How do I find a procrastination therapist?

August 26, 2005 5:15 AM

How do I find a procrastination therapist?

I am a spectacular procrastinator - I am continually suprised that I haven't been fired yet. I can go for a whole week without accomplishing anything. I've read several self-help books on the subject, but I didn't have much luck working from a book. The authors of those sorts of books apparently started as working therapists, treating problem procrastinators in private practice. How do I find a psychologist who specializes in procrastination problems? I've tried psychology today's website's referral page, but no one lists themselves as specializing in procrastination (at least in my area). The yellow pages are no more helpful. I've talked to a couple therapists who had no experience with problem procrastination and they weren't particularly helpful. How did the people mentioned in (say) "The
Now Habit" find Neil Fiore?

posted by anonymous to Work & Money (9 answers total)

I'd find an institute or professional association in the nearest city and call them up. They often have listservs on which they can post requests to a large audience. Ask those therapists which organizations they're affiliated with. Or try the APA's Find a Psychologist link. They can connect you to state organizations, which might have more detailed information.

Finally, if you can't find a specialist, you might try contacting another general therapist anyway. If you explain what your goal is, s/he might be able to help you work through whatever issues might cause your procrastination. I'm pretty sure that my mother, a clinical psychologist, deals with this with many of her patients.

If you live in/near a big city, you'll have better luck. Feel free to email me, I might be able to help you dig around a bit more.
posted by CiaoMela at 6:19 AM on August 26, 2005

You could try writing to the author to see if the author knows of anyone in your area. You never know.

You might also be looking for therapists that specialize in behavioral therapy. Call them, ask them about what you want. If they don't do that kind of therapy ask them if they know anyone local who does.

The hardest part is getting started. You have already done that with your post here.
posted by caddis at 6:21 AM on August 26, 2005

When I was looking for a shrink I asked a mefite. Got a great reccommendation.
posted by scazza at 8:16 AM on August 26, 2005

Most of what I've read about procrastination says that therapists treat it as perfectionism, which is what it most often really is. Perhaps that will help you narrow your search.
posted by Miko at 8:59 AM on August 26, 2005

Find someone who specializes in "life skills" or "skill sets." These involve building routines that work for you.

Also, a life coach is a specific kind of therapist that often specializes in work skills and personal growth. The downside to life coaches is that they don't need to be licensed. The upside to that is that they may charge less than a psychotherapist or clinical social worker.
posted by tarintowers at 9:17 AM on August 26, 2005 [1 favorite]

IANA(psi) but I think you are probably looking for a cognitive-behavioral therapist. The AABT offers a directory here. They don't have "procrastination" as a specialization you can search for; however, as caddis says, if the first person you call doesn't specialize in this, they may know a colleague who does.
posted by escabeche at 10:09 AM on August 26, 2005

I agree on the CBT. Also, the book Feeling Good has a great section on "do-nothingism" and procrastination. You can "search inside" it on amazon if you want to take a look.
posted by callmejay at 10:24 AM on August 26, 2005

Interestingly, the Therapist Locator here allows the choice of one of about 100 different conditions [it's a bit sobering to realize how many different ways a person can have problems that therapy can help], but not procrastination per se. I'd guess that Organization/Life Management comes closest.

One approach to finding a therapist would just to do a google search on something like:

therapy procrastination WhateverIsTheNameOfYourCity

I'd also vote for a therapist who uses CBT, as opposed to (say) "Energy Therapy" [unproven] or Freudian psychoanalysis [may take decades].
posted by WestCoaster at 12:40 PM on August 26, 2005 [1 favorite]

Try Getting Things Done or one of the many similar life-organizing systems. It may be more productive to address the problem directly, rather than the "psychology" as it were.
posted by dhartung at 10:27 PM on September 2, 2005