WANTED: Kick-Ass Team of Therapy Professionals/Superheroes/Spirit Guides
May 7, 2015 8:26 PM Subscribe
Know of any good therapists in the Philadelphia area?
So, I’ll start off by saying I have some issues — I mean, who doesn’t, right?
Mine go a bit beyond what most would consider “healthy” or “normal,” though. I have a slew of manic-depressive-anxious tendencies, as well as a really brutal hybrid of an eating disorder that’s soon to go on its five year helliversary.
I’m currently on a waiting list for a therapy team (a therapist, psychiatrist, and nutritionist), but the sooner I get these issues talked out and into the hands of people who know what the fuck they’re doing, the better.
An honors student at Temple University in Philly, an art and pop culture enthusiast, and a relentless conversationalist, I’m a surprisingly extroverted introvert. I consider myself a relatively bright kid.
That said, I’ve had my fair share of condescending, patronizing, and relatively unethical therapists. I’ve been turned away, swindled out of my money through means of inane and irrelevant digressions, and highly misunderstood and mistreated.
In their defenses, I’m a bit eccentric and unhealthily confident, which often leads to a great deal of others blindly trusting me when I instinctually fib and say I’m better than I am. I do not want to fib, it’s just a gut reaction. I also tend to domineer conversations and prattle on, and I’m not sure if that solves anything or not.
That said, I am in desperate need of good (“good” being the epitome of an understatement, here) therapists in the Philadelphia area. The less travel from North Philly (I can handle the BSL, not much else), the better – too much travel is a disincentive for me because, well, anxiety and depression. Heh.
How would you recommend I go about trying to find one? (Specific recommendations are both encouraged and highly appreciated!)
So, I’ll start off by saying I have some issues — I mean, who doesn’t, right?
Mine go a bit beyond what most would consider “healthy” or “normal,” though. I have a slew of manic-depressive-anxious tendencies, as well as a really brutal hybrid of an eating disorder that’s soon to go on its five year helliversary.
I’m currently on a waiting list for a therapy team (a therapist, psychiatrist, and nutritionist), but the sooner I get these issues talked out and into the hands of people who know what the fuck they’re doing, the better.
An honors student at Temple University in Philly, an art and pop culture enthusiast, and a relentless conversationalist, I’m a surprisingly extroverted introvert. I consider myself a relatively bright kid.
That said, I’ve had my fair share of condescending, patronizing, and relatively unethical therapists. I’ve been turned away, swindled out of my money through means of inane and irrelevant digressions, and highly misunderstood and mistreated.
In their defenses, I’m a bit eccentric and unhealthily confident, which often leads to a great deal of others blindly trusting me when I instinctually fib and say I’m better than I am. I do not want to fib, it’s just a gut reaction. I also tend to domineer conversations and prattle on, and I’m not sure if that solves anything or not.
That said, I am in desperate need of good (“good” being the epitome of an understatement, here) therapists in the Philadelphia area. The less travel from North Philly (I can handle the BSL, not much else), the better – too much travel is a disincentive for me because, well, anxiety and depression. Heh.
How would you recommend I go about trying to find one? (Specific recommendations are both encouraged and highly appreciated!)
Council For Relationships also does individual therapy (not just couples' stuff). I've seen two therapists there - one was excellent, one was life-changing-ly good (I specifically sought out someone whom I could not charm/outwit, as is my unfortunate therapeutic wont). MeMail me for names.
posted by julthumbscrew at 5:48 AM on May 8, 2015
posted by julthumbscrew at 5:48 AM on May 8, 2015
That said, I’ve had my fair share of condescending, patronizing, and relatively unethical therapists. I’ve been turned away, swindled out of my money through means of inane and irrelevant digressions, and highly misunderstood and mistreated... In their defenses, I’m a bit eccentric and unhealthily confident, which often leads to a great deal of others blindly trusting me when I instinctually fib and say I’m better than I am. I do not want to fib, it’s just a gut reaction. I also tend to domineer conversations and prattle on, and I’m not sure if that solves anything or not.
There are certainly bad therapists, so I don't want to discount your judgment about your former treatment professionals, but I do want to throw out there that a very valid therapeutic technique for working with clients who "prattle on" and tend to get stuck in their head over-analyzing or over-intellectualizing is for the therapist to sloooooooooow way down and focus on extremely concrete things -- what do you feel right now, how does your body feel right now, do you notice any muscle tightness, what is happening right now in this moment. I have noticed that clients who over-prioritize their every thought look at me like I'm an idiot for not giving that same level of importance to every zig and zag of their monkey mind, but I'm not ignoring the intellectual heat and light because I'm stupid or can't follow it, I'm ignoring it because I need to work on teaching the client to develop other skills as they've obviously already been unsuccessful in thinking their way out of their problems.
I've been the client in this scenario as well (as I myself often tend to over-intellectualize) and it was frustrating as hell in the beginning when therapists didn't seem to care that I was "smart," because that was my coping mechanism! Why weren't they letting me use my coping mechanism??? And then I realized they were helping me find a better balance of skills and coping mechanisms, and that I needed to start from scratch on some of the emotional-processing ones. Not because I was stupid, or they were condescending, but just because I needed that 101-level intro into how to do feelings and how to do mindfulness and how to communicate with other people rather than just figuring out everything in my own head.
So that might be something to keep in mind with therapists in the future. You may be snowing them less than you think, and they may be offering you more than you think.
posted by jaguar at 7:01 AM on May 8, 2015 [5 favorites]
There are certainly bad therapists, so I don't want to discount your judgment about your former treatment professionals, but I do want to throw out there that a very valid therapeutic technique for working with clients who "prattle on" and tend to get stuck in their head over-analyzing or over-intellectualizing is for the therapist to sloooooooooow way down and focus on extremely concrete things -- what do you feel right now, how does your body feel right now, do you notice any muscle tightness, what is happening right now in this moment. I have noticed that clients who over-prioritize their every thought look at me like I'm an idiot for not giving that same level of importance to every zig and zag of their monkey mind, but I'm not ignoring the intellectual heat and light because I'm stupid or can't follow it, I'm ignoring it because I need to work on teaching the client to develop other skills as they've obviously already been unsuccessful in thinking their way out of their problems.
I've been the client in this scenario as well (as I myself often tend to over-intellectualize) and it was frustrating as hell in the beginning when therapists didn't seem to care that I was "smart," because that was my coping mechanism! Why weren't they letting me use my coping mechanism??? And then I realized they were helping me find a better balance of skills and coping mechanisms, and that I needed to start from scratch on some of the emotional-processing ones. Not because I was stupid, or they were condescending, but just because I needed that 101-level intro into how to do feelings and how to do mindfulness and how to communicate with other people rather than just figuring out everything in my own head.
So that might be something to keep in mind with therapists in the future. You may be snowing them less than you think, and they may be offering you more than you think.
posted by jaguar at 7:01 AM on May 8, 2015 [5 favorites]
I had a life-changing psychiatrist at Temple Psychiatry. I think she is no longer there but I can attest that their office is extremely accommodating, especially in regards to finances and the orientation that they train their psychiatrists in really worked for me. I'm not sure if you're interested in medication but the main focus of my treatment there was the psychotherapy and not my meds. That was a welcome relief from the psychiatrists I had seen prior.
Good luck out there.
posted by Katine at 12:56 PM on May 8, 2015
Good luck out there.
posted by Katine at 12:56 PM on May 8, 2015
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posted by coppermoss at 3:42 AM on May 8, 2015