I'm going to segue right into that much-anticipated ( ) discussion on therapists. Note that this will be a general discussion: horror stories, success stories and general ranting about how hard it is to find the good ones. I'm not going to be able to provide adequate help in terms of actual contacts or even links to go to.

I frequently get asked about the medication versus therapy debate. My answer depends on the circumstances. For chronic depression, meds would normally be enough...most of us know our depression well enough to know when it's time to go for more therapy. But for children, first time sufferers and serious clinical depression, I think one-on-one (and possibly group) therapy is essential. I don't think children should be prescribed anti-depressants, but if/when AD's are prescribed, regular weekly therapy should be mandatory.

That's often easier said than done. Finding a good therapist can be another one of those "needle in a haystack" situations.

When I was (voluntarily) hospitalized with severe depression in 1984, I went through two psychiatrists before finally finding the third one who "clicked".

The first psychiatrist was a guy who laughed a lot. He was warm, caring and interested, but didn't "get" the seriousness of my depression. Because I laughed at his jokes and smiled too much, he thought I was cured and sent me home after only two weeks. I don't remember how I ended up convincing the hospital to take me back and to take me seriously, but thankfully they did.

The second psychiatrist was a woman intern who looked EXACTLY like me. It was like looking into a mirror. Tall & very thin. The same long fly-away blonde hair. Blue eyes covered by thick glasses. She even dressed the same way that I normally dressed. It was eerie and very unsettling, especially because I was so full of self-hatred at the time and could barely stand to look at myself in the mirror. I found it impossible to be honest with someone who looked like me, and she too sent me home too soon. I called her for help the morning I was suicidal but her only advice was to go out and get myself a cup of coffee.

After my overdose, I ended up in Dr. Reynold's office. Dr. R. was the head honcho and decided to find out for himself if I WANTED to be helped before he invested anymore of his staff's time and energy in me. Within seconds of being brutally honest with each other, he told me "I LIKE you. I think we'll do well together, don't you?" And we did. He was one of the best therapists I ever had. In fact, Dr R. was the one who first suggested that someday I write my story. We lost contact over the years, but he was thrilled when he heard about my book and wrote me a lovely congratulatory note.

I have one more to tell you about, but I'll save it for tomorrow.

[ September 28, 2005, 08:01 PM: Message edited by: Eagle Heart ]