Finally made an appt with a T

Well, she's supposed to call back with a time for the appointment, but I finally called someone today at least. I'm fairly proud of myself. That was difficult. I've been resistant to it for a long time, but my work has been starting to suffer lately, and things are not going well. Anyways, I'm totally new to this, so I have no clue what to do or how to handle any of it. Still, I guess it's a step in the right direction.

Anybody have any advice for me? It would really be appreciated.

I've never been to a therapist either, but if it were me, I'd take it nice and slow. Get to know her--it's very important that you can trust her and feel you can tell her everything. If you feel uncomfortable around her, the therapy's going to pretty much suck for you. :/ I heard that therapists don't like it when clients try diagnosing themselves, so maybe start describing your symptoms and let her lead up to DID on her own (which is also kind of a test to ascertain how good of a therapist she is!). And just relax and see what happens! Good luck!

That's really great raoul_duke, I'm proud of you. I know it was something you felt you needed to do for yourself. How did you find this person?

I have seen a lot of therapists (at least a dozen in the last ten years), and let me just say this - it takes time to find someone who is really going to able to help you. I'm not saying this to discourage you, but in fact the opposite. Go in there with the attitude that you have the right to be picky, because you do. I think maybe you should make a list of the qualities you would ideally want in a therapist. For me, for example, I want someone who is a good listener, is compassionate, has good boundaries (I've had issues with therapists with bad boundaries and it was disastrous), and is passionate about what she does. You should make a list of your own, and then after a few sessions with her, compare her against your list. How well does she seem to match what you need. If you have five things on your list and she matches four of them, I'd say that's great.

The first session is when you get to find out about her experience, her specialties, and her views on things. I would recommend writing down questions that are important to you and asking them when you first meet. Some things I've asked, for example, are:
~Do you have any areas of specialty? If so, what are they?
~What are your views on dissociation? Do you have experience working with dissociative clients?
~How do you feel about diagnosing people? How do you feel about diagnoses in general?
~Do you have experience working with clients who have been through major trauma? How do you work with them to help them process and heal from their trauma?

These are just some examples, I'm sure you'll have your own you want to ask.

The most important thing is that you get a good feeling from her, that you feel perhaps she is someone you can come to trust, and that you like what she has to say. Trust your gut, and trust your intuition, and you'll be fine. And please keep us updated!!

Good on you for making the first and hardest step I've been in therapy (on and off) for 9 years now so I can't really remember being new to it all! I think brandic as always has said some very important pointers. Good luck with it all.

Bourbon

Thanks yall. Sorry I've not been around much lately. I haven't been home much and thus havent spent much time on the computer.

I made an appointment for last week, but ended up cancelling when I found out that the office had heavy religious connections. I think I'd prefer more secular counseling. Luckily, some of the friends I've made in my new home have experience with several therapists in town and I was able to get some good recommendations. I've just called one of them and am waiting to hear back about an appt. It was actually the first office that I called, but there was a long wait. I'm feeling a bit better than I was at the time though, so I think I can endure two weeks.

There are so many things that I have to discuss, I don't really know where to start. Depression, my bizarre eating and sleep cycles, voices, dissociative symptoms, sexuality and the general identity crisis that I've been feeling lately.

Because I still question whether I'm making the voices and whatnot up, I don't really know how to bring them up. I'm thinking about starting with the depression I've been feeling lately and then slowly sneaking my other issues in.

I'll have to sit down and create that list of qualities that I'd like to find in a T. That sounds like a good idea. I'm guardedly optimistic about this one though, as she comes with glowing recommendations.

Recommendations are good! I too would hide away from counselling with a heavy religious background just because of my strong atheism.

You'll do what feels comfortable at the time, when you are face to face with the therapist. If that is telling the T about the voices and dissociation, or whether it isn't, you'll end up doing what is right for you.

Good luck, again.

Bourbon

That sounds great raoul_duke. Please keep us updated.

Ditto! It's a big step you've taken as you know. You'll want to find a therapist who you feel is competent and compatible with you, and who you feel working in your best interests.

There are so many things that I have to discuss, I don't really know where to start. Depression, my bizarre eating and sleep cycles, voices, dissociative symptoms, sexuality and the general identity crisis that I've been feeling lately.

I think if you can outline some of your topics and carry it with you, it may help in case you feel a bit dissociative, as that can happen at a first meeting. Personally I would state everything up front but I've been dealing with this a while now. It might not hurt to type up the list of topics above and simply hand it to them as a reference point. That said, I'd suggest starting with what feels comfortable for you. If it turns out you do have DID, that is really the heart of your issues, so mentioning dissociation in general should be safe to bring up as well as the depression. Therapists go on what you tell them, what they see, what their training, experience and any preconceptions lead them to, and what their gut indicates. You don't want them to get stuck in one line of thinking but a good therapist won't do that.

I hope you'll feel free to post here about how your first session went, as far as you're comfortable doing, if you'd like any feedback. Best of luck!

Ok, the therapist's office called me back yesterday and I've got an appointment on the 7th. I hate that it's so far away, stress is building rapidly at work and in general, but hopefully I can hold out until then.

Thanks again for your input and suggestions everyone. I'll work on some of those things and try to be prepared to dive right in.