Many therapists / psychologists have issues?

[user87382294757]

I mean, unresolved issues? The ones I have met all seem to. One we know has a real problem with hoarding animals for example.

Should they not have sorted their own issues, through therapy for example before being there to help others?

Have others experiences this also or is it just me?

www.brightonandhovenews.org/2017/07/31/brighton-sex-therapist-guilty-of-raping-boy-14-at-king-alfred-in-hove/

Gully has worked as a counsellor for people with addictions, including sex and love addictions, for more than 20 years.

He has worked as a part-time lecturer at Brighton University, specialising in addiction and cognitive behavioural therapy, and was previously director of addiction services at the Priory Hospital in London.

He has practised in Brighton and Hove as well as in London, also working with people addicted to drink, drugs and gambling, those with compulsive spending habits and eating disorders.

When he was arrested he was just about to move to Thailand.

He was highly respected in the therapy world.

@Jiggles101 that surprises me. PTSD clients always got passed to me as a psychologist rather than the counsellors precisely because I was trained in a variety of modalities and trained to work with complex presentations. What type of therapist are you? All the Clin Psych’s I’ve worked with have trained in a variety of psychotherapists. I find it very hard to believe that their training did not encompass at least 3 modalities. I was also under the impression that Clin Psych training has been updated to include personal therapy as a requirement. If it hasn’t then it jolly well ought to. I think personal therapy is essential in training.

@Notmydalek, you see your approach in a student on placement would have made my day- lack of arrogance and self aware. Have you thought perhaps a different course would be better?

Chief Hopper - my masters was in 'integrative psychotherapy' and included relational psychodynamic, humanistic/existential, and cbt/mindfulness. Ir was a very long and thorough training. I also have a pgdip in cognitive behavioural psychotherapy including ACT, CFT and DBT and narrative exposure. I would mainly use trauma focused CBT, CFT and NET with PTSD clients.

I am 100% positive that a couple of colleagues with the DClinPsych do not work with it as they're training didn't equip them to. Most do, but definitely not all.

The clin psych doctorate definitely doesn't include personal therapy, I know a few people on them currently and it's not a requirement. I agree, it bloody well should be!

I'm a therapist and I have issues that are both neurological and from childhood experiences. I had 6 years of therapy while training and have dealt with a lot, but I will never be a blank slate. No adult can be. What I can and try to do is be aware of what I bring and be honest about when my personal stuff will impact on the quality of care for a particular client. For example I might not work well with someone who reminds me of someone who has mistreated me in the past or with issues that trigger my own stuff. In those cases I need to refer on. Expecting a therapist to have resolved all issues before starting to work as a therapist is like expecting a teacher to know everything before starting a their job. I think we just have to try our best and appreciate that people care enough to do these jobs. I always encourage my clients to look after themselves and pick the therapist that feels right for them. If you're noticing issues with your therapist it may be time to change or talk to them about what you're noticing.

YABU. I don’t think there’s many humans let alone therapists etc that don’t have issues. How they deal with these issuers and treat their clients is what matters.
I’m a therapist and I am a person with ASD and ADHD and PTSD. Should I stop practicing? No- because I can relate to well distressed people and I’m helpful. ASD means my ultra fast brain enhances my insight and problem solving.
If I didn’t have ‘issues ‘ I’d be useless!

Some people like a therapist or HCP with real life experiences.

Sometimes there is no need to make insightful interventions. In fact I often find they can be counterproductive. There have been occasions when I have made completely brilliant interpretations connecting past and present that have been completely unhelpful to my client who wasn’t ready to hear them.

The times I am most ‘stuck’ with a client are the times when (as a very gifted supervisor told me) when I should stop trying and let them do the work. Stick to the Rogerian core conditions, use the basic skills - reflect, empathise, paraphrase and let them reach their own understanding.

It’s all too easy to get caught up in our own cleverness and superior knowledge and to forget that we can’t rush our clients.

@user87382294757 come on then OP. You must know about this area as you feel capable of identifying if someone has unresolved issues- so what qualifies you to do that?
Also what do you do for a living so I can bandy around some stereotypes about Solicitors/estate agents/ superstar DJ’s...

I said firmly yabu, then I read this...

‘One therapist I spoke with, an amputee wannabe...’
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2000/12/a-new-way-to-be-mad/304671/

I’m a Clinical Psychologist. In response to previous posters, it takes at least 10 years to train (minimum of 6 years at uni and to doctoral level) and no, you don’t need to have personal therapy to complete the doctorate or qualify. This is different for psychotherapists, who do need to undertake personal therapy alongside.

Clinical psychologist is a protected title to recognise the level of training and scrutiny the practitioner has been through to maintain an appropriate standard of practice. Counsellor and therapist are not protected titles meaning you could be getting therapy from anyone unless you take the time to fully check their credentials. Counsellors tend to work with lower complexity than CPs in primary practice settings or their equivalent.

Do we all have “issues”? Probably! 😉 Research certainly indicates that those with an anxious-ambivalent attachment style are more drawn to caring professions as a whole but, quite frankly, you would never get through the rigorous training to become a CP if you really struggled to function appropriately or could not reflect on these issues.