Psychiatry

Having been in hospital a couple of times and also in recovery, I have had at least four years' experience of psychiatry and psychiatrists with varying results. Psychiatry is a medical specialty focused on the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders. It is different from psychologists who primarily provide psychotherapy. My first interaction with a psychiatrist was a good one. I was hospitalized for the first time and had a gentle, sympathetic psychiatrist who thankfully decided not to diagnose me as schizophrenic and instead opted for an episode of psychosis. He was considerate and, I think, understood how terrifying the situation was for me. On leaving hospital through Covid, I then had interaction with psychiatrists via phone, and this was okay but lacked any particular connection. One thing I would say about psychiatrists is that, in the main, they lack the people skills and interpersonal skills needed when you are having a mental health experience. This is problematic because they do not fully understand how to relate to you, and this often makes you feel intimidated and less than. Why do I think this happens? Well, I think that it is partially to do with their educational status and partially to do with the idea that their field of expertise is a technical one. Whichever it is, I call for psychiatrists to have to mandatorily engage in the development of 'good enough' personal and social skills through training. My second hospitalization was a different story. I felt intimidated and frightened by the psychiatrists; they didn't believe anything I was telling them, they lied about a key interaction with PALS, and they wanted to over-medicate me and potentially inject me, which I found horrifying and was unnecessary. What I would say to psychiatrists is we are people, we are not subjects in a medical experiment, and we demand better, more personable care.