Posted by JahL on March 30, 2001, at 18:39:34
In reply to Re: Meds are only a TOOL, posted by Noa on March 30, 2001, at 17:55:45
> > > > Psychotherapy persuades people to accept an inferior state of living; to accept that you are doomed to a joyless life of melancholia & missed experiences.
> >I wholeheartedly disagree (respectfully, of course) with this statement.
> > I think psychotherapy liberates people from this sense of doom, helps them see options and possibilities.Yes & no. What I mean by the above is that psychotherapists frequently give the lie that meds are just a 'band-aid'. They are no more a band-aid 4 me than insulin is 4 a diabetic. Psychotherapists are in an influential position & by denigrating the benefits of meds (& thus restricting the options you speak of), they potentially deny someone the chance of an infinitely better quality of life.
> > If you had an experience of psychotherapy that attempted to persuade you to accept an inferior state of living, it was not a good psychotherapy experience, and hopefully not typical.
*Extensive* & varied experience. All the same.
> >I think dividing the brain and body isn't as clear cut as saying that it is chemical for some and psychological for others. It is a complex interaction for all of us. We can choose to intervene at one or more points of this complex system, and there is no one way to intervene.
Maybe, but my point is that psychotherapy is fine (& probably beneficial) in addtn to meds, but it *should not* (as it so often is) be portayed as a SUBSTITUTE for somatic treatment. With the exceptions I mention in the post above, it most certainly isn't.
Sincerely,
J.
poster:JahL
thread:5334
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20010324/msgs/5403.html