MovieChat Forums > General Discussion > are counsellors always useless?

are counsellors always useless?


I don't know about you guys, but personally, I have yet to find a single counsellor in my life I have ever found useful.

They tend to always strike me as a bit naïve and out of touch with truths about the human condition that isn't something they read in a book or learned in grad school. Very rarely have I ever found them spouting anything resembling true wisdom, all I get are empty regurgitations of common knowledge.

I get that their job isn't to solve your problems for you, and that it's up to the client to find their own solutions through talking and analyzing them. But most of the time, I find them only good at offering brief, momentary support. All they're good for is just feeling bad for you and offering meaningless sentiments of sympathy. They're sorta like emotional prostitutes in a way.

Psychologists and psychiatrists can certainly be useful, but so far, I find counselling one of the most useless professions out there. I feel the only reason it exists, is because not everyone can afford to see a psychologist. It's basically the poor man's version of proper therapy. Except even that doesn't quite justify its existence, as the price gap between seeing a counsellor and a psychologist ain't that significant. Both will put dents in your wallet, but only one actually helps.

Anyone else share my thoughts on counsellors?

Discuss...

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I have never had any contact with one.

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Then why are you responding?

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Do you always feel hostile when people don't do exactly what you want them to do ?

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Because it illustrates just how much 'use' they have been to me. Maybe you should see a counsellor about your anger management issues, lol.

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Zing⚡️

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It said discuss, so I did 🤷🏼‍♂️

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I think a lot of people are getting cabin fever at this point, locked in and a bit jumpy!

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Tell me about it. Day 64 of Lockdown, the only face-to-face contact so far is with both Mrs & Miss K. Alcohol and Rock is my saviour!

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I’d say to go see Guinan instead. She’s much wiser because she’s lived for centuries. And you can get a drink at the same time.

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You mean Guinness?

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I'm sure the Ten-Forward Lounge has replicated Guinness on tap.

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Guinness never travels well - Sliánte!

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it depends upon what you think useless means. forget counselors, psychologists, and psychiatrists for a minute. do you ever talk to people about things? friends or family? obviously, you know what level each is at so you'd adjust expectations accordingly. sometimes people forget "common knowledge" when they're distressed and they're just missing the "true wisdom" of that knowledge at that moment. a lot of therapy and counseling is helping others reconnect to what they already know on some level.

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I think they are there to let people vent and let people get their frustrations out. A lot of times talking to someone about what is bothering you makes you feel a lot better, and many people don’t want to burden family or friends by constantly dumping all of their problems on them, and would rather talk to a stranger.

I have yet to try counseling, but a lot of people I know have gotten a benefit from it. I’m considering giving it a shot to vent about my divorce, which I’m having some trouble moving on from. Still debating whether to try it.

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Psychologists have been helping millions of people around the world for decades. Everything from depression, bi-polar disorder, social anxiety, addiction, rape survival, PTSD, there is a counselor for that, or even group therapy. To dismiss them as useless just because you had bad experiences is not an excuse for writing off the entire group.

The psychologists I spoke to were a huge help for me growing up. Between all the moving, the depression, going through puberty, and dealing with assholes at school, I really could not have survived emotionally if I hadn't had at least one of them to help me figure it all out. The psychologist who helped me the most was this very sweet lady who worked with kids, had a sweet face and voice, was very encouraging, and was a mom herself. I knew 2 other psychologists who were helpful towards me as well, but they didn't stick around for very long. Why, I don't know, but I know it had nothing to do with me.

The most worthless psychologists are school counselors. We're not talking about the people who help you figure out what classes to take at high school or college; we're talking about the worthless idiots who supposedly are there to "help" the students with their problems. I know, because I talked with one of them several times, and after a few sessions with her, I disliked that she wasn't really listening to me or giving me good advice at all. She started looking bored when I'd talk, looking at her nails, getting out some gum. It became clear to me that she really did not care, and was probably waiting for this to be over so she could collect her meager paycheck at the end of the day.

I don't know what psychologists you were talking to, but either they were bad at their job, were Freudians (I can't stand those), or you subconsciously did not want their help. You had bought into all the ideas of "headshrinking" and wanted confirmation bias. You didn't want them to help you. You either wanted easy answers, or you just wanted to confirm, based on your own beliefs, that they were all full of bull.

I will point out that before 2016, one of the most useless college degrees was psychology. It was pathetic, really. You'd have all these young idiots getting doctorates and degrees in this field, and then either sitting around with a useless piece of piece of paper to prove they went to college; or they would end up getting a humiliating, menial job at some fast-food place.

After 2016, business for the psychs really took off. I'll let you fill in the blanks there as to why.

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I've heard the same about suicide hotlines and that they're largely a joke.

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If counselor after counselor seems useless...

Maybe the problem isnt with the counselors.

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Good point. But shitty counsellors do exist.

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Yeah. I have a friend who's a psychologist, and she says that part of her job is dealing with "RBT" - "really bad therapy" her patients recieved from other shrinks. She says this issue is "much discussed in the profession, to out it politely".

But that doesn't mean I withdraw my earlier point.

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It's like that that line from "Cheech and Chong's Next Movie".

How many psychiatrists does it take to change a lightbulb?

Just one, but it takes a long time and the lightbulb has to want to change.

This is a joke, obviously, but there is some truth to it. If you go in with a bad attitude, then it's no use. Pointless. You really DO have to want to change.

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