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I'll have my first appointment with a psychiatrist tomorrow. What should I expect? (lemmy.world)

submitted 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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Hey Lemmings

I think maybe I'm just a bit anxious right now.

But I don't know what to expect.

I already go to a psychologist once a week, since my early teens (although I had some time off until now).

Should I expect the same dynamics?

I know why I'm going and all, I know what I wanna "treat", but I'm still in doubt about if what I want to treat is the treatment I need, and it would be more of a consequence of some deeper stuff.

Don't know if I made myself clear, but there it is.

Has anyone been to one before? What should I expect? How it went for you?

Edit: so, I did it and it was VERY NICE. He was very welcoming and made me feel very secure. He ended up prescribing two medications for me, to which I expressed some concerns, but he made me feel comfortable and trust him about it. When he was talking and said something about "having a normal life again" I almost cried lol.

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[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Psychiatrists are medical doctors, so the experience will likely be very different from your psychologist. The objective of the psychiatrist is to review your symptoms, diagnose a problem, and prescribe medication if necessary.

By design, they will have a reduced personal investment in your life circumstances compared to a psychologist. It's not that they don't care, but they're looking for specific criteria to help them arrive at a diagnosis and will often not have the time to get to fully understand the context of your situation. Just answer their questions truthfully to the best of your ability.

Medication is not necessarily the immediate solution when it can be avoided, but if any diagnoses they determine can be readily solved by a pill, that will likely be their recommendation. And they'll recommend you keep going with your psychologist even with medication, who will be the one to better work with you on specific issues and determine (if applicable) if the meds you're taking are helping or not.