think it can help you realize a lot of things (if you find a good therapist which is hard af and also expensive) but, regarding ctb, you can't speak freely about wanting to do it unless you want to receive a pro-life speech and maybe be send to the psychiatric clinic. I'm going to therapy and I I'm also seeing a psychiatrist and I wish I could stop both things and just go with the flow of wanting to ctb, but they are in touch with my mother (with who I'm currently living with) and if I dissappear they would reach out to her and that would be really intense.

 

[R_N]

I mean "therapy" left me crippled. So you figure it out :).

 

[tiger b]

My main issue with most prominent forms:

Convince conscious mind (which has little control) with logic to talk to subconscious mind (which has its own logic and is like a six year old's). Then have the subconscious talk back through a filtering conscious mind.

Talk about everything pulling in different directions.

 

[Praestat_Mori]

I'm not totally anti-therapy but what is true: in most cases therapy is useless because when the actual triggers of MH issues cannot be eliminated and/or cured then what can therapy do in the end? MH isn't like a broken leg that heals on its own. Imo in most cases therapy is a waste of money and time.

 

[Bruce]

I have no experience talking with therapists (and I'm not going to explicitly tell people to not go talk to them) but .. therapists are normies, right? right?

Well I'm definitely NOT taking advices from normies.

 

[Engström]

I have no experience talking with therapists (and I'm not going to explicitly tell people to not go talk to them) but .. therapists are normies, right? right?

Well I'm definitely NOT taking advices from normies.

I'd say many of them or the majority have a lot of their own issues, which is…normal, I suppose. Or at least, relatable to an extent. It gets tricky when one realizes the therapist is actually projecting their issues into their patient/client.

I remember a therapist tried hugging me in our first session, which was also our last. I had told her I had boundary issues or at least felt triggered by non consensual contact but I guess she wanted to test things out with a hug? Never went back.

 

[Division Day]

I'm not anti-therapy. I think it's largely ineffective, but so is all other treatment of mental health issues. It's a minefield full of all the bombs scattered through our whole lives with no map. It's a near impossible task but I think it's still worth trying.

 

[SpiritualDeath]

Few of them are pro-choice.
I understand how they're required to be anti-suicide by the rules. Still it's one of the reasons I don't go to them.

 

[peachxgirl]

Somewhat me, and ironically enough, I'm studying to be a social worker. I think that there's many flaws in the system in general. Between the absurd prices, insurance shenanigans negligent/manipulating therapists, corruption, and cultural insensitivity, you're better off trying to save or ctb yourself or do a diligent amount of research about your potential therapist if you choose. While good therapist can have an amazing impact, bad therapists can lead to long term maladaptive behaviors and even worse mental stability.

 

[lachrymost]

I'm extremely therapy critical and I like that subreddit.

Therapists attempt to convince you that your current problems and all the problems you or anyone could ever have are acceptable and tolerable. (Either that or they just give you company and activities to do.) Often this involves you constantly endeavouring to brainwash yourself forever. Wow. Amazing. Take my money!!

It reminds of what Pascal advises in Pascal's Wager. According to him, if you pretend to be a Christian really hard, you will eventually become one for real. If you pretend to be a happy person really hard, you will eventually become one for real; and if you don't, well, you just weren't trying hard enough.

 

[asian.neet]

I think most of it is just trying to brainwash yourself into thinking that things are not as bad as they seem, or will get better.

and this is why im not going to therapy again. my life is fucked at this point theres nothing i can do about it.

 

[bridgegirl]

Is that sub still up, or under a different name? I'm not finding it when I search.

Anyway - I'm probably pretty close to being anti-therapy, at least for myself. I have many reasons for it. I've been in and out of it since age eleven, seeing a wide variety of mental health specialists in different practices and states.

Pretty much all of them just sit there. Listen. Scribble something on a notepad. And then time is up. I never got any real help or advice, even with the ones who were specifically supposed to do that. They also all diagnosed me with different things. I could collect diagnoses like Skittles.

I could also collect psych meds like candy, as well. None of them have helped - none. The most they did was cause weight gain or allergic reactions (bonus points for both at once!) and intensify suicidal urges, Fixed itttt!

Ultimately I was coming to resent the time and expense (which I can no longer afford anyway, hey-o!). Taking time away from work every week doesn't always go very far with the bosses, shock though that is. I found one place that had Saturday appointments though, which was really nice because then I got to lose my only free day off to sit and dredge up all of the horrific trauma from my past and then go home a little poisonous cloud of recalled emotions that the therapist didn't really feel like helping me to navigate. So that was pretty fun.

And I would be remiss if I did not mention the threat of being committed. Which at one point was a very close and dangerous threat indeed, so I bounced from the cheap couch and the therapist asking me, "And how did that make you feel?" as she reclined with bare feet and doodled on her notepad. How I feel is that you want my insurance money for that one month luxury stay at the county's psych ward, but it ain't worth saying because I gotta put some distance between us.

Just find a different therapist! Look around until you find that good fit! Oh wow, I am so excited to spend more time on the phone calling around and going through the new patient process and then waiting months and then going through the entire saga of painstakingly giving them my history over the course of several weeks only to find out that this person shouldn't even be qualified to rake leaves in the ocean much less help people and wow fun look at that now I get to start over again. And again.

Therapy helps a lot of people. Just not me.

 

[asian.neet]

Is that sub still up, or under a different name? I'm not finding it when I search.

Anyway - I'm probably pretty close to being anti-therapy, at least for myself. I have many reasons for it. I've been in and out of it since age eleven, seeing a wide variety of mental health specialists in different practices and states.

Pretty much all of them just sit there. Listen. Scribble something on a notepad. And then time is up. I never got any real help or advice, even with the ones who were specifically supposed to do that. They also all diagnosed me with different things. I could collect diagnoses like Skittles.

I could also collect psych meds like candy, as well. None of them have helped - none. The most they did was cause weight gain or allergic reactions (bonus points for both at once!) and intensify suicidal urges, Fixed itttt!

Ultimately I was coming to resent the time and expense (which I can no longer afford anyway, hey-o!). Taking time away from work every week doesn't always go very far with the bosses, shock though that is. I found one place that had Saturday appointments though, which was really nice because then I got to lose my only free day off to sit and dredge up all of the horrific trauma from my past and then go home a little poisonous cloud of recalled emotions that the therapist didn't really feel like helping me to navigate. So that was pretty fun.

And I would be remiss if I did not mention the threat of being committed. Which at one point was a very close and dangerous threat indeed, so I bounced from the cheap couch and the therapist asking me, "And how did that make you feel?" as she reclined with bare feet and doodled on her notepad. How I feel is that you want my insurance money for that one month luxury stay at the county's psych ward, but it ain't worth saying because I gotta put some distance between us.

Just find a different therapist! Look around until you find that good fit! Oh wow, I am so excited to spend more time on the phone calling around and going through the new patient process and then waiting months and then going through the entire saga of painstakingly giving them my history over the course of several weeks only to find out that this person shouldn't even be qualified to rake leaves in the ocean much less help people and wow fun look at that now I get to start over again. And again.

Therapy helps a lot of people. Just not me.

My apologies it was r/therapyabuse but they're anti-therapy on that suv

 

[OreosAndDeath]

Therapy never did me any good. I think most of it is just trying to brainwash yourself into thinking that things are not as bad as they seem, or will get better.
I'm in the UK and most of the so - called therapists who work for the NHS are fucktards.

My experience with NHS therapists is getting diagnosed with a condition by a psychiatrist and then meeting her again 5 years later (with a different name)... she said she doesn't know why I was diagnosed with what she diagnosed me with.

They don't have a fucking clue.

 

[Engström]

Few of them are pro-choice.
I understand how they're required to be anti-suicide by the rules. Still it's one of the reasons I don't go to them.

I had a therapist/psychiatric NP for a short time when I had no insurance and this was after my second serious attempt. He was willing to prescribe me Klonopin which I still take to this day and have never "abused". Anyhow, in our first meeting his main advice was "Just don't do any nutty shit."

Wherever you are, Bob - thank you for keeping it real.

Now Amitriptyline - I have abused that plenty of times and nobody seems to really care about prescribing it.

My experience with NHS therapists is getting diagnosed with a condition by a psychiatrist and then meeting her again 5 years later (with a different name)... she said she doesn't know why I was diagnosed with what she diagnosed me with.

They don't have a fucking clue.

Sounds about right. Ugh.

 

[Hyes]

I do not want to go to therapy to talk. I'm sorry you're a stranger and I know it's your job but I don't fucking know you!! And if I don't fucking like you, why would I tell you shit.

I used to be in therapy and I really need to go back, I really only want to go to try medication

 

[jonward55]

If the therapist is going to pay my debts then I'll go to therapy LOL.
They only want to talk about stuff, they can't fix anything.

 

[SunflowerBee$$]

I don't get therapy. It just doesn't work. I feel like they can't help me because they don Even know how I am feeling. Like they'd need to experience my feelings to help and more than often they are just regular people who have never bee even suicidal or participated in self harm.

 

[FuneralCry]

Yes as I believe that therapy is a scam that only exists to profit from people's suffering. It's why there is so much brainwashing into trying to make people believe that suicide is "irrational", as after all if there was acceptance towards the right to die, the industry wouldn't be able to scam as many people.

All the so called "help" only exists in the first place to brainwash people so that the society doesn't lose it's slaves, this is why the idea of "help" is pushed onto suicidal people. Overall I'm against anything anti-suicide that has the goal of prolonging meaningless suffering rather than respecting suicide as the rational choice it truly is.

 

[NotDeanNorris]

I'm one of those people

r/antitherapy on reddit has been extremely helpful in making me realize the mental health system is pretty much garbage let alone manipulative.

Anyone else?

I just checked out the equivalent sub r/therapyabuse. Based. I'm in love with it. Also some of the ED related threads made me wanna get back my bid for control. Honestly obsessing over exercise will be healthier than being told I'm a shitter by unqualified egomaniacs.

 

[fiftyfiftyclown]

I'm not "anti-therapy" in general, but I have never found it helpful. I would go if it were free maybe but I don't want to pay to hear useless advice + waste time shopping for perfect therapist. At the end of the day 95% of licensed therapists are just normal people; the market is super saturated with "mental health" "experts" now, ok maybe 50yrs ago you could talk to an interesting shrink ...but as it stands now they are not any smarter or more well-equipped than anyone else to deal with big questions, and I don't find the average person particularly intelligent or insightful enough to want to pay to talk to them, so yeah

 

[asian.neet]

I just checked out the equivalent sub r/therapyabuse. Based. I'm in love with it. Also some of the ED related threads made me wanna get back my bid for control. Honestly obsessing over exercise will be healthier than being told I'm a shitter by unqualified egomaniacs.

Ye I meant therapyabuse I got the name wrong

I think exercise is fine just overused as a talking point in mental health circles

 

[Rhizomorph1]

I have no experience talking with therapists (and I'm not going to explicitly tell people to not go talk to them) but .. therapists are normies, right? right?

Well I'm definitely NOT taking advices from normies.

Therapists are probably not "normies" if by normies you mean someone who upholds dominant norm as the cultural and monetary economics of providing therapy do not work out in favour of the status quo. The norms that therapists reproduce in and outside the therapy room generally oppose the dominant culture of individualism and meritocracy. The person-centered principles of therapy are politically resistant, generally speaking.

They might be considered normies in that they are legally required to report suicides which assumes paternalistic authority of the medical system over individual's self-determination. But then I think the vast vast majority of humans adhere to prohibitive norms regarding suicide.

I do not want to go to therapy to talk. I'm sorry you're a stranger and I know it's your job but I don't fucking know you!! And if I don't fucking like you, why would I tell you shit.

I used to be in therapy and I really need to go back, I really only want to go to try medication

I would talk to your doctor. As far as I know in most jurisdictions you can get a prescription for psychiatric medications from a doctor without seeing a therapist.

 

[NotDeanNorris]

Ye I meant therapyabuse I got the name wrong

I think exercise is fine just overused as a talking point in mental health circles

Oh definitely. It isn't a cure-all for everyone, or even me. Hell it is indicative of another disorder in me. Orthorexia be like.

 

[leavingsoon99]

The Mental Health System is an arm of the Medical INDUSTRY. The money isn't in the cure. Everything in this society is backwards. The institutions will work opposite of their title and purpose. The healthcare keeps you sick. The education keeps you dumb. The welfare keeps you poor. The justice system criminalizes you. The religion sends you to hell. And, the mental health keeps you crazy.

 

[Rhizomorph1]

I'm not totally anti-therapy but what is true: in most cases therapy is useless because when the actual triggers of MH issues cannot be eliminated and/or cured then what can therapy do in the end? MH isn't like a broken leg that heals on its own. Imo in most cases therapy is a waste of money and time.

I think what many in this thread are overlooking is the efficacy data on therapy. Therapy is effective for a number (majority) of psychiatric conditions and obviously the competencies of the therapist will result in some variability between efficacy.

I think what therapists unfortunately overlook is the relative stability of some mental health conditions and an individual's right to self-determination. Prohibitive norms towards suicide and the legal responsibility taken on by medicine means that therapists will do everything in their power to assume a given client has an innate healing capacity, or that medication will work for all of those with more biological causes of mental illness.

In accordance with the data, I gather this website is awash with a number of people who may be pulling the gun too early on their potential for recovery. The data shows the vast majority of people who experience suicidal ideation at some point in their lives do come to a point where they no longer wish to ctb.

However, there are exceptions. The challenge is in designating who and under what criteria those exceptions are present. And I think medicine/therapy is too conservative/optimistic in their assessments, leaving some people with long-term problems frustrated with their therapists optimism that they can recover.

That is all to say that I wouldn't overlook the benefits of therapy or medication, but if you've already tried it, a true person-centered approach would allow people to self-determine if they are recoverable or not. I recommend exhausting your options with medication and motivational-enhancement of therapy, but I maintain the individual's right to self-determine if they don't wish to go on like this...

Therapy and this website alike are awash with the biases of optimism and pessimism, respectively.