[riptide53]

I've been seeing a Psy.D. for several months once weekly for med resistant depression. He doesn't prescribe, i have a psych NP for that. The sessions amount to talking with him about goings on, my thoughts, etc but all I've gotten back so far is him listening and at times, giving instances from his own life as feedback so I know he 'gets my drift'. I have been in therapy most of my life for major depression and most of the therapists I've seen work in the same manner as my current tx. Other than emotional relief, I'm not gaining any understanding of what I need to do, change, see, etc nor do I have any goals to work on or that have been discussed in therapy. I like this therapist and would rather not change but does anyone have ideas about this?

[RaineD]

Sounds like he's not challenging you.

[piggy momma]

Hey riptide. Sorry you're struggling with this. Finding a good therapist often means doing quite a bit of "shopping around". If you've been seeing him for several months now what you see is probably what you're going to get. Before jumping ship tho, I would have a conversation with him and tell him that you're not getting what you need, which is XXX, and does he think he can help with this or would you be better moving on to someone else? I'm a believer that before we jump ship, they deserve some feedback and a chance to improve (if you've invested this much time and money into them).

At the end of the day, it very well may be that he's not the right fit for you and he may be able to refer you to someone else instead. Change is always hard, especially when we invest emotionally, so I hope you can make some progress with this guy and keep going.

[Salmon77]

In a way I think your impatience with this therapy is a good thing, it points out that you WANT to have goals and make changes, and that is the first step towards change happening. But you might want more concrete structure in your therapy. Have you talked to the therapist about how you're feeling? He might be willing to work a little differently if you tell him that's what you need.

[Ididitmyway]

If you are not benefiting, why continue with this therapist? It's not fun to change therapists, especially if you like the one you are seeing now, but it doesn't make sense to waste time on someone who is ineffective.

[SlumberKitty]

It doesn't sound like this therapist is giving you what you need. Perhaps like Piggy_Momma said, it would be good to discuss with the T. If things don't improve after that, it might be time to try a new T. It's your money and your time. You should be getting what you need out of it most of the time, in my opinion. Kit.

[NP_Complete]

It sounds like you're looking for something more like CBT. Talk to your therapist about his treatment modalities and tell him what you're looking for. If he doesn't use a modality you're looking for, you can ask for a referral to someone else.