Posted by ShawnThomas on November 6, 2012, at 16:43:53
In reply to playing chess with psychiatry, posted by rjlockhart37 on November 6, 2012, at 15:15:49
Well I am a scholar, but this discussion does not revolve around scholarly facts; it revolves around your perceptions of what is best for you. That said, I will share my opinions on the matter.
Anyone who has the ability to educate themselves should absolutely try to seek an improved understanding of his or her unique mental condition and any relevant medications. Ultimately, we all have our own unique blend of mental "disorder." Diagnoses should help to provide treatment suggestions rather than serving to define who we are as human beings. Because of your uniqueness, a psychiatrist cannot apply some mathematical formula to solve all your problems. If you see a doctor regularly, I definitely believe that developing a relationship based on mutual understand will greatly benefit you. In my opinion, a useful approach is to demonstrate a deep respect for your doctor while simultaneously being assertive about describing what you seek to get out of the relationship. You should view yourself as a courageous hero who is ultimately the key person in charge of figuring out how to be content with life. The games of chess and life are often most enjoyable if you don't take them too seriously; oftentimes, I have created more problems than were necessary simply by taking my existing problems too seriously. I think that life is often much easier when one has a sense of playfulness and an acceptance of the purposelessness that pervades so much of life. I was once told by a wise man that I should spend less time thinking about my problems and more time simply acting in the moment. Sometimes problems can seem to be overwhelming, but there are always healthy ways to cope. If you develop a good relationship with your doctor, then it should be easy to openly explore ways that can help you to cope with problems more effectively.
In my opinion, the best approach to the relationship with your doctor is to avoid becoming too attached to any certain goal. You should certainly try to seek outcomes that you feel will benefit you, but you should not feel that you or the doctor is to blame if desired changes are not occurring. Your emphasis should be on developing an improved understanding of the relationship's ability to provide benefits rather than focusing on specific things that must occur for you to be satisfied. I know lots of people who have sought a certain thing from a psychiatrist and got it; however, they made little progress because they were not able to empower themselves to change their ways of thinking about life in a manner that did not depend on having to achieve specific goals in order to feel well about life. If you find that you cannot spend what you feel is a sufficient amount of time talking to your psychiatrist, I think that talking to a therapist or at least close friends can be very beneficial. Many therapists can provide deep insights into how to best deal with psychiatrists, especially if they are close colleagues.
I have often suggested to friends that they print out abstracts and articles from peer-reviewed medical journals in order to help to influence their doctors' perceptions about treatment decisions. I think that it is important to understand, however, that a doctor may have read contradictory reports or experienced contradictory examples in the past. I also believe that patients should seek to understand the sensitivities and potential insecurities of their doctors in order to build a relationship based on mutual trust. Many times, the delivery of your point-of-view can be more effective if you are both respectful and well-informed.
poster:ShawnThomas
thread:1030834
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20121029/msgs/1030837.html