I'm having terrible problems with anxiety. Who do I get help from, a counselor OR a physciatrist?

Question

I'm going through a seperation and am barely making it by doing my daily routine. My heart has been about to jump out of my chest for days. I just need to know what type of a professional to make an appointment with or if there's help available for this type of situation. My insurance list is catagorized as behavioral health and psychiatry......which one???? Thanks for all the advice!

Does a physciatrist offer an form of counseling or is it just the medication part of it?

Answer 1

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Take Care and God Bless you !

Answer 2

The psychiatrist will be more likely to advocate drug therapy.
I'd recommend seeing a psychologist for cognitive therapy first, and then, if you're still having problems, your psychologist might recommend that you get some tranquillizers or even some antidepressants, which would require a doctor's prescription.

Here is an excellent breathing technique for controlling your racing heart and anxiety (5555 breathing).
First, empty your lungs by breathing out completely. Then:
1) take 5 relaxed moderate breaths until your lungs are really full. Don't exhale between breaths;
2) hold this air in for a count of 5;
3) let your breath out in 5 relaxed exhalations, emptying your lungs with the last breath.
Repeat steps 1)-3) 5 times (or as many times as you want).

It'll stop the adrenaline rush before it starts.

Answer 3

Both treatments can be effective. Medication can help a lot. Antidepressants are often used because they block anxiety. Going through a separation probably puts you at risk for depression too so the meds could take care of you on both fronts. DON'T use anxiety drugs like valium, alprazolam, etc. because they are addictive. They do work, and may be prescribed for urgent moments, but don't take them regularly or over a period of more than 2 weeks. You will end up with more problems than you have now. Counseling can help anxiety and depression too, but if it's serious, it's hard to benefit from counseling until you've got the symptoms under control to some extent.

Answer 4

Since you are aware that your distress in from your situation I wouldn't seek a psychiatrist.

Most psychiatrists only provide medication management. There are psychiatrists who provide cognitive therapy, still. This is not the norm these days.

What you are going though would naturally make life hard.

A counselor would wisest choice.

Psychotropic medications can change your brain chemistry but won't change what's going on in your life.

Some people have no problems with the drugs. Some people might not be able to function without them.

Please don't think of it as a quick fix. These drugs do carry risks: risks to your physical health and side effects that can make it look like you have developed psychiatric symptoms requiring more medication leading to a diagnosis you probably don't have.

Also, please be aware that if you DO decide to take a drug to help you through this and it does help it could be very difficult to stop taking it.

The withdrawal effects some people experience with SSRIs can be too debilitating for some people to go through leaving you on the medication you only intended to take to ease you through a rough path permanently.

Worse still, the withdrawal symptoms could be seen as psychiatric symptoms and you could ended with a faulty mental diagnosis and taking unnecessary medications for the rest of your life.



I hope whatever you do works for you.

Answer 5

There is definitely help for your type of situation.

Psychiatrists do primarily meds but they can do counseling along with it too. But their primary degree is in medicine, not therapy. I've worked with some really great psychiatrists that can do both well. But not all psychiatrists in this day and age do therapy with all their clients, usually because the client already has a therapist! :)

Therapists are trained in therapy, but they also understand that it may take more than one way of doing things to help a person. So it's common for a person to have a therapist and then if they need meds they get referred to a psychiatrist for that part of their treatment.

Whatever you do, please don't go to your general practitioner asking for anti-anxiety meds. General practitioners know a lot, but they don't specialize in meds that affect people's moods. It would be like going to an eye doctor for a problem with your foot! :) Both the eye and the foot doc know a lot, but they aren't experts in the same kind of medicine. Psychiatrists go through years of extra schooling for the knowledge they have.

So, my suggestion would be to try therapy first, then meds if you need it. But yes either type of professional would be able to help you, and if they can't they'll refer you to someone who can. So whichever you pick will be just fine.

Answer 6

Most of the time these days, the counseling is left for psychologists/clinical social workers...Psychiatrists spend most of the time concentrating on medication, because they are the only ones that can prescribe it...Psychologists and other non-MD health professionals can't prescribe medication...So, it really depends how troubled you feel...If you feel you just need to talk to someone, then a counselor might be enough...but if you're feeling like there are longer-term problems, which could lead to harming yourself or others, you should probably see a psychiatrist...

Answer 7

Okay, a counselor is just that...a counselor.They cannot prescribe meds.
A Psychiatrist is an actual doctor and can prescribe meds. They also offer counseling.
A psychologist cannot prescribe meds, but they are allowed to consult with your regular family physician and recommend meds for you.

I've been to all three. I like the psychologist better. She is just like a really smart friend who listens and gives her professional advice on how to cope with my problems. A psychiatrist is expensive. A counselor is the least expensive.
If your insurance is like most (like mine), they will only allow a certain number of visits per year to a mental health professional. Check with your insurance co. before making any appts. and also call around and see which professionals accept your insurance.

It's a lot more complicated than people think. The first visit or two will involve only paperwork and going into your childhood, etc. so you don't really get to open up and feel any better about the present situation until the third visit or so.

Best of luck to you, hon.By the way, my regular doctor prescribed antidepressants and xanax for me when I saw him and told him how I was feeling. I was feeling very much like you after a death in my family of a very close family member.

Answer 8

I am sorry you are having this trouble.

Unfortunately, I know about this. When my marriage broke up, I could not sleep, eat, and more importantly, I could not stop crying. I went to a counselor.. and she knew I needed more help, so she got me in the next day with a psychiatrist she recommended.

He counseled me and my husband at the time.. and then after we seperated, he counseled me for a few months, to make sure I was ok.

He gave me zoloft and monitored me. He also gave me a subscription of ambien so that I could sleep. With his help, I was able to sleep, eat, and function so that I did not lose my job or worse.

It has been 3 and 1/2 years now, and I am really JUST NOW healing completely. I am now on a new antidepressant that has changed my life.. effexor.

After 3 months, my psychiatrist took me off of zoloft. He said I did not need it.. but I hated the way it made ME feel, like a zombie.. anthough millions of folks use it very well.

Please do get some help.. there is no need to suffer. I might also suggest a divorce support group. I went to Divorce Care which was at a church, and they did not try to convert me, just helped me understand what was going on and supported me so much. It helped alot.

Take care of yourself and get the help you need.

Answer 9

I would recommend a psychiatrist. Not only do they have the option of prescribing medication should the two of you determine that to be appropriate, but today's psychiatrist are extremely well-trained in psychotherapy. While your primary care or family physician can prescribe medication, he or she will not be as familiar with the large number of medications available to treat your situation. Consequently, you will be putting yourself at risk of being prescribed an improper medication at an inadequate dose. In addition, your family physician will not have the option of offering your regular therapy. Similarly, seeing a therapist will deny you of the option of taking medication - even for a short time - unless you are lucky enough to get a therapist who is comfortable referring patients to psychiatrists for medication evaluations. Unfortunately, many therapists are not, and they leave their patients suffering needlessly. A psychiatrist has the most options to offer and is the most educated concerning what you are experience. So I would definitely recommend seeing a psychiatrist for an evaluation and possible treatment.

Answer 10

NEITHER - RUN FROM THEM LIKE YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT -it may. You are suffering from situational stress and it is perfectly normal. The best way to deal with it is to realize its normal and allow yourself the grief you probably feel. There are calming herbs available that will help you relax without hurting you and causing permanent brain damage like the drugs the doctors and counselors will want to put you on. Talk to friends. And it is important to look after your health. You need to be strong to handle stress. You need to eat right - not pizza, cokes, etc. You need to eat vegetables mostly and meat, and fruit and stay away from crap foods like chips, cookies, etc. This is not an instant cure which is what you probably are asking for, but I don't believe you will find an instant cure which is good for you. Just realize this will pass and try to do better in the future, eating right, and sleeping regularly. Stressing and worrying won't help anything, and will make it worse. So just tell yourself to cool it. A vitamin store or Whole Foods Market can help you find the herb to help you relax. Whatever you do, don't complain to a doctor or counselor, they will drug you up and you will be on the start of a trip to hell. They seldom talk anymore, just drug. You can also read self-help books like "Feeling Good-the New Mood Therapy" by Dr. Burns.