The Different Titles for Mental Health Professionals & What They Mean
If you are looking into receiving mental health, it can be really confusing. Whether you are researching on your own or your doctor is giving you recommendations and referrals, there are a lot of different words and terms thrown out there and it can be confusing and frustrating. This is a more technical blog than I typically write, but my goal for this blog is to lay out the different titles you might hear when it comes to mental health professionals in an easy way for you to understand, so you can find out which will best fit your needs!
What is a psychiatrist?
Let’s start with a psychiatrist. To put it simply, a psychiatrist is a doctor. They have their PhD and went to medical school to specialize in diagnosing and treating mental illness. When it comes to schooling, a psychiatrist attends medical school, does one year of medical internship and then three years of residency before taking their licensing exams. A psychiatrist is able to prescribe medication to help treat anxiety, depression, etc. Typically, you aren’t going to see a psychiatrist once a week like you will with a therapist or psychologist. Most likely, you were referred to a psychiatrist for medication purposes and their job is to prescribe and monitor. How often you see a psychiatrist is really up to them and what they think is appropriate for you and the medications you are taking.
What is a psychologist?
Now onto a psychologist. The main difference between a psychologist and a psychiatrist is prescribing medication. A psychologist didn’t go to medical school and can’t prescribe medication. A psychologist and a therapist are actually very similar. Psychologists typically spend longer in school as they have a doctorate degree. In the doctorate program, assessment, research and teaching are focused on heavily. A lot of government jobs like the prison system require a doctorate degree in order to gain employment. In the state of California, Psychologists work under the Board of Behavioral Sciences. The Board of Behavioral Sciences is responsible for licensing and enforcing ethical standards. Individuals striving to become a psychologist have to complete a certain amount of hours and have a certain amount of supervision hours before they can take the licensing exams. People interested in receiving services from a licensed psychologist can verify their license through the Board of Behavioral Sciences as well as report any problems they have had with a psychologist. Psychologists typically see client’s once a week and specialize in a wide variety of mental health topics.
What is a therapist?
Again, a therapist is very similar to a psychologist. The difference is a therapist does not have to have a doctorate degree, but they can. However, a therapist does have to have a master’s degree. When it comes to therapists you might hear the terms Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT) and Licensed Professional Clinical Counselors (LPCC). When you hear the words marriage and family therapy, you probably think they only specialize in marriage and family and the LPCC specialize in everything else. This is what I thought when I first started in the field, but it’s actually incorrect. Those terms are essentially the degrees the professional has obtained. An MFT is trained in all areas of mental health from substance abuse to marriage, and can have a wide range of clientele. Same goes for an LPCC. Therapists typically see clients once a week and focus on a broad range of issues, just like psychologists. Another similarity is that therapists work under the Board of Behavioral Sciences just like psychologists. They also have to perform a certain amount of hours and they have to have to have a certain number of supervised hours. Just like psychologists, therapists are held to a very high ethical standard and have to take a law and ethics exam in addition to the licensing exam.
What is a life coach?
Finally, we have a life coach. A life coach focuses less on the past and focuses heavily on the future. Life coaches are very goal oriented and support, encourage and educate their clients about the future and their goals. A life coach doesn’t have to have a specific degree and there are no licensing requirements. With that being said, there are a lot of great program certifications and training’s life coaches can take to learn more.
Mental Health Takes a village
My supervisor always talks about how it takes a village when it comes to mental health, and it is really so true. Psychologist and therapists work hand in hand and very frequently collaborate with psychiatrists. In addition to the titles I mentioned, mental health professionals also work closely with teachers, law enforcement, probation officers, social workers and more. It takes a team, which is what I think makes this field so cool. I hope I explained each title in the mental health world clearly and helped you decipher the differences between them all. If you have any further questions or comments regarding this topic, give me a call, I would love to hear from you!