Psychological counseling recommendations

First go to the psychology department/psychiatry department of a tertiary hospital to rule out organic/pathological problems, and then match the consultant school according to your specific needs. Priority is given to practitioners who are registered in the registration system of the Chinese Psychological Society, with more than 1,000 hours of case work, and no less than 150 hours of individual supervision. With limited budgets, priority is given to low-priced cases of college public welfare psychological counseling and registered system intern counselors. All marketing consultations that promote "healing included", "emotional recovery" and "guaranteed results" are directly dismissed without consideration.

Just last week, a sophomore girl came to me to complain. She said that she had met a "senior psychological counselor" with over a million fans on some grassroots platform. She spent more than 8,000 yuan to sign up for three consultation packages to solve the problem of quarreling with her boyfriend. However, the other party did not listen to her the whole time and kept selling her "emotional recovery private lessons" for more than 10,000 yuan. In the end, she said that her "emotional control ability is too poor to retain people." The girl cried all the way after the consultation, but she was more anxious than before. In fact, many people fall into this trap when seeking consultation for the first time. In the final analysis, they don’t know how to distinguish which ones are really reliable and which ones are businesses that harvest traffic.

When it comes to genres, the industry has been arguing for almost a hundred years without reaching a unified conclusion. Some people think that psychoanalysis is "rooted and popular" and can dig out the old problems in your subconscious. It is suitable for those who are always trapped in old patterns - for example, after falling in love several times, they are replicating the pattern of getting along with their parents when they were young. They clearly want to communicate well but always tolerate it. If you keep saying hurtful words, in this case, you can find a psychoanalytic/psychodynamic counselor and slowly sort out your early experiences, which can indeed solve the problem at the root. However, many people complain that this genre is too "grinding". After ten consultations, they are still talking about their childhood, and no obvious results are seen. People who are eager to solve the current problems simply cannot wait.

If you are currently suffering from specific symptoms, such as being anxious before the postgraduate entrance examination to the point of insomnia for a week in a row, or your hands shaking and sweating at the thought of speaking in public, and you want to suppress the symptoms quickly, then a consultant from the cognitive behavioral school of CBT will definitely be more suitable. A large number of clinical studies have confirmed that C The effective rate of BT intervention for anxiety and depression in the acute phase is 60%-70%. However, many visitors feel that this genre is too "cold". It is like going to school and listening to a teacher's lectures, teaching you to adjust your cognition throughout the process, and rarely taking over your emotions. It does not feel like consulting, but like a review meeting at work.

There are also genres such as humanism, family therapy, and sandbox games that have become popular in recent years. Each has its own applicable scenarios and is not classified as high or low. Just like if you take montmorillonite powder for diarrhea or ibuprofen for a fever, the most important thing is to treat the symptoms. Don't listen to people saying that a certain genre is best to rush into.

The hardest standard when selecting people is actually not "international certification" or "national psychological counselor certificate" - to be honest, the latter exam has been canceled in 2017. Now those on the market who use this certificate as a gimmick are either old practitioners who took the exam many years ago, or they bought a pheasant training certificate, which does not count at all. At present, the most recognized one in China is the certification of the registration system of the Chinese Psychological Association. Registered psychologists have numbers starting with Of course, this does not mean that those who have not entered the registration system will definitely not be able to do it. Some veteran consultants who have been working for more than ten or twenty years may not have applied for certification, but they have sufficient case experience. In this case, you need to do more background checks, and don't listen to the salesman's mouth.

There is no need to try to make a fool of yourself when it comes to budget. If you are a student and your monthly living expenses are only two to three thousand, you should first go to the psychological counseling center of your school. Most of them are free and open. The counselors on site are basically psychology majors and have formal qualifications. Even if you may have to queue up for a week or two to make an appointment, there is no need to worry about privacy. The school has a confidentiality agreement for counseling, and you will not tell counselors or parents about your situation casually. If you can't make an appointment at school, you can also find low-priced cases from intern consultants in the registration system, usually 100-300 per time. These consultants are going through the registration process. They must take on enough cases and provide regular supervision before they can get the qualifications. They will not mess around and are much more reliable than those packaged "Internet celebrity consultants".

If you have enough budget and can afford the cost of 800-1500 per time, you can find a senior registered psychologist or supervisor, but don’t think that the more expensive, the better. I once had a visitor find an “industry-renowned consultant” who paid 2,000 yuan an hour, but the other person kept interrupting her throughout the process. While talking, she kept talking about how many clients she had treated who were more serious than her before. After the consultation, she felt uncomfortable for three days. Later, she changed to a counselor who had just received a registration qualification for 600 yuan. She was very suitable. After half a year of treatment, most of the intimacy problems that had troubled her for several years were cured.

Oh, by the way, if you haven't been able to sleep well or eat well for more than half a month, have no interest in the things you used to like, or even have thoughts of self-harm or suicide, don't go to a social counselor first, go to the psychiatry or psychology department of a tertiary hospital for diagnosis immediately. You should take medicine, follow the doctor's instructions, and then cooperate with psychological counseling to achieve good results. Many people think that it is shameful to go to a psychiatrist. In fact, it is really nothing. Just like going to a respiratory department for a cough or a gastroenterology department for a stomachache, it is a normal medical behavior and there is no need for psychological burden.

To be honest, looking for psychological counseling is really the same as looking for a partner. There is no absolute "optimal solution". Those clearly listed criteria are to help you screen out scammers. You can feel whether it is really suitable for you after sitting down for ten minutes for the first consultation - if you feel relaxed and willing to express your feelings, that is the right person. If you feel awkward, judged, and uncomfortable, no matter how famous the other person is, just change. Your feelings will always come first.