Trying to explain

Paradox,
I completely understand the yield thing. It's not worth the bother.

Your parents may be content on the Isle of Denial forever. That might work for them, and for you.

Janie

paradox wrote:Tell people what they want to hear

Which is another important question - what do people want to hear?

i've sort of tried to - because i'm undiagnosed it's more about explaining how i feel than what's wrong with me, if that makes sense.

the most important people to understand it for me are my parents: not because i'm very close to them but because they are the people who "hassle" me the most.

i think i'm finally getting it through that i'm not the same and i don't like the affection displays etc.

Dogtanian,
Why do you have to be 'diagnosed' to tell your parents that you have SPD? why must it be 'official' for you to tell them about it?
Janie

well, from my point of view, it doesn't, but they're hella conservative and they think that things only become real when they're official. so for me to say i think i have a disorder wouldn't make any difference, but if i explain that i feel this that and the other they kind of see it as just part of me rather than some "illness" or whatever.

also, it helps that they know i see a Tdoc because they take her far more seriously.

What's a Tdoc?

psychotherapist (Tdoc is therapy doctor; Pdoc is psychiatric doctor - the joys of net slang eh?)

Psychiatrists don't do therapy where you live? What kind of a doctor is a therapist?

Janie wrote:Psychiatrists don't do therapy where you live? What kind of a doctor is a therapist?

psychiatrists are medical doctors: they deal in medication and the like.

there are different kinds of psychologists: some are counsellors who just talk to people in a non medical setting and allow them to go through their problems that way.

psychoanalysts/psychotherapists also do talk therapy but it tends to be more in depth and with more models to follow, such as Freud's work and so on. they don't need to be medically qualified but they have to ensure that they are "safe" so most do have a basic knowledge of psychiatric medicine.

then there are clinical psychologists which i believe means that they are trained to a very high level in all aspects of mental health, from pharmacology to psychotherapy. i believe they are the only kind of psychologists who are able to prescribe medicine.

the one i see is a psychoanalyst, but writing Tdoc is much quicker

You can also add social workers to the list here in the US. We have all those kinds of therapists and counselors plus social workers who are also licensed to provide counseling. Psychiatrists are medical doctors but they are also trained to do talk therapy, not just prescribe medications. The best therapist/counselor I've ever know was an MD, psychiatrist. The second best is a social worker, LCSW.

A psychoanalyst SHOULD be a medical doctor. But real psychoanalysis is so time consuming, and so expensive, few doctors still do it. Plus, I haven't seen anything that proves it more effective than other cognitive therapy models.