Posted by Dinah on August 5, 2008, at 20:52:27
In reply to Re: Borderline Personality Disorder.., posted by Amanda29 on August 5, 2008, at 20:23:55
Mood stabilizers aren't all that uncommonly diagnosed for things other than bipolar. I'm not bipolar, or if I am at all, it's bipolar III or whatever it is that only is an issue because of medications or perhaps sleep deprivation. But I'm on Lamictal. The main reason is migraine prophylaxis, but I do find that it is helpful to me for other reasons.
Is your therapist your psychiatrist? Whoever is prescribing you medication may have a different diagnosis for you, or may not, or may have some other reason for prescribing those meds to you that your therapist would not really know about.
Diagnosing in this field is nothing like diagnosis in many other areas of medicine. (Many, not all.) When I had vertigo, they were able to do a series of tests that showed exactly what the problem was, how long it was likely to last, and what I could to to get better. Mental health isn't like that. There is a lot more leeway in many areas. There might be a fair amount of agreement on schizophrenia or Bipolar I, but for the rest of it, it's not so much a hard science as an art.
What your therapist seems to be suggesting is that you think about the issues that are causing you difficulty in life, and address those issues. Use medication as your prescribing doctor sees fit to address those symptoms. Work on those areas of therapy that can help you deal with those symptoms. If I'm understanding correctly? In the end, aren't the things that are causing you difficulties in day to day life more important than the diagnosis? The problem with mental health diagnoses is that an awful lot of people fit some of the qualifications for many disorders. Few people fit neatly into any one or another.
I do understand wanting a diagnosis. I was obsessed with figuring out why I did the things I did. In the end, I got a pretty good idea. But the answer did not fit into a diagnosis. It was unique to me.
CBT and DBT offer skills that can be helpful in anxiety, in mood disorders, in any number of things. Other types of therapy can be helpful in any number of disorders.
You are you. A complex mix of any number of characteristics, some of which might fit one or another diagnostic criteria. But no diagnosis defines you. You are far too complex, as are we all, to be neatly slotted away.
Your therapist sounds quite sensible, although I understand why you feel distressed. Why don't you ask him what it is that he thinks you need to address in therapy? He might be better able to address that. He may frame his answer in terms of symptom reduction or strength enhancement. He may or may not be completely right.
Oddly enough, I found out far more about myself by trying to explain to my therapist what was wrong with me, than by having him tell me what was wrong with me. If you think he's wrong about anything he tells you, think about it and tell him why. It's amazing what can come up when we keep our minds inquisitive. I frankly shock myself sometimes when I discover exactly why I'm doing what it is I'm doing.
poster:Dinah
thread:843786
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20080727/msgs/844436.html