Should I see a psychologist or psychiatrist?

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bandgeek13094
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15 Aug 2010, 4:41 pm

I think I may need to see one. My friends say I don't though. I used to see one along time ago where they told me I had Asperger's and ADHD. That was 6 years ago. But I don't even know how I would find one. Do they have ones that will take Medicaid? Because I woudln't be able to og otherwise. I took a personality disorder test online and ok, I know those things aren't 100%, but it told me that it was very high that I has avoidance and borderline personality disorder. I totally blew up at walmart today. I don't feel like typing so much so here is what happened: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index ... 655AAWj2oQ

I get anxious a lot too and tend to think I have every illness under the sun or some serious disease. Sometimes I get really crappy feeling especially like a blow up like what hapened in my question and then I get really depressed and feel like I'm a bad person and I feel like hurting myself. I don't cut anymore, but I hit my head sometimes. And I went tot he mall yesterday and there was so many people that I was sweating and walking fast and I could barely breath...and they were looking at me funny too because of it. I get anxious around people all the time but that was really bad.

There's alot of stuff...I can't mention it all. right now...I've been this way for quite some time. I guess it would be safe to say it started happening around puberty, so for like 6 years now, although I don't think I was this bad when I was 10, or maybe I was, I can't remember...

Do you think that something is wrong with me? I don't know what to do sometimes. I think I should probably see someone, but I have no money and my dad doesn't either. And I don't really want to talk to family or friends about stuff. I do, but I'd rather talk to a professional.



Peko
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15 Aug 2010, 4:44 pm

It depends on whether or not you want the option/pressure to be on medication. Psychologists just talk to you while psychiatrists prescribe meds. I personally prefer psychologists b/c of the lack of med pushing, but once had a nice psychiatrist. Now I just go to student counselors & psych major friends (its free :D).


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Corin
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15 Aug 2010, 4:58 pm

Peko wrote:
It depends on whether or not you want the option/pressure to be on medication. Psychologists just talk to you while psychiatrists prescribe meds. I personally prefer psychologists b/c of the lack of med pushing, but once had a nice psychiatrist. Now I just go to student counselors & psych major friends (its free :D).


I'm seeing a psychiatrist right now, who only mentioned medication (for anxiety) once and hasn't brought it up since. Also, he apparently has worked with many people on the spectrum, so I really lucked out with him. I think it really just depends on the psychiatrist or psychologist in question, so research would be useful.

In any case, I think most people could benefit from a bit of help and it's best to do research to check if they take medicaid and such. Google is your friend. :)


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bandgeek13094
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15 Aug 2010, 5:17 pm

ok. thanks. yeah, I don't really like the idea of medication. I used to take adderall and Geodon and I found out recently that geodon (an anti-psychotic) was linked to things like high blood sugar/diabetes, tardive diskensia, and other scary things that I think about and am scared I might have/develop. But sometimes I feel that I'm getting out of control or may and I don't know what to do. I used to see things that weren't there, but that doesn't happen often anymore. And then sometimes I have really bad thoughts. Not just about hurting myself, but about hurting other people which scares me anymore. I don't want to end up hurting someone I love and when I get thoughts like these out of random or when I'm mad or soemthing, it makes me sad and makes me want to take it out on myself...



Callista
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15 Aug 2010, 6:22 pm

I think your anxiety probably has to be addressed. Your constant fear of having something horrible, etc., is probably having a negative impact on your life, right? If so, it would be rather logical to see a psychologist. If you can differentiate between "needless worry" and "sensible caution", then things should get a lot better for you.


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CockneyRebel
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15 Aug 2010, 6:33 pm

I think that you should do whatever it is, that you feel that you need to do.


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SmallFruitSong
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15 Aug 2010, 8:56 pm

Sounds like a psychologist would be really helpful to address your issues.

A psychiatrist, at least here, is mainly to diagnose and prescribe medication, so unless you feel the need for medication, you probably would be served well with just a psychologist.


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DW
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16 Aug 2010, 1:42 am

You could benefit from both, obviously.
I would try to be referred to a psychiatrist with autism specialty. They often have the best knowledge regarding the spectrum and spend many years longer training to work in their profession. Also, psychiatrists are often able to pinpoint a more precise diagnosis, hence preventing misdiagnosis, etc. I was diagnosed with AS by a psychiatrist and was very happy with his work.

Many people prefer not to try medications, but if you have thoughts of harming entities, or severe anxiety/thoughts of death, etc, than it would probably be a good idea to at least consider medication as it would make your life much easier. Most psychiatrists are very nice people, and do not outright force people to take medications.

A psychologist is an excellent idea too, as many people have mentioned, that's a whole different topic though.
I hope this helps!