How to Be a Successful BAD THERAPIST -- And How So Many Therapists Succeed

[selfarcheology]

Over the years many people, both clients and regular people, have told me that they have tried two, three, even five or more therapists of all sorts of varieties who were not very helpful. Most common complaints were that the therapist was not a good, understanding, empathetic listener and that they didn't give any feedback and were just nodding their head. Many people also said they felt that the therapist doesn't really care about them.

Cheers,
Darius

[mialite]

Many therapists have traumatized and re-traumatized me that i've needed therapy because of them. What the heck happened to 'DO NO HARM' ??

[gingerisevil]

So many therapists called me "smart" and it actually made me angry. I don't want to hear that, cause it's like they're claiming knowledge =healing. Just cause I can name my feelings, it does NOT mean I'm healed. I actually told a therapist; "well, anxiety doesn't care about your intellect." They're exhausting...

[emma]

Some of them are checked out, but I think more are attracted to this profession because they want to have power over others.

[laturley]

Not just in mental health, but in all fields involving the well being of people, it's incredibly disheartening to see positions filled with the callus and unconcerned. Your commentary is excellent. Thank you.

[marcospou]

I agree with the video. Its more likely that you find a bad therapist than a good one.

[brianadlich]

Craziest woman I ever dated was a psychotherapist.

[mykura]

So basicslly a lot of therapists are tricksters, that sounds reasonable.

[KatyGroves]

I was just thinking about this the other day! My father was a therapist and an abuser and he taught me many things about how a bad therapist can make money. While I must, I can't wait to watch this video! I am sure it will be very enlightening.

[MoonChildMedia]

I was always very dismayed by the lack of feedback I got from therapists. I don't think therapy did a thing for me. Any healing I've had has been through my own research, understanding and a desire to break the cycle of dysfunction.

[Automedon]

Having worked in the mental health field for a long time, I have taken many people to therapy appointments with a large number of therapists. I have rarely seen any difference or changes in people who have been in therapy for years and years. I have gotten a very jaded view of the profession. The majority seem to be people who were middle class kids with no personal life experience, who picked psychology randomly because of their own issues, or just that they couldn't think of what else to take, and it provides a good income on graduation.
Having said that, I really need a therapist myself, but I have grown so suspicious of their motivation and expertise. The therapists I have seen seem to be watching the clock. I go in there with the firm intention of being 100% honest, but once in there I get the feeling of "what's the use"? So, I will most likely keep faking normalcy and carry this shit to the grave.

[domedweller]

I think you should do a Ted talk on this.It's so refreshing to he someone who is transparent and honest.You may be able to help alot of people.

[JD-demq]

I went through this a long time ago, I picked a psychologist because she was old, had a fancy office and had a phd. But now looking back she had no skills, she didn't even know I had ptsd, she looked at me like I was crazy

[toddboothbee]

Ha. Being a therapist is like being a web developer: you charge a lot to create an aura of quality, and you avoid or dump difficult clients. The differences are that a web developer doesn't need a degree or an office and consequently and therefore has almost no overhead. The problem is that the therapist has the more serious job and shouldn't be doing business like a web developer.

[MakeAmericaLiftAgain]

Your videos are immensely helpful to me as I begin my career as an outpatient therapist.

[michasosnowski]

I remember one woman, she wanted me to visit psychiatrist when I started to talk about my depression. "Hippocampus this, and SSRI that, and you need to take them in order to...", I was sick from her pseudoscientific jargon, becouse I knew alot about them and just taper off, had terrible experience before. That was my last visit.
Alot of therapists you cant get any information about, even in office. They stand behind this wall of neutrality. It was frustrating and I lost alot of money just going and getting nothing from them.

[flagerdevil]

Yeah, that's when you care more about making money than actually helping people. You find those in all sorts of jobs unfortunately...

[kristikola]

So basically therapists know nothing about trauma... which is the main reason most people seek therapy. They don't have experience or discernment and they don't care... this is criminal.

[elizaveta]

Wow, this resonated a lot when you said that issues which could've been resolved in a matter of days and weeks could last for years. This happened to me: lots of wasted time and money, almost no improvement. Luckily I got interested in psychology myself, began to read/watch anything I could find and it helped me way more than talking to my former therapist. And then I found another therapist applying all the knowledge I had to make sure she was solid.:)

[sunnyboy]

I love your channel and your honesty. I've been in therapy with about half a dozen therapists over the last 12 years or so (still in therapy), but I am in a different mental health population - low income people with a diagnosed mental illness who go to clinics and do not pay for their treatment. It is paid for by the State, or insurance. I have recently come to the same conclusion - not to really expect any help, but to have this safety net of staff in case I need help with benefits, housing, my psych meds, and bascally have a place to go to twice a month or so.

Some of the therapists I've had I really felt they cared for me at times, and truly helped me. But at other times they talked too much about their own personal lives, from the mundane - where they are looking for an apartment, problems they've had with their kids, etc... to the really insensitive boasting about how WONDERFUL and fulfilling their personal lives are (in comparison to mine).
Although they don't explicitly state the comparison, it seems they just can't help boasting when they ate alone in a room with someone they know has such a lack of material, personal and social successes. They just can't resist _tooting their own horn" in their own ears. It might make them feel. a momentarily sense of self-satisfaction and superiority, but they are totally clueless and insensitive to how this recounting of happy, full family life or wonderful tropical vacations makes their client feel.

Whether it's burn out, heavy caseloads, or just putting in the time before they can retire - all of the therapists I've had seem to take the path of least actual work. Two had a habit of speaking very little (were they actually listening???) I guess they were listening just enough to make the appropriate facial expressions in response. They'd look compassionate and sad when I was talking about a problem, but smile and maybe nod a little in encouragement when I was happy about something. No actual verbal energy expended. I complained to friends in both cases, saying "You can train a monkey to look happy or sad on cue, that's not therapy."
One therapist admitted that she discussed me behind my back with another client at this clinic who I was having difficulty with. She wasn't even the other client's therapist! Yet she betrayed ME, the one who WAS her client. When I asked her what she said to this woman just the day before, the only answer I got was "I don't remember." I knew I could have gotten her fired for a serious HIPA violation and ethics violation, discussing my mental health issues with someone who is a terrible gossip - but I didn't want to make waves.

Lower functioning clients were sometimes referred to in a derogatory manner, nothing major, but using the "they" term and disrespectful nonetheless. (I can only imagine how these therapists talked about all of us among themselves). I've been going through a very difficult period and sought help from Youtube channels, where therapists provide insight into particulare diagnoses and how they manifest in people's lives. I'm learning SO MUCH about myself, my patterns, my trigger, stc. I had NO IDEA there was such a wealth of useful information for me to access!! It's made such a difference. If all the therapists I've had were trained about all the specifics of our personality disorders and other pathologies, either they forgot all this stuff they learned in graduate school - but more likely they just don't bother going into it with clients. It's easier just to sit through sessions saying very little with people coming in and out like there's a revolvomg door to their office. Maybe there are time constraints, I don't know. But I never knew all the helpful knowledge available on my particular personality disorder until I found these Youtube channels some caring therapists have up here. Thank goodness, I am finally getting some genuine help and insight into my problems.