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kyburgNot long ago, one of my psychiatric residents called in distress about a patient who was demanding a different therapist. “This guy is in my office shouting at me and telling me how bad I am,” the resident said.
Sure enough, the patient in question was very hostile and demeaning in talking about this young doctor. Jabbing his finger in the air, he told me how unsympathetic my resident was and how rude the staff at the front desk had been.
“This kid doesn’t know the first thing about treating patients,” he said with derision. He clearly meant to hurt and humiliate his new doctor in front of a supervisor.
I listened for a while to his litany of complaints and found it easy to understand why people didn’t like him. “It’s no surprise to me that people aren’t nice to you if this is a sample of how you behave in the world,” I said to him.
This remark did not go over well.
“I’m basically a nice guy who has a terrible problem with anxiety,” the patient said resentfully.
No...not exactly.
A very good read - and a very pertinent piece of information. You have a mental illness, sure - but that doesn't excuse really BAD behavior. Ever.
EDIT: LOL. Link takes you through an ad click-through on being your own kid's drug pusher....
Sure enough, the patient in question was very hostile and demeaning in talking about this young doctor. Jabbing his finger in the air, he told me how unsympathetic my resident was and how rude the staff at the front desk had been.
“This kid doesn’t know the first thing about treating patients,” he said with derision. He clearly meant to hurt and humiliate his new doctor in front of a supervisor.
I listened for a while to his litany of complaints and found it easy to understand why people didn’t like him. “It’s no surprise to me that people aren’t nice to you if this is a sample of how you behave in the world,” I said to him.
This remark did not go over well.
“I’m basically a nice guy who has a terrible problem with anxiety,” the patient said resentfully.
No...not exactly.
A very good read - and a very pertinent piece of information. You have a mental illness, sure - but that doesn't excuse really BAD behavior. Ever.
EDIT: LOL. Link takes you through an ad click-through on being your own kid's drug pusher....
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no subject
Date: 2007-02-06 10:12 pm (UTC)OTOH I think the doctor writing that article is copping out, a bit. He mentions the guy described above obviously has anger management problems-- as a therapist isn't it his job to teach people like that how to, er, manage their anger? It's very, very true that medication doesn't necessarily help a problem like this but IF the guy is willing to try (and that is admittedly a big IF) therapy actually COULD, conceivably, turn him into less of a rageaholic asswipe (not with medication but through therapy sessions). Allowing Mr. Rageholic to write it off, either by saying "I have a problem with anxiety" or "I'm just a mean-spirited asshole" seems like a cop-out for both therapist and patient.
Eh. I'm no expert. Christ knows getting someone like that to change their stripes is usually an exercise in frustration, anyway.