On Being a Psychologist

On Being a Psychologist

Mental health is a crucial aspect of human life, and it requires the highest level of care possible. Psychologists are tasked with the mandate to ensure that humans are protected from ailments which would affect the brain’s functioning. However, such professionals face a raft of challenges and surprisingly, it is the clients who pose a danger to their security. As learned from the article entitled ‘Woman pleads guilty to stalking psychologist,’ it is clear that psychologists are at risk of being stalked, threatened or even assaulted by patients in different situations within their work settings.

After reading the assigned news article together with many other sources regarding the risks faced by psychologists, I realized that being a psychologist is risky. This is because one deals with patients who might be physically okay but mentally ill. This means that they are capable of doing anything to harm someone if they think that such an individual has interfered with their life. The work of a psychologist is always to help their clients recover and get rid of negative thoughts or behaviors. However, when it reaches a point that the client is a threat, it would be crucial to provide security to the psychologists as they go on with their noble task of assisting them.

Before reading the materials located in Dr. Kenneth Pope’s website, I was not aware of the many challenges that psychologists face. Initially, I thought that the main issue was when clients refused to disclose crucial information regarding their family or medical history. However, after reading Pope’s findings together with the assigned article, I was amazed by the significant challenges faced by such professionals, and I think that it can be one of the dangerousprofessions that one can undertake. Most of the patients suffering from borderline disorder tend to pose a danger to those who strive to help them. As seen in the article, Alicia M. Floyd who was suffering from a similar ailment went to the extent of carving the psychologist’s name into her arm (O’Connor, 2001). This was definitely for the wrong reasons since she went ahead to stalk her.Such instances make me believe that being a psychologist is difficult and it does not need the faint-hearted.

Moreover, most of the patients think that since the psychologists have their confidential information, it would be significant to stalk and threaten them. This might be as a result of insecurity in their lives. One aspect that surprised me from Pope’s findings is that such clients feel good stalking the psychologists since they think that they are a nuisance to them. Even though people with mental health are encouraged to acknowledge their problems, it is hard for most of them since they are not in their right minds. Therefore, I think that clients such as Floyd believe that psychologistsinterfere with their lives since they bother them to open up to help. Thus, I have learned a lot regarding the dangers faced by psychologists.

In conclusion, being a psychologist can be tough since threats emanate from the side of the clients suffering from particular ailments such as the borderline disorder. As psychologists go on with their daily duties, I think that they should take caution since the threat can be the clients that they interact with. I can also argue that psychology is riskier than clinical medicine since it deals with patients who might not be thinking straight even though their physical energy might still be intact.Hence, they can use that energy to inflict harm on the psychologists.

 

 

References

O’Connor, M. (2001). Chicago Tribune. Retrieved from https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2001-04-27-0104270347-story.html

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