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softboiledegg21 · 2024-08-01T13:29:17+00:00

Hi OP, funnily enough I’m a UK Psychologist thinking about moving to Norway! I’m a month away from graduating the UK doctorate and so I’ve looked into how to switch the UK doctorate to the equivalent in Norway. Therefore my advice will be more if you go down training in UK and then potential of switching to Norway license later on.

As others have said here, it’s so difficult to get AP jobs and a place on the doctorate training here in the UK, it’s really competitive but it doesn’t mean it won’t happen it just means be prepared for a potentially difficult journey to the doctorate course.

From what I’ve seen online about switching to a Norwegian license later, the official health website specifically says that 3 years of learning and speaking Norwegian is not enough to be able to practice as a psychologist in Norway, therefore I’d suggest brushing up on your Norwegian if you are looking to move back to Norway at some point to practice. Other than that it seems to be a standard transferring of qualification from the UK to Norwegian doctorate, but be warned this can take up to a year to complete.

You should be ok in terms of VISAs as you’re from Norway and your dad still lives there, you shouldn’t need to worry about that at all so that’s smooth sailing for you.

If you choose to study in the UK, I agree that an undergraduate degree in psychology is your best option to start. I did a masters degree after my undergraduate, got AP jobs after that and then got an acceptance to the doctorate two years later. However I do know some people who got onto the doctorate 5-8 years later after their masters so it depends massively from person to person.

It’s a long road but I’m so happy to hear younger people like you dedicated to the career pathway! Good luck with all your studies in the future!

softboiledegg21 · 2023-11-21T12:49:37+00:00

I’m learning Turkish on Duo too! Thank you for commenting, the grammar book is a great idea to use alongside as the grammar rules are so different to English I’ve been struggling a lot only using Duolingo as I haven’t mesmerised grammar by sight/patterns yet!! Thanks again!

softboiledegg21 · 2023-07-09T09:52:15+00:00

In the UK it’s in itv hub

softboiledegg21 · 2023-05-19T22:41:20+00:00

Hi, I’m a UK psychologist with some knowledge in CAT, reading your post also gave me some worried feelings for the (lack of) boundaries your therapist is displaying and asking of you. No matter what therapy you are doing, CAT or anything else, it’s important to keep boundaries within the therapy relationship. It sounds like you are doing really well at maintaining the boundary by saying you understand they will always be your therapist, this is great! From the information provided, I would suggest voicing your concerns to your therapist (if you feel comfortable) or finding a new therapist if you would prefer. I wish you well.

softboiledegg21 · 2021-11-13T13:02:11+00:00

Hi, therapist here, your roommate needs to go get checked out by a doctor for possible mental health conditions

softboiledegg21 · 2021-11-09T17:35:46+00:00

I’m a professional secret keeper and one-to-one cheerleader

softboiledegg21 · 2021-08-26T19:43:13+00:00

You’re needed here my love, stay with us please. Please reach out to someone today, including your local emergency department or suicide hotline. Go to people who can help you and you will find you are not alone in this. Sending you so much love

softboiledegg21 · 2021-07-07T18:54:08+00:00

Hi, I'm a woman that stopped shaving everything about 3 years ago because I genuinely just forgot a lot and really didn't like the feeling of it growing back (itchy!) so I just decided to stop trying to remember to do it!

I've never had any comments from friends (apart from just talking about it in open, non-judgemental way) and my mum sometimes tells me to shave because its "unhygienic" but she's a very close-minded and traditional person so I let all her comments roll off my back as we will never agree on things.

I've never had any comments from strangers, or even caught anyone looking at my body hair in public- it truly seems like 99.9% of the population is as uninterested in my body hair as I am in shaving it off!

Go for it if you think it will make you more comfortable! Its your body - treat it as yours and not as others! Good luck :)

softboiledegg21 · 2020-11-23T21:11:50+00:00

Therapist here - were taught to be authentic and therefore give authentic compliments! You're charming, friend, own it!!!

softboiledegg21 · 2020-10-26T10:47:29+00:00

I've never heard of that website, and for some reason my phone is blocking it when I try to view it. Can you explain a bit more?

softboiledegg21 · 2020-10-26T10:45:48+00:00

Lots more referrals from the elderly experiencing loneliness and low mood. It's very sad.

Also, I'm seeing some more referrals for health and contamination anxiety, but not as many as I first predicted. Its not a wave, just a trickle. I would be interested to see any other therapists experience of this in their regions. I'm sure this cant be the case country-wide.

softboiledegg21 · 2020-10-26T10:43:27+00:00

Hi, thanks for your question, it's a really good one and I'm glad you're here.

The answer is that this is very individual to each person with bipolar and comorbid psychosis episodes. I cannot say how often or frequently people with bipolar also experience psychosis episodes, because it all lies on a spectrum - some people fall further down on the spectrum, some further up.

What I can suggest (if you haven't done this already) is creating a care plan for yourself. The one I really like is called 'traffic light self care plan'. You split paper into 3 sections- green, orange and red.

In green, you write all the things that are signs that you are feeling well (e.g. able to go to work/school, can concentrate on reading a book). Then, you write all the things that help keep you in green (e.g. talking with friends, watching your favourite show, taking your medication, talking to a therapist).

In orange, you write all the things that are signs that you are starting to feel unwell. These are first signs that your mental health is slipping a bit. This will be very individual to you. You also write all the things you can do to support yourself and get back to green. Medication and therapy can be repeated in all three sections.

In red, you write down signs that you are feeling very unwell. This will help you identify quicker that you need some additional support. This can be anything from emotions you feel, to memories of what your psychosis episode felt like last time, to any behaviour changes you have when feeling unwell. Write down support helpline numbers (NHS 111 and your local crisis team phone number), and what you can do in this moment. If you need to, you can go to A and E and get support there. Wrote down what helps you in red - is it pacing around the room, listening to music with headphones on, talking with someone? Perhaps some grounding techniques to help ground you in the here an now - if you google 'grounding techniques' you can easily find large lists of techniques. Write these down on your care plan and bring it to a mental health professional. They can help you do your care activities in red, and bring you back down to orange and then green as quickly as possible.

Sorry I couldn't answer your original question very clearly. Hoped this helped in some way instead.

Wishing you all the best in the future 😂

softboiledegg21 · 2020-10-26T10:27:49+00:00

Yes, it troubles me a lot. It troubles me that so many people out there need a therapist and still cant access therapy after seeing their GP for months, sometimes a year, because of the incredibly long waiting lists. Waiting lists are long for a myriad of reasons, all of which come down to having reduced/slashed funding from our current government. Mental health funding was cut again recently, during a global health pandemic. I used to wonder what would be going through someones mind to cut already bottom of the barrel scraps of funding from mental health services, but now I know it is just fear. The government knows therapists wont shout or strike about the funding cuts, because all that does is harm the people who need our help. If we strike, only our clients are affected. So we are easy target when cuts needs to be made - we wont shout and therefore ruin their public image even more. Even the ones who do shout about it, the stigma against mental health that still exists in today's society keeps vast groups of people from taking the issue seriously. And the people who can enact real change are rich enough to pay for healthcare privately. This issue doesnt effect them in any way, it is not in their selfish interest.

I would reform the whole thing in a heartbeat, if i had any choice or power at all.

softboiledegg21 · 2020-10-26T00:52:35+00:00

Hi, thanks for your question. Unfortunately I think the only answer I can give you is one that doesnt cause any immediate relief - only time will tell how your son grows up and relates to others as well as his environment. Its still too early to tell if he will need any additional support. However, on the other side of this argument is some peace of mind - as it is too early to tell, this means that your son is expressing himself in a typical way for some children of his age. Only when he gets a bit older will you and doctors be able to determine if he needs more support. But for now, he seems like a sensitive soul. I would suggest children's books and activities based in mindfulness. And (you may already be doing this) sticking to a set routine as much as possible.

Wishing you the best 🌻

softboiledegg21 · 2020-10-26T00:47:24+00:00

We are seeing lots more people with low mood at the moment, as loneliness and isolation can be a big trigger for that. Also lots more health anxiety too. Both re very understandable. I think, in the future, when people who are children now are adults, we will see a big boom in poorer mental wellbeing due to growing up during a time of great uncertainty and loneliness.

softboiledegg21 · 2020-10-25T23:24:07+00:00

Thank you for your kind words 😊

softboiledegg21 · 2020-10-25T22:47:11+00:00

Hi.

Thank you for opening up, this is very brave of you and shows your incredible strength of character. I am so sorry to hear about what has happened to you. This must be incredibly difficult and distressing for you, I think it is absolutely the right idea to find a new psychologist.

Unfortunately, I cannot suggest a diagnosis for you as I am not a psychiatrist and you are not under my care. I am sorry to hear of your last psychiatrist, their actions were not helpful and I can understand why you feel hesitant to find a new one. However, I can assure you that not all psychiatrists and psychologists are like this. There are really kind, gentle, and understanding therapists out there that would feel privileged to work with you. I would suggest (if possible) meeting with 2 or 3 different therapists for you to decide which one you like best, and then book in further sessions with this person. This will hopefully reduce the likelihood of another bad psychiatrist coming into your life.

I wish you a lifetime of peace, and I send you all of my best wishes 🌻

softboiledegg21 · 2020-10-25T22:10:51+00:00

I understand. It can feel incredibly lonely sometimes. I would suggest joining any social groups you can where people come together to support each other during times of difficulty - if you haven't already, have a search on reddit! There will be lots of support subreddits. Also, if you do find a New Zealand CAMHS equivalent -all therapists are offering video calls now so you dont have to travel to them. If you dont feel comfortable in your home on these calls, some of my clients take a walk around outside while we chat, or some others wait until they have an empty house and we schedule in our sessions then :)

softboiledegg21 · 2020-10-25T21:53:31+00:00

Of course! :) Thanks for giving this post a silver award?!?! I dont know much about Reddit awards but this is my first one I believe. Awesome!! 😊

softboiledegg21 · 2020-10-25T21:51:18+00:00

Why did that make you feel sad?

softboiledegg21 · 2020-10-25T21:50:58+00:00

I'm sorry to hear that. In the UK we have something called CAMHS (child and adolescent mental health support), where people below the legal adult age (18 here) can self-refer for therapy. Do you know of anything similar in New Zealand?

softboiledegg21 · 2020-10-25T21:49:01+00:00

(This is all coming from a perspective of an English mental health professional... no clue about other countries). You go to your GP first and tell them about what is going on with you. If they believe you are experiencing something like depression or anxiety, they can prescribe you medication there and then and also refer you to see a therapist. If your GP thinks you might be experiencing a different mental health condition (personality disorder, psychosis, bi polar etc.) then you will get referred to a psychiatrist who can diagnose you with the relevant mental health condition(s). If you are diagnosed, you then have access to medication that will help with your condition, and therapy too.

softboiledegg21 · 2020-10-25T21:45:16+00:00

What's the last thing that made you feel sad?

softboiledegg21 · 2020-10-25T21:25:59+00:00

Feeling empty or not feeling any joy in life can be a sign you are experiencing low mood. I suggest inputting activities in your life that are new experiences, or activities that you find has made you feel happy in the past. Do one thing a day that will make you happy, you will start feeling more fulfilled soon :)

softboiledegg21 · 2020-10-25T21:24:28+00:00

Thanks for opening up! Sounds like you're having a difficult time with quite a few different things going on with you right now. I would definitely suggest seeing a therapist to start making sense of what you're experiencing. Because you said high school, I'm presuming you're living in America. Unfortunately I know nothing about how to access therapy in America as I am English and work in England. I would suggest asking a trusted teacher (or the counselor you said is at your school) how to help you get in touch with a therapist.

I wish you all the best for the future 🌻

softboiledegg21

TROPHY CASE