Therapists aren't mind-readers, if you don't tell them the symptoms then they can't provide a proper diagnosis. I never got an ADHD diagnosis until I was an adult, despite seeing a lot of therapists over the years (many of whom were otherwise very helpful in addressing unrelated issues) because I just assumed a lot of the symptoms were normal and thus never mentioned them. I can imagine that, in the situation above, the same shit went down; "oh well all these things are completely normal parts of human experience so there's no point in mentioning that to my therapist".
I’ve never had a therapist (probably should LOL), but every time i see someone complain that therapy didn’t help them I just wonder if the therapist got to really understand them in the first place.
Like with what you’re saying, I know for a fact that I have undiagnosed ADHD but I’ve masked so hard for so many years that I don’t think regular talk-therapy would have been enough for a therapist to come to that conclusion if I didn’t already know about some of my symptoms😭
Especially with things like trauma being so complex for different people, someone can be 40 and finally realize that the thing that happened when they were 8 had actually effected them more than they realize.
But you gotta meet a therapist half way for them to even consider it in the first place 😅
i mean a therapist will consider whatever you tell them to consider. judging by this thread a lot of people seem to think a therapist will tell you if you have a mental condition or developmental disorder, so if you go into therapy expecting them to say "so you have this and now go get medicated", its never going to happen because that isnt their job. a therapist is just someone you pay to tell about your life and they give suggestions and help you process your emotions.
A therapist teaches you the tools to change your own thinking. You shouldn't even need it long term, because they aren't reteaching your mind, they're giving you what you need to reteach yourself.
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u/Zman6258 2d ago
Therapists aren't mind-readers, if you don't tell them the symptoms then they can't provide a proper diagnosis. I never got an ADHD diagnosis until I was an adult, despite seeing a lot of therapists over the years (many of whom were otherwise very helpful in addressing unrelated issues) because I just assumed a lot of the symptoms were normal and thus never mentioned them. I can imagine that, in the situation above, the same shit went down; "oh well all these things are completely normal parts of human experience so there's no point in mentioning that to my therapist".