The journey of therapists diagnosed with psychiatric disorders in adolescence

Yüksel E., Yüksel E., Demir E. C.

Counselling and Psychotherapy Research, 2024 (ESCI) identifier identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Basım Tarihi: 2024
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1002/capr.12853
  • Dergi Adı: Counselling and Psychotherapy Research
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI), Scopus, Academic Search Premier, CINAHL, Educational research abstracts (ERA), Psycinfo
  • Anahtar Kelimeler: identity, psychiatric diagnosis, psychotherapist, psychotherapist training, qualitative research methods, wounded healer
  • Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

Background: Although psychotherapists' motivations in choosing the profession have been investigated, there is not enough information in the literature about how personal motivations affect their choice of becoming a psychotherapist. For this reason, this study aimed to reveal the reasons why therapists who received a psychiatric diagnosis during adolescence chose this profession and their relationship with the disease. Methods: To explore this, semi-structured interviews were conducted with five female psychotherapists in Turkey who had a psychiatric diagnosis between the ages of 12 and 18 years and had at least a clinical master's degree and practical experience. Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) was used in the research. Findings: Three superordinate themes and nine subthemes depending on these superordinate themes were created: the first theme, ‘Identity’, has three subthemes; the second theme, ‘Why I chose this profession and what I found’, has five subthemes; and the final theme, ‘Being a diagnostic psychotherapist’, has two subthemes. Conclusion: This study suggests that incorporating therapists' personal experiences into supervision may contribute to improved professional skills, patient interactions and the overall effectiveness of therapy.