Thanks. I enjoyed Sorbie’s interview and this reflection on it. Here is a short story for you. In 1993 I was prescribed lithium carbonate and haloperidol. Shortly after leaving the hospital I biked to the North Sea and threw them in. A couple weeks later I told the doctor. I don’t honestly know what I was expecting to happen, but I guess I was expecting some sort of discussion. (I was not in good shape and memories of the time are dim.) His response, which was made to nobody in particular, was a single word: “clozapine”.
Thanks for the shout-out, Awais! I agree that lack of containment is a widespread issue in the psy-fields, but wasn't aware it was this pronounced in psychiatry. So, it's interesting to see the intersection of psychoanalysis with prescribing.
My more often than not - almost always in fact - medically qualified psychotherapists and analysts avoid prescribing for patients in therapy. They see the roles of therapist and prescriber as incompatible. None of that is inconsistent with your remarks, which address a different question. But I made the association
Not sure I ever had a fantasy of “just” prescribing meds, so much as I found this was what paid the bills and something I could understand and bill for. But you are absolutely right, and rather than my disregarding the psychodynamic or psychotherapeutic aspects of any psychiatry, I find I struggle with it and balancing it with professionalism (including boundaries) is extremely difficult.
Thanks. I enjoyed Sorbie’s interview and this reflection on it. Here is a short story for you. In 1993 I was prescribed lithium carbonate and haloperidol. Shortly after leaving the hospital I biked to the North Sea and threw them in. A couple weeks later I told the doctor. I don’t honestly know what I was expecting to happen, but I guess I was expecting some sort of discussion. (I was not in good shape and memories of the time are dim.) His response, which was made to nobody in particular, was a single word: “clozapine”.
Thanks for the shout-out, Awais! I agree that lack of containment is a widespread issue in the psy-fields, but wasn't aware it was this pronounced in psychiatry. So, it's interesting to see the intersection of psychoanalysis with prescribing.
Thanks again!
I often say that prescribing is the easiest part of my job.
My more often than not - almost always in fact - medically qualified psychotherapists and analysts avoid prescribing for patients in therapy. They see the roles of therapist and prescriber as incompatible. None of that is inconsistent with your remarks, which address a different question. But I made the association
Not sure I ever had a fantasy of “just” prescribing meds, so much as I found this was what paid the bills and something I could understand and bill for. But you are absolutely right, and rather than my disregarding the psychodynamic or psychotherapeutic aspects of any psychiatry, I find I struggle with it and balancing it with professionalism (including boundaries) is extremely difficult.