Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with clinicalpsychology

Looking for a Therapist for a Friend in Richmond, VA

Anonymous — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 19:32:32 -0800

TherapyFilter: Asking for a friend of a friend—can anyone recommend a competent therapist accessible to someone living in Richmond, Virginia... especially someone especially good at handling issues of anxiety and panic? (Anonymous for the privacy of the individual[s] in question, in case someone could track them through me.)

Specifically, the friend-of-a-friend (a straight, white male in his early 20s, for what it matters) seems to be having issues with anxiety that increasingly have been manifesting in ways that resemble classic panic attacks—I'm thinking specifically the catastrophizing of physiological arousal leading to the positive-feedback cycle of anxiety that potentiates the attack. A doctor prescribed him an anti-anxiety medication of some sort, but he's considering therapy to help as well. However, to my knowledge, this doctor wasn't really able to proffer any suggestions as to who he could or should see to get some therapeutic assistance. As such, we're looking for recommendations for an excellent mental health professional to help him through his problems. I've heard that while many therapies tend to have similar therapeutic effects for many problems, panic disorders do have a history of better treatment through Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, so maybe keep that in mind? (That being said, if you or someone you know had a positive experience with someone from a different therapeutic modality for similar problems, feel free to recommend them, too!)

(There's also a thread wherein said friend identified said friend-of-a-friend's mannerisms as rather remarkably fitting the diagnostic criteria of Paranoid Personality disorder; however, this is a Wikipedia diagnosis, neither of us are clinical professionals, and the friend-of-the-friend is interested in dealing with his anxiety, so speaking in terms of both pragmatism and respect for his own ability to manage his well-being, anxiety/panic would be the primary specialty he'd be looking for. Nevertheless, it does characterize at least some issues as an individual close to him—and, to an extent, he—perceives them, so could be relevant if you have numerous doctors in mind and someone has a relevant specialty.)

If you don't have any specific recommendations, you can still be helpful! As is evident by my asking the question, neither I nor the friend (nor the friend-of-the-friend, I would imagine) have the faintest idea of how to find a high-quality therapist anywhere, nevermind in the Richmond area. If there are any general sites or resources we can look at—especially that provide something approximating reviews—that'd be excellent as well!

If you don't feel comfortable posting here, toss me a line at mefi.richmond.therapy@gmail.com

Thank you in advance for your help!

Undergrad research for Clinical Psych Phd

Genco_Olive_Oil — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 17:25:40 -0800

I am trying to apply to a research oriented clinical psychology doctoral program. I am finishing up my undergraduate in psychology at the University of Maryland University College. It is an accredited ONLINE university which doesn’t offer any undergrad research opportunities. I want to apply to programs this coming December. I feel I can adequately prepare for my GRE’s and my GPA is 3.65 (major GPA 4.0). The only problems I am facing are 1.) Finding undergrad research opportunities, there are many universities around me in Chicago but won’t they prefer undergrad students from their own institutions? 2.) Provided I find an undergrad research opportunity will only a few months of research experience be suffice to apply to grad school with? 3.) I am worried schools will frown at my undergrad from an online university.

Clinical Psychology reading

curious zoe — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 13:44:47 -0800

My friend is applying for clinical psychology postgraduate study at the end of this year and she would like to make sure she is well read on relevant books (nb. not text books) and blogs etc before the interview. Can anyone reccomend any books, websites or blogs that would be good for my friend to review prior to her interview?

Chances for ex-lawyer to enter clinical psych PhD?

shivohum — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 21:58:33 -0800

I'm a lawyer from a top law school with a year of work experience. I want to become an academic clinical psychologist (professor + therapist). After 9 months in a master's program, what will my admissions chances look like? I have no formal psychological background, thus my plan to enroll in a master's degree program before going for the Ph.D. Assuming the masters starts this spring, and I apply to PhD programs in the fall of 2009, how competitive will I be?

Assume:
-my undergrad grades are from a top-25 college and are excellent and my law school grades are only average (though from a top-5 law school)
-that I do very well in my psychology master's courses
-that I do very well on the GRE general and psych subject tests
-that I get some reasonable research experience in my 9 months, but it's limited by the fact that it's only been 9 months
-that I get good letters of recommendation from my psych professors (though again, whom I've only known for 9 months)
-that I have a good personal statement
-that I have maybe some internship experience, though this might happen after during the master's program after I apply and before I actually attend the PhD program

1. Would I be a:

-very strong (>75% admission chance to a top program)
-strong (40-75% chance)
-not so strong (<40% chance)

candidate to clinical psych programs? If I'd be average or below-average, is there anything else I could do to improve my chances?

2. Also, how much does the quality of the master's program influence your chances of admission into doctoral programs? If there's a serious influence, is there any good set of rankings I could use to decide which master's program to attend?

3. If I could attend a master's program which would give me a very strong "pipeline" into the school's doctoral program, would I be a fool not to attend that master's program, even if the school might be somewhat more expensive than alternatives?

4. Are there any good discussion forums where psych students or soon-to-be students talk about this stuff?

Thanks!

Academic Psychology Jobs in Boston

preparat — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 08:06:43 -0800

Boston psychology related jobs: what is the best way to search for them? A friend recently moved to Boston from Tunisia where she completed two Master's degrees in psychology. She is interested in workin in clinical psychology, in an academic setting, and doesn't mind an entry-level type position to start with. Are there any staffing agencies that could help her with this (or non-academic opportunities) in or around Boston? She has yet to obtain any licenses from the state.

Psychology Blog Topics

charmston — Sun, 16 Sep 2007 13:52:44 -0800

I'm starting a psychology-related blog that will focus on reviewing interesting and socially relevant literature. If you were a visitor to this blog, what type of topics would you be most interested in reading? I would like suggestions for specific articles, if you have them. Leave a name and URL if you'd like, and I'll credit you for the idea if I use it!