Can You Avoid Religious Psychologists?

As the LCPC code of ethics may very well be different than those for Social workers / Drug counselors, I wouldn’t be able to speak to that directly.*

However, I do know that we as counselors across the disciplines do need to be prepared to deal with spiritual/religious issues provided that the client wants to go there.

In this case, it sounds like that part in the packet stems from her responsibilities as a Master in Religious Education and not from her LPC duties.

*Next time I’m at work, I’ll ask one of the LCPCs.

I would complain bitterly to my health provider, and to the counselor in writing. You might want to approach the Freedom From Religion Foundation (ffrf.org) for advice on forming an appropriate response. You might even want to become a member – if you are not one already
Steve

Do I need to call and explicitly ask each psychologist (or whatever other health care specialist) if their practice is based in reality or superstition?

Simply put, yes. Government licensing typically means nothing other than payment of a fee to the appropriate bureaucracy and should not be mistaken as an endorsement of competence. Likewise, getting on the insurance company list simply means that the insurance company feels that that individual provides a cost-effective way of dealing with the claim (incidentally, this is why some insurance companies pay for pseudo-medicine: they know that it doesn’t work, but hope that some people will go for it instead of for more costly real treatment).

Responsibility for determining the qualification of those you barter with lies not with the government and not with some corporation, but solely with you.

I think it’s actually very lucky that such a blatant issue came up first.
Of course you need to ask a psychologist about their practices. Are they nutters for god? Are they firm believers in the vacation the pharmaceutical company sends them on each July? There are lots of things you need to know first, because this is someone you’re trusting with the well-being of your child. Call me a skeptic, and in my world that’s a compliment, but I never trust someone’s ability just by seeing their name listed somewhere.

If i recall correctly, psychologist is a title specific to people with doctoral degrees in psychology. You can’t say, have a bachelors in psych and call yourself a psychologist. This person may not have called themselves a psychologist, but be careful of the terms you use. If your pediatrician said psychologist, look specifically for Ph.D’s in psychology. If a clinical social worker will suffice, go for that too.

Though miko is right that govt licensing isn’t a full on recommendation style endorsement, it does provide a standard to which counseling professionals have to meet before practicing independently in your state.

My recommendation is to first figure out what services you specifically want (medicine, behavioral counseling, etc) and research the specific name for the profession that will provide that service. A lot of people thing psychiatrist and psychologist are basically the same thing and they’re not.

And it is totally okay/critical that you ask what theoretical background your potential counselor works with. Any counselor worth their spit will incorporate YOUR beliefs with therapy instead of making you comply with their beliefs. With ADHD you may wanna look at some behavioral style therapies, family therapies, and support groups.

I recently went through rehab. It was led by two psychologists; one of which was a youth pastor, the other, a (grown up?) pastor. The sessions involved roughly 9 other people. Consistently the conversations and ‘lessons’ turned to god (we even dissected the serenity prayer’). While being a little self-conscious about outing myself as an atheist, I made sure to make a (well worded) objection to each claim from the help of some ‘higher power.’ I would always revert back to neuroscience, chemistry, or some other form of wisdom not found in a fairytale.
I’m also in the bible belt (OK) and realized most likely that any professional help would be from a Christian. My suggestion would be to make sure you interject your own thoughts whenever the psychologist brings up prayer. She can pray about your child if she wants(it’s her time she’s wasting, not yours), but make sure she’s doing something actually, I don’t know, worthwhile as well. If her treatment revolves around useless closed-eyed hoping, then I’d suggest looking somewhere else. Keep her on track. Best of luck. That’s a tough situation.

I’m currently a 2nd year medical student. In our small class (around 20 students), there is an insanely religious bible-thumper. He of course wants to become a psychologist, almost certainly because he enjoys preaching. Big surprise!

*facepalm*

Call the insurance company, explain to them what happened, tell them that you’re sure they didn’t really mean to discriminate against you on the basis of religion, and ask them very nicely if they could please help you find an actual psychologist who won’t push religion on you. Then at the end of the call suggest very politely that they really should remove this “counselor” from their list of providers, so somebody who isn’t as nice as you doesn’t come along and sue them.

If you get an actual practicing licensed psychologist or psychiatrist who pushes religion on you, it’s a different story, because they’re supposedly a doctor; a very different thing from a “counselor”. If it happens, you can file complaints which could result in their license being revoked. A “counselor”, conversely can (generally, in most states) practice religion as part of their “service” if they want to, as long as they don’t actually turn you away on the basis of your religion (or in this case lack thereof).

I am a retired licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. The laws governing therapists of various kinds differ from state to state, so I can only speak for my knowledge of California practices.

This person seems to be primarily what would be called a Pastoral Counselor. In some states, pastoral counselors licenses do not require much education or supervised experience in mainstream psychology or psychotherapeutic methods, and in some states they are more broadly qualified. Often, they have only enough of those skills to be able to recognize a seriously disturbed patient and to refer them to a clinical psychologist or psychiatrist. The additional more valid sounding degrees that you mentioned may or may not qualify her to provide the kind of service your son needs, but by her printed materials she is apparently specializing only in pastoral, spiritual counseling. That might be appropriate for adults or teens with religious or spiritual concerns, but who do not present primary psychological/neurological symptoms such as ADD/HD. That is apparently out of the scope of her practice.

Since this is an important diagnosis, it is perfectly appropriate for you to ask for a second opinion from a different pediatrician in a different clinic. There should be no offense taken because you are being a conscientious consumer of medical advice. In addition to asking the diagnosing pediatrician for specific referrals to competent therapists, I would recommend that you also contact such organizations as the Attention Deficit Disorder Association (ADDA) at http://www.add.org and Children and Adults with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (CHAD) at http://www.chadd.org and ask for their advice and for referrals. They may be able to recommend an appropriate local provider who has specific experience with children with ADD/HD, someone who is a licensed Marriage Family and Child Therapist, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, a Clinical Psychologist or a Psychiatrist.

The treatment of ADD/HD is changing rapidly, and many of the traditional methods of treatment such as the use of Ritalin are being seriously questioned, re-examined and revised. Your son has a much better chance for successful adjustment than he would have had only ten years ago. Ask about any controversies in the field and about new modes of treatment and intervention. Educate yourself about it. You will be your son’s first and foremost resource for dealing with this challenge. He is very lucky to have a parent as aware and involved as you. Find the right providers and both you and he will benefit.

Just in case you need the reassurance, ADD/HD is not a catastrophe, it is a challenge. There are various forms and levels of intensity. Many happy, successful people have found ways to cope with it, master it, and to live productive and creative lives.

I went to a counselor in the past, who was actually also a nun. When she first met with me she asked about my religion and I told her I was atheist. And the topic never came up again. In addition to this she was wonderful and really helped me out.

I just wrote post expanding on my previous comment here: http://tinyurl.com/aclxhw

First of all, are any of those degrees a Masters in Counseling or Psychology or something along those lines? Because if not that alone violates the standards of being an LPC. Religious education does NOT qualify someone to be a counselor. In any event though, passing yourself off as an LPC instead of a Pastoral Counselor when your “therapy” is nothing but numerous variations “Praise Jesus!” is fairly unethical, at least in my book. I’m a student training to become an LPC and these people infuriate me. That is not the place to proselytize no matter what side of the fence you stand on. People don’t seem to realize that this is an application of a SCIENCE and that the license is supposed to be a reflection of having learned and operating within the bounds of those scientific principles.

I would get in touch with the APA to see if there’s anything that could be done like suspending her and requiring her to take some kind of additional training in not being religiously biased in counseling or revoking her license entirely if she doesn’t actually hold the proper degrees, especially if the university is not accredited. It’s funny, I’m fully familiar with obtaining a license, but totally clueless about taking one away. I really should find that out myself.

Sounds to me like the insurance company sent you the counselor who would cost them the least–the least qualified counselor

Seriously, religious or not, who would send that sort of stuff out in their work packet? Do real estate agents do that sort of thing?

I am currently studying psychology. Psychologists do not have to read Freud and the comparisons to Newton are inaccurate. Freud exists merely as a history note in most modern psychology courses Newton constructed theories that hold true (to a certain level of precision) under most situations whereas Freud made stuff up. Freud never really tested his ideas because few of them were really falsifiable. He could explain any outcome, often with the same theory. This was part of his appeal, and part of his failing as a scientist.

Anyway, as other have suggested, psychologist is a protected term in most countries. To call yourself a psychologist you typically need to complete 6 or more years of study (masters level) and most psychologists are registered with a professional organisation eg APA in USA.

Psychologists are typically (universally, I hope) required to be familiar with the scientific method, research methods and statistics. Psychologists are required to, where available, administer treatments with established reliability and validity. It is considered unethical not to.

A counselor is not a psychologist. Counselors are typically trained to administer a certain therapy or type of therapy. They typically do not have the same scientific training that psychologists do. Counselors with degrees in the area should, however, also be administering evidence based therapies. If you elect to hire the services of a counselor (or any medical professional for that matter), you should check their credentials and enquire about what sort of approaches they use (most will cite something like cognitive-behaviour therapy).

I had an experience where I sought counsel for depression. I signed up for counseling via my grad school health plan, and when I arrived for my appointment I noted the building was “faith and family counseling”.

My counselor had a degree from a seminary. I told her that if she twelve-stepped me or told me to surrender my problems to a higher power that I’d leave. She told me she’d “put on her secular hat” for me. She wasn’t so bad, actually, but I think at that time in my life it was too complicated even for her to handle.

I think it’s actually very lucky that such a blatant issue came up first.

Word.

The first thing I ask when I see a therapist/psychologist/counselor/psychiatrist is “Do you have any strong religious beliefs that influence your practice?” and if the answer is “yes” I’m out of there. I was sent to a Christian counselor for treatment by my parents when I began suffering from an eating disorder, and it was incredibly awful. I still considered myself a strong Christian at the time, and I was still horrified at his incompetent style – telling me that I needed to get closer to Jesus in order to get better, for instance.

Just a year and a half ago, well after I realized I didn’t believe in God anymore, I saw a different therapist for treatment (again, for the eating disorder) and found out at the second appointment that she held some crazy New Age beliefs, including the claim that she “healed” a patient with ALS by teaching her to love her body. I wish, in retrospect, that I’d been more specific when I explained that we “weren’t compatible” to her secretary. “She’s a complete loon and shouldn’t be set loose on mentally ill people” would have been more accurate.

Anyway, consider yourself lucky to have avoided this guy.

I thank you all for this post and commentary, it has been enlightening. I was shocked by my child’s therapist bringing religion into session. I have never seen that before and when I was younger I was counseled by a lady who worked for Catholic Charities! I found this post by attempting to Google atheist psychologists, FYI. I was not sure what to do, it felt like it was a violation of some kind- I came away feeling like my trust had been violated. I am relieved to see I wasn’t expecting too much and feel good now (after reading this)about my decision to seek care elsewhere. Thanks to all of you!

Having your cake and eating it too is not ‘scientifically’ possible. Look thoughtfully into the concept of free will.

Jesus does not like the F-word btw (or so I’ve been told…).