Too much stress – should I go to a psychologist or a psychiatrist?

nels1988 · Newbie Joined: 11 Nov 2007 Posts: 1

I have to admit that I have never felt like this before. I am 34 years old, I have a lot of obligations at work and I barely have the time to deal with my kids who just started with school. Can you tell me how to deal with too much stress – should I go to a psychologist or a psychiatrist?

randy159 · Newbie Joined: 08 Apr 2007 Posts: 1

I sometimes feel as if I have to see them both! I guess that it’s just the way of life today. If you want to earn some decent money and provide for your family, you have to give your best when it comes to a job, and unfortunately that does not leave too much tome to spend with that same family. In my case, things are a bit easier, because I train martial about four times a week and that does help with the stress…

my2cents · Site Admin Joined: 12 Apr 2007 Posts: 172

I think that would depend on the level of stress that you are feeling on an everyday basis. For most adults, stress is just a part of life, and we all cope with it in different ways. And that usually provides enough relief for us to be able to live with it and not have our lives consumed by it. However, if you are experiencing stress and anxiety now more than you have in previous times during your life, and you felel that it is interfering with your normal routines and is becoming a real problem, then yes - you may need to see someone about it. A professional counselor - or even a psychologist may be able to help you by talking with you abut this matter, and will probably try to locate the source of the stress so that you could then begin on reducing it to a more comfortable level. In some cases, it is possible to totally eliminate the source(s) of stress that you are currently experiencing - especially if the stressors are ones that you have the power to change. But, virtually no one is capable of having a 100% stress-free life. Often, a counselor, oe a psychologist will recommend either individual sessions - just you and him or her. Or, they will often suggest attending a group session. This is where others in the same or similar situation as you get together and discuss their carious issues. Many people find these group sessions to be quite helpful for a number of reasons. One of which is that - after attending a few of these group sessions, you should feel more omfortable simply by knowing that you aren't the only one who is going through what you are. You will hear the experiences of others, and how they are coping - or not, with the problem(s) at hand. You will also have an opportunity to tell your own story if you choose to, and have others in the group give you constructive feedback. These groups are facilitated by a counselor or a psychologist. They can be weekly, bi-wekly, or whatever.
Now, as for a psychiatrist. The main difference between the two is roughly about $125 an hour, LOL. But, also the fact that psychiatrists can legally treat a patient with pharmaceutical therapies. They are, in fact, M.D.'s so they are able to write prescriptions for their patients in an effort to treat them. They usually do this in conjunction with therapy sessions. It is usually considered 'bad' medicine to have a psychiatrist who writes prescriptions for a patient and not provide any counseling. void this type of doctor. The prescriptions that are generally prescribed for anxiety and dtress can range from relatively harmless anti-depressants (not always harmless though), to addictive - and potentially dangerous benzo's such as Valium, and Xanax. These drugs are quite easy to get addicted to, and difficult to withdraw from should a dependency occur. So, it's really up to your particular life circumstances when it comes to choosing which route is best for YOU.
I hope this helps!

Too much stress – should I go to a psychologist or a psychiatrist?

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