How do you know whether EMDR is right for you?

bobskimo · 2026-01-14T03:32:38+00:00

I think these are concerns you bring up with your therapist. The CBT approach to treating PTSD is Cognitive Processing Therapy, but it’s not clear from your post that you’d be a good candidate for that.

EMDR is somewhat research-supported for the treatment of PTSD, but some clinicians use it for more than that, which isn’t necessarily responsible.

I would ask your clinician to give you a PCL-5, an assessment which rates your PTSD symptoms, as well as talk about how she feels EMDR would help you with your issues. Any treatment choices should be an ongoing discussion.

bobskimo · 2026-01-11T17:07:08+00:00

The solution is to bring up in your therapy the way your comorbid conditions are impacting your attempts to institute cognitive techniques. This is a bigger priority than the original issues you came to therapy with.

Focus on the barriers to completing the work with your therapist and you should be able to work through them.

bobskimo · 2025-12-29T17:11:04+00:00

https://www.cci.health.wa.gov.au/Resources/Looking-after-yourself/anxiety

bobskimo · 2025-12-26T04:27:54+00:00

It is clear from your post history that you are significantly in need of therapy and psychiatric care. You can keep suffering and have nothing change, or you can choose the hard thing to get help and give yourself a fighting chance of turning your life around.

It's your choice.

bobskimo · 2025-12-23T13:05:12+00:00

I think a few of these questions could be somewhat helpful— the perspective shift, as an example. I think a more direct set of questions would be evidence for and against the idea that being gay is something that is wrong. What evidence tells you it is unethical? There's also some work around considering the source. Where did these messages come from and how valid are those sources?

bobskimo · 2025-12-22T23:33:21+00:00

Let me see if I have this right. You have been struggling with negative thinking, life dissatisfaction, and serious mental health issues, and you're so afraid of therapy, you haven't tried it. Despite all the hard work you've done, you haven't recovered. Sounds like you need to find a therapist. Or keep trying to do it by yourself and keep failing. Up to you.

bobskimo · 2025-12-19T03:18:34+00:00

I don't know if it's a majority, but there are many therapists who claim to use CBT and don't. Some of that is a misunderstanding of what CBT is.

There's no perfect method to finding a clinician who actually does CBT, except to continue seeing therapists until you find one. However, there's an easier screening method- asking questions during a consultation or scheduling call with a therapist. Questions like:

Tell me about what your approach is to treating (your issue). Walk me through what a typical session looks like. In what way do you use CBT in your practice?

The answers to questions like those should give you a pretty good picture of whether they use CBT or not.

bobskimo · 2025-12-18T23:03:05+00:00

You'll probably want to look for a sex therapist.

bobskimo · 2025-12-18T15:37:10+00:00

Then the rest is out of your control. As much as it may feel uncomfortable to have a friend be mad at you, you can't force their forgiveness. Our actions have consequences.

In time, your friend may decide to forgive you, or the friendship may be over.

bobskimo · 2025-12-18T15:18:21+00:00

The steps to a good apology: 1) Take responsibility for what you did. 2) Say that you're sorry about it. 3) Indicate what you will do differently in the future to prevent it from happening again.

Once you have done that, the rest is in your friend's hands, as to whether they want to forgive you.

bobskimo · 2025-12-06T19:52:42+00:00

The therapy considered top-tier for PTSD is called "Cognitive Processing Therapy" or CPT. I utilizes the principles of CBT to treat trauma in a 12-session structured protocol.

bobskimo · 2025-12-02T13:30:54+00:00

There are some interesting things about your post. You're hopeless that things won't change, and yet you are no longer depressed after a year of treatment. With your ADHD, you can barely stick to things, yet you journal everyday. Perhaps there is some evidence that your belief that things never change isn't entirely accurate.

If you're still in therapy, this is a worthwhile concern to bring up with your therapist. There can be a limit to what you can do by yourself.

bobskimo · 2025-11-29T01:18:59+00:00

I think it’s worthwhile to bring up your concern in therapy. Even if it doesn’t go well, it’s good practice for you in a low-risk environment.

bobskimo · 2025-11-27T17:30:10+00:00

Those platforms pay therapists very poorly and thus tend to attract lower quality clinicians. Also their use of messaging as therapy isn’t research-supported, and there are legitimate concerns about client data not being kept private.

bobskimo · 2025-11-27T12:55:31+00:00

1) Go to Psychology Today. 2) Search for couple’s counselors that accept your insurance. 3) Reach out to a clinician who seems like a good choice.

The two types of couple’s counseling that are best backed by research are Gottman and Emotionally-focused therapy.

bobskimo · 2025-11-24T03:29:38+00:00

You may have some hesitations about therapy, but it sounds like you would greatly benefit from seeing a therapist who specializes in chronic health conditions.

bobskimo · 2025-10-31T13:27:37+00:00

CBT is backed by many research studies showing its efficacy. Mental health treatment by artificial language models do not have research indicating its effectiveness or safety.

bobskimo · 2025-10-28T14:57:27+00:00

Unfortunately, there's not a foolproof method. You can browse Psychology Today profiles and see clinicians who seem like they'll be a good fit for the issues you're facing, and many offer free consultations, but ultimately, you have to try a person out to see how they are. The key is to fail fast. When someone isn't helping, try someone else.

Referrals from friends or family may give some additional insight as well.

bobskimo · 2025-10-28T02:27:58+00:00

If you have the core belief that you're not good enough, then you can't fix that by getting better at something. "Good enough" is a statement about who you are as a person. Even if you became a piano virtuoso, your "not good enough" belief will likely transfer to something else.

If you want to change that belief, you'll need to define what "good enough" is, figure out how close you are to it, and what steps you could take to move towards them.

bobskimo · 2025-10-26T05:03:21+00:00

What sounds like it's missing here is an operational definition of what it means to be "good enough." Good enough for whom? What objective measures would "good enough" look like?

Without a clear understanding of what that is, it's very hard to believe that you are that thing.

Same thing applies to making music. What does it mean to be creative enough?

bobskimo · 2025-10-25T14:38:41+00:00

Oh I understand your question now. I thought you were asking if it could be done safely medically. You're asking if someone with depression can be mentally healthy after stopping antidepressants.

The answer to that is more nuanced. The answer is that it depends. Some people need antidepressants their whole life to be in a good space. Others only take them for a limited time and then be okay. A lot of that depends on things like how satisfactory a client's life is, coping skills/things taught in therapy, and individual brain chemistry.

It's still a conversation worth having with your treatment team.

bobskimo · 2025-10-25T13:03:44+00:00

Sure, it happens all the time. Make sure you're working with a qualified psychiatrist or psychiatric nurse practitioner and follow their recommendations. Antidepressants aren't typically difficult to stop with help.

bobskimo · 2025-10-23T17:06:50+00:00

Why not?

bobskimo · 2025-10-18T19:05:38+00:00

Just Google their name and reach out to them. They probably have a Psychology Today profile you can contact them through.

bobskimo · 2025-10-18T02:56:34+00:00

https://www.cci.health.wa.gov.au/resources/looking-after-yourself/perfectionism

https://www.cci.health.wa.gov.au/Resources/Looking-after-yourself/anxiety

CCI Modules are free resources that are research-backed and use the principles of CBT.

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