Going to See a Psychiatrist Soon; Any Advice or Suggestions?

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I'm going to see a psychiatrist sometime next week. Lately, I've been having problems with being irritable, anxiety, depression (albeit somewhat mild), and high stress from work. So I thought I'd get some meds to help me. I really think I be a better person if I can get my problems under control. I'd actually prefer a pill pusher; I'm not too interested in spending a long time talking about myself.

Anyway, is there anything I'm not supposed to mention to the psychiatrist. I already know I'm not supposed to say anything about harming myself or other people; otherwise he'll report me to the police. Is there anything else I'm not supposed to mention? How should I act during appointments to make sure I get treated like a human being? What topics are safe to discuss and what should I stay away from?

Thanks in advance.

You seem "together," so it seems you should be fine based on what you wrote if you can articulately explain what you're experiencing. Of course, I don't know you personally, so I don't know everything about you. If one is a substance abuser, there may be some concern with prescribing, since they'll usually want you off the substance first. (There may be drug interactions with meds.) Also, it's possible the shrink will want you to get therapy with someone else at the same time as being on meds.

I think the bigger issue is, if you don't get treated like a human being by the psychiatrist, try a different one! A disrespectful health professional is not one you want to be treated by.

Yeah definetly dont mention anything about harming or dont hint to it at all yourself unless you do want to go to a psych ward. Try to see if you can trust them and tell them whatevers on your mind type of thing. Whatever you tell them should stay confidential even if you see them just once as long as you dont tell them that your harming yourself or others. Their are laws to protect the clients privacy. See if you think they have a clear understanding of whats going on and are going to be able to help you. If you get any bad vibes from this person, dont make another appointment.

In terms of how to act, you should be yourself so they can get a more accurate perspective of the person you are. If they dont, they cant help you correctly. If they dont treat you like a human being, dont go see them.

Heres some problems I've encountered with psycologists: not being able to talk to them, misunderstandings, dislike the psychs personality, them getting fed up with me and starting to loose it, them not being very genuine, them getting the wrong perspective of me.

From experiance, finding the right psych can be very hard and its really hard to tell based on the first appointment. Personally I still havent found the right one.

I like the advice so far. I've actually seen a shirink in the past, only she was a psychologist (has a PhD but not authorized to prescribe), rather than a psychiatrist (no PhD but authorized to prescribe). One of my teachers wanted me to get tested for ADD, since she claimed I didn't pay attention in her class. Anyway, I ended up seeing that psychologist.

She was good overall and gave some great advice that still helps me, although I had a problem with her strong emphasis on feelings. Whenever I described a situation, she'd ask: "how do you feel about it", and I could never give her a straight answer. When I tried, she'd say: "that's more like a thought; what do you feel?". I was 13 at the time, so I thought that not knowing how I feel was wrong. Fortunately, she didn't pressure me for an answer too much.

But as a result, I ended up staying away from topics that truly bothered me (like being bullied), because I didn't like bringing my feelings into the equation. Instead, I'd throw in topics that I could easily respond to, such as being bothered by a flickering fluorescent light. Then I'd be able to give an answer, such as: "I feel irritated and somewhat helpless, because I can't stop the flickering and others don't understand how much it bothers me". In real life, I could tough out the flickering, but I used it as a cover, to avoid talking about my feelings. In this case, the psychologist gave wonderful advice, which I applied to similar situations: she told me to quietly mention it to the teacher after class, as opposed to blurting it out in the middle of a lesson. (An NT kid would already know this, I guess.)

Anyway, back to my topic. I would really prefer someone who won't insist on me talking about my feelings. It was really uncomfortable at age 13, and probably won't be much more comfortable now. That's my main concern. However, I'm taking steps to address it. I'm planning to see a male psychiatrist, since men tend to focus less on feelings, and due to his specialty, is oriented more toward the medical side of treatment. Anything else you can suggest here? I'm not exactly looking for a quick fix; I just don't like being pressured for an answer I can't give (e.g. feelings).

I always make myself a list before going to the doctor because when I get asked how Im doing or whatever my mind goes completely blank.

Yes make a list but just dont tell them that you see white bunnies hopping everywhere or that you are smarter than them

The first thing I would find out is if they are familiar with Asperger's. The one I went to had to pull out a book to look it up. I tried to be myself (which meant looking at the wall when I was talking). It made her very uncomfortable when I didn't look at her, and she kept trying to catch me out. I didn't like that at all because, of course, I was telling the truth.

I only went twice because I said everything I had to say in the first session and I was totally bored in the second one. Plus, she asked me some of the same questions like I hadn't ever talked about stuff before. I quit after that. My other doctor put me on Lexapro and it is really helping-- I don't feel angry and anxious all the time now. I was totally against meds, but I'm a convert now.

I donot want any meds. As I think ASpergers have been COPING with AS, for thousands of years without any meds, why then in XXI century?
I am looking for some natural products you can buy not in a pharmacy, like a supermarket...
The problem of Meds: it is a problem for today, but long term, you get used to it, and the body get something like adicted, then you need them for ever.

By myself. I tryied the easy way of converting into meds. But I allways stop and say: "self-control" the more I fight the more I learnt to fight for my self control. It is working, and self-control is good for everything.

"Strong timber
does not grow with ease, the stronger the
wind the stronger the trees."