Orchard Valley Counselling Services

Posted September 29, 2020

What is the difference between Psychologists, Psychiatrists and Counsellors?

By Christine Ferch

What is a Counsellor, Psychologist, Psychiatrist?

Part of the counselling process is inquiring about your health benefits which range from the amount covered, which might be a percentage of the rate the provider charges or how many sessions. Moreover, it may also be part of your process in identifying what you need. These titles are often confusing because they are used to describe each other and can be challenging to identify what you need. So, here is break down of what these “designations” mean and how they will assist you. What is the difference between Psychologists, Psychiatrists and Counsellors?

Psychiatrist:

These individuals attend medical school and have their M.D. with a focus on psychiatric or mental health care. This designation can diagnosis a mental health disorder such as depression or anxiety. Their focus is on how medications can assist with the chemical imbalances in the brain to reduce distressing thoughts, feelings, physical reactions and behaviours and sleep medication.

A family doctor can also provide these prescriptions. However, your family doctor may not be as educated on how specific medications and chemical imbalances in the brain to assist your mental health and may refer you to a psychiatrist. Once this has occurred, your family doctor may be able to provide refills, but if and when there is a need for medication adjustment, they may refer you back to the psychiatrist.

Leading to my next point, how often will I see the psychiatrist, is something you may ask yourself. Some individuals see them every two weeks, some once a month and so forth. How often you see them it depends on how your medication is reducing your mental health distress.

A psychiatrist may ask for some background information in your life, but they do not ask to elaborate the same way the following individuals will.

Psychologist

A psychologist holds a doctorate in Philosophy of psychology and often work in clinical settings such as psychiatric facilities, hospitals and address mental health diagnosis that can be resistant to treatment such as severe depression, personality disorders, eating disorders, addiction treatment facilities, and some forms of trauma. Psychologists also fulfil research roles, teaching at universities and colleges, neurological deficits, brain injury, chronic pain, mental health facilitation in the court systems.

Psychologists can diagnose and provide treatment strategies to reduce the distress the individual is experiencing. However, they do not hold a medical degree and so, cannot prescribe medications. If they deem it worthy, they may refer you to a psychiatrist to address this aspect of your mental health.

Much of the treatment strategies they will provide for clients are based on talk and psychotherapy. They may inquire about your childhood or other components of your life which brought on the presenting symptoms you are experiencing. You will see a psychologist maybe once a week until the distress reaches a balance or less to once a month or every couple of months. A psychologist may refer you to a mental health therapist or counsellor to address everyday strategies for managing mental health symptoms.

Counsellors

The fun part of this description as a counsellor can have a variety of designations. Counsellors range from registered professional counsellors, registered clinical counsellors, certified Canadian counsellor, registered social worker, and in some provinces psychotherapist. These individuals complete a masters level of education in psychology or counselling psychology, and some further specialize in specific treatments such as cognitive behavioural therapy, play therapy, eye movement desensitization reprocessing and trauma.

Counsellors assist the client is in providing strategies from different psychology theories that will address the client’s concerns and achieve their mental health goals. Through the process, the counsellor may explore your childhood or other aspects of your past or focus on the present; it is a collaborative process where the client typically chooses the topic. Some counsellors provide their clients’ with homework on building mindfulness or restructuring negative thoughts.

Counsellors work with individuals to build quality of life with daily skills, so the client becomes “their therapist”. Counsellors can treat:

Anxiety
Depression
Trauma
Addiction
Stress
Eating Disorders
Grief and Loss
Chronic Pain
Sleep Disorders
Body Image
Self-Esteem/ Confidence
Behaviour Disorders
Life Transitions
Couples, families
Children, youth, adolescents, adults, seniors

One may see a counsellor once a week and then as the strategies become habitual, the client can teeter their sessions to once a month. Most individuals depending on the approach, solution-focused therapy can be completed in as little as five sessions, CBT, DBT and trauma upwards of 15 or more sessions. The average is ten sessions. Of course this may very depending on your particular situation and the complexity of your reasons for coming to counselling.

For more information regarding the designation and how the counsellors at Orchard Valley Counselling Services can meet your needs, contact us admin@ovcs.ca.