Posted by trouble on March 15, 2002, at 6:05:39
In reply to I was told to get DBT I must give up my therapist, posted by LiLi80 on March 15, 2002, at 2:31:22
> I cant give her up. SHe is the only life line i have. I dont trust anyone else with my life stories. I dont get why the DBT person is doing this. She said my insurance wont cover 2 therapists. She is wrong cause they said they would, then she told me it was her personal decision not to take me as a DBT patient if I had a therapist already. Group DBT is not an option, because its an intensive 40 hr a wk program, i need individual DBT with one therapist, but i dont think i should have to give up my first therapist because this bitch says so. Oh did I mention I have called all DBT specialist in the New England area? Its this lady or her colleague. and he favors group and will probably take her side. Why I bother trying to get help is beyond me.
Oh my, Lilli, this is very strange. It's my understanding that DBT protocal requires group participants to have a personal therapist, b/c DBT is not a "process" therapy. I believe this rule is clearly spelled out in the DBT manual, written by the founder Marcia Linehan. Let's ask other participants, in the event I'm mistaken about this, but I clearly remember in my DBT group we could only be admitted if we had a therapist, and we had to provide proof of it to boot.
I haven't heard of DBT being done on an individual basis, but that's not saying there's anything "wrong" w/doing it this way. Perhaps you'll have opportunity for both process and cognitive therapy in such a setting, and this could be a more complete and holistic experience for you, something to consider before dismissing it out of hand.
My concern is that ANY of your mental health resources would be eliminated right now, as you are in a crises mode, and need all the support you can get. She says your insurance won't cover it, then when shown that your insurance will cover it, she tells you regardless, she doesn't want you seeing anyone but her period. Does that sound like an honest person to you or am I being paranoid? Why didn't she just tell you upfront she wanted you to quit your therapist, if that's what she wanted all along, which it appears she did? It's disconcerting.
I'd ask my therapist about all this, and see if she thinks it's okay for you to take a break from her during the DBT training, and take it from there. I'm also interested to learn if DBTis now being practiced one-on-one, or if you stumbled upon a maverick of some sort.
You ARE facing obstacles in your recovery, and are meeting them w/ considerable self-assertion, I wish you could see your own courage in all this mess. I still think the part of you that wants to be well is fighting for primacy in your life, she will not be crushed dagnabbit, and I applaud her spirit. You're gonna be so strong from the work you're doing during this baptism of fire, and you may not think the world needs you right now, but I believe you're going to find people one day who are going to need a specific kind of help that they can only get from you. You've already gotten a few messages thru my own thick skull, and can't believe I've become a defender of orthodoxy all of a sudden! But I can see now that it's appropriate, and no amount of arguing w/ my handlers could sway me on this, it took your experience to help me see the light.But for now, the immediate issue is getting that DBT therapy the way it's supposed to be delivered, if other posters agree that Linehan's protocols include group therapy, and a personal therapist for clients, the next step is to write down those words from the manual, present them to the practitioner (if you still want to work w/her) and ask if it's ok w/ her if you at least abide by the personal therapy rule, as that has been a studied and proven technique. Someone out there must have access to the current methods, if not there's always the library. One step at a time my friend.. I don't see why this should be an issue w/her one way or another, but these are the terms she's given you, and we might as well proceed from there.
til tomorrow,
trouble
poster:trouble
thread:98093
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20020313/msgs/98113.html