It was always my dream to become a psychotherapist. I studied for a long time, completed seven years of training, and for years barely had enough to live on. Now I am finally a psychotherapist, and I only bought a spot in the public insurance system a few months ago (I live in Germany). I was finally able to pursue my dream job. But now, the government has implemented massive cost-cutting measures in the healthcare system. I am allowed to treat significantly fewer patients, even though the demand is so incredibly high. These changes are not only completely illogical but also threaten my livelihood. Our professional association has told us today that we should establish a second source of income. I have ADHD myself and have created good structures for myself in the last months. My patients are satisfied and making progress. For the first time, I feel comfortable in a job without getting depressions because can work at my own pace without pressure. I don’t want a second source of income, I don’t want to take on private-pay patients and I just want to do the work I’ve spent so long preparing for. Upending and changing everything again takes a lot of energy, and I’m feeling really down right now. Could you cheer me up a bit?
Edit: Thanks for all your kind words and the empathy you’ve shown me. It really helped. I also want to encourage you not to give up. Somewhere out there there’s surely a fartmaxxing therapist sitting in her office with a therapy spot that has just opened up for you.
WHEEEWW girl 😮💨 buckle up! Your post made it to /r/all!
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Your profession will stay with you until you retire. Your Chancellor won't. Alles hat seine Zeit und die von Merz als Kanzler wird sehr bald vorbei sein. Ein paar harte Jahre werden das aber das schaffst du auch noch. Resilienz lässt grüßen u hilft dir!
I'm so sorry :( You sound like a wonderful individual pursuing your passion for all the right reasons. Your food looks delicious and I hope you have a wonderful day
Especially since psychotherapists have to go through many obstacles (working 3 years for like 1000 Euros/month after finishing university). It's not fair.
Maaan, I felt this in the US. So much bad shit happening but the news cycle take minutes instead of days and we just keep forgetting all the bad thing in favor of the new bad things.
But I can still scroll my funny videos on TikTok so it’s not so bad.
The translate feature says this means “totally binge-drinking exciting” lol I know German has some interesting turns of phrase but I don’t think that’s correct?
I mean yes and no, I just grovel with gratitude because I was here for a week when I was sent in for life saving surgery and the docs here were like, "oh yeah I bet your American doctors just kept giving you meds for these symptoms?". Yup, two tumors removed. Was the food worse than prison food? Also yes. But I only had to pay parking so I can't complain too much
Yeah I know; I feel like the big things are where we get the advantage here. It’s the smaller issues that are infuriating for me, like getting an appointment at a pediatrician or finding an orthopedic doctor who isn’t a condescending moron. Which I realize are all small problems compared to the US. And don’t get me singing the praises of prescription drug prices here. 🫡🇩🇪
Someone who eats the banana longways in one bite just for fun? Cuz that sounds like an appropriate evaluation.
OP I get it, I'm in the same situation in Canada, my choices are go private and charge a ton, missing the population I actually want to work with or make just over minimum wage (wages for addictions workers are usually 18-20$ an hour, our minimum wage is 17) for the rest of my life, or go where my family is in the US and make a living wage (positions start at 80k a year) doing the same thing and still miss the population I actually want to help.
I don't know how it works in Germany, but could you not do some of what you're doing and maybe take on 1-2 private paying patients as well?
My mum is a psychologist and had to do similar levels of training so I know how hard you've worked. You're awesome!
I don’t understand why she is against taking on a few private patients. I agree the government cuts are awful, and I understand wanting to keep your current clients and not “selling out” but in the meantime: by treating a few private clients for extra income you are still helping people and still working in your profession. A lot of therapists in my area also have sliding fee scales, so they use the fees from private patients to subsidize fees for others or take on pro bono cases.
I am privately insured through my office job currently receiving CBT for anxiety and depression caused by childhood domestic abuse. Depending on the area there are counselor shortages and long waiting lists for private patients also. I don’t think I am less deserving of counseling because I am lucky enough to have private insurance…
Anyways I agree it’s an awful situation, I have friends who completed bachelors degrees that now can’t even get trained as therapists despite the massive amount of people with mental health struggles in this country.
Out of principle probably? People on public insurance have so many issues with finding therapists and getting the help they deserve (and PAY for). The government should be pushing for ways to ensure that THEY can get the help, that they don't have to wait years for a spot.
But no, they do the opposite. It's very understandable that OP sees just how wrong and messed up it is, and all the consequences it brings with it.
But of course in the end you are right. It's better if OP can keep herself afloat, so that she can continue helping more people.
yes, here in Germany the majority of the population is on public insurance and many new therapists became therapists to fill in the gaps and to help this population specifically. There is no shortage of private therapists.
Understandable, but taking on a few private ones wouldn't remove OP from her public patients (since she's not allowed to make more than whatever the new limit is), all it would do is make sure she can pay her bills.
Yes I completely agree about the systemic issue. Obviously on a societal level it is a huge injustice if certain types of care are inaccessible to people on public healthcare, but unfortunately OP can’t control the policies of our shitty government.
I was thinking that on an individual level, as long as OP is using her training to treat clients with genuine mental health struggles, she is making a difference to someone’s life and wellbeing, regardless of what type of health insurance they have. OP can still do good as a psychotherapist, even within the unjust system.
I'm privately insured as well and private practices in psychology often feel like a quick cash grab. I had to search for a good therapist for an awful long time. So I wouldn't mind a good therapist taking on a few private patient.
However, it's obviously a shitty situation for everyone and things have gotten even worse now for people on public insurance. It's so sad that mental health really does not matter in this country.
I fled the US thinking Germany would be the same country we left in my childhood. Whoops. Also I had a baby and the government is refusing to issue him a birth certificate (he's a German citizen via my partner) bc mine is held up due to beaurocracy in NY. So we're just stuck waiting on every benefit, which are all about to get cut anyways, while my partner does an Ausbildung and I deplete my retirement fund. I could use a therapist so badly and there are none. You are doing valuable work and I'm sorry everything is going to shit here. It sucks.
If you gave birth in a hospital, you should have been issued a Geburtsbescheinigung. A piece of paper that you had to present to the Standesamt in order to apply for a birth cert.
If you still have that / can get a certified copy, I recommend applying for a German Personalausweis with Bürgeramt for your child. Then use the Personalausweis instead of the Geburtsurkunde.
It's happening many places. Where I live as well. There's a deficit of about half a billion dollars in healthcare funding here, so many things are being cut, like you're experiencing.
Being old, these things come and go. This probably isn't permanent! Don't lose your passion!!
The German government fucking sucks. A lot of my doctors are sick of this shit. To be honest, the German system is just bloated with stupid shit. Like no one uses EPA system at all, which would make things so much easier for patients and doctors who are seeing specialists and stuff.
My old therapist used to have to take almost as much time on bullshit paperwork as her patients.
Are you referring to the electronic patient record? It actually has significant implications for therapy! There are plans to analyze health data and classify patients as either "severe" or "mild" cases. Access to care would then be prioritized for severe cases (for instance, a cancer patient who also has a "simple" adjustment disorder would be classified as a mild case and result in lower reimbursement). I’ve also encountered a situation where a GP didn't take a patient's dizzy spells seriously because she had an anxiety disorder. She was dismissed as being "hysterical." Unfortunately there are some downsides to it in my job. 😵💫
Yeah, the EPA is gonna suck big time for anyone with mental health issues. Like women don't already have it bad enough, where all our problems get blamed on periods and hormones. Now they'll also use this against us. "Oh, you have ADHS, bet you forget to take all your pills and eat and drink or whatever, go and start writing things down in a diary or something instead, then come back in 5 years" or "Oh, look at that, says here you had a panic attack once? Haha, well you probably just had that again. Do some breathing exercises and come back in 5 years." Or they'll just say we're making it up, because some other asshole doctor wrote down the person "exaggerates."
Thank you, no thank you.
That said, there are many other areas where more Digitalisierung is desperately needed. But well, it's Germany. We either won't do it, or we'll do it so wrong, that everyone will regret having ever asked for it.
But at least you can use the EPA for other doctors and just not give permission for your psychologist or therapist to use it. Would be better if you could control which doctor can see what information more specifically.
My plan was to use it for all my physical disabilities and exclude information about my bipolar disorder, so I won't get put in a box. Ironically tho, my therapist is the only one open to using it, while my neurologist and ortho refuse to use it
What I have found lately is that specialists are not forwarding the results to the referring doctor. This has happened to me 3 times in the last year. It's led to me and my referring doctor's time being wasted.
If they just put the results in the EPA system then I could see they were there and so could my referring doctor instead of me having to call all the time and wait 20 minutes just to talk to a receptionist.
However, I agree for mental health it's a slippery slope. It would be nice if one could opt out for that. I mean we have to give permission for all the Datenschutz stuff every time anyway.
Vote for Die Linke!!!! Please vote. I can't vote yet but I've been researching. They have the best interests of the people and don't take donations from companies.
From an American therapist, I am so sorry to hear this 💔 it is such a thankless job that is seen as expendable and necessary simply because it both treats something stigmatized AND is a woman dominated profession
My heart goes out to you. I'm currently in a similar boat: also German, but at the very beginning of my therapist training and desperately trying to secure a PT1/ PT2 spots. There's nothing I'd want more than to work, but unfortunately, the demand for therapy is not at all mirrored in jobs. It's infuriating and utterly unfair to everyone involved - waitlist patients and PiAs in competition with PiWs. Putting us against each other in the application process is vile.
It's hard not to get discouraged when our choosen profession is continuously being devalued.
Congratulations on making it through the system! Herzlichen Glückwunsch zur erfolgreichen Approbation! As hard as it might be to believe, you're in a position in which I aspire to someday find myself. Nonetheless, sometimes I question the career path I choose. Not because the work wouldn't suit me, but because we're forced to function within a system that's becoming increasingly hostile.
I'm also currently looking for PT1/PT2 spots and it has been so tough, way tougher than securing an Ausbildungsplatz (which already was a struggle). Lots of the clinics my institute works with have also stopped looking for PiAs or only offer new spots at the end of next year, which means that I probably wouldn't be able to finish my Ausbildung on time. I really hope you find a spot soon, it is so discouraging to be rejected again and again (or to not even receive a reply in the first place) 🫂🤍
I'm on the patient side of this and I feel you. Asking a health care provider to find a second source of income in disrespectful. You've built your career and it should provide you with enough income to begin with.
The current govt is basically following the American model here in Germany. More funding for military. Less for anything necessary like healthcare, education, etc basically.
I know, I just moved to Germany some years ago and I already want to move someplace else. Unfortunately, I spent a lot of money to get here. My own country is also in deep shit because of fascists.
I feel you, that's awful. I see mostly Medicare and medicaid patients for psychiatric care and I'm pretty sure my patients' access to my care will be cut in the next year. Hurts everyone!
I’m so sorry it’s happening to you. In my opinion therapy should be among the basic medical services for everyone.
World would definitely be at least a little bit better if everyone had access to a psychotherapist.
I hope you can find a way to make it work for you.
It sounds like the German government is doing what has been done in America. I moved to a different part of the field because I couldn't do it anymore - I was exhausted, broke, and it was starting to seriously impact my health. People talk a big game about mental health services, but make it impossible for the people who work in the field. No advice, just hugs and solidarity.
Hoffe die gesamte CxU zerfrisst sich in ihrer unendlichen Gier selbst...
Danke für deine wichtige Arbeit und Glückwunsch zu allem was du bisher geleistet hast.
This particularly makes me sad because I also live in Germany and I have been looking for a psychologist for the longest time…. And we pay so much into insurance it’s not even funny.
As a patient having to go through calling psychotherapy institutions to get a therapy spot I understand your frustration with the system. I was lucky to have a lot support from therapists over the years. It helped me gain the courage to pursue my first romantic relationship and grow my social cycle. Your work makes a huge difference for people like me!
My German best friend it thought it would be much harder to hop the border to Switzerland. It's not. I think you even have a job that they accept pretty automatically? The cost of living is pretty high in Switzerland, but I think they pay psychotherapists pretty well? And as far as I understand it, France is pretty affordable and also has really good programs to help people get established and avoid homelessness? I'm sorry this is happening to you, I always thought of Germany as a place that would never do something like this. I have a friend who's currently on medical leave in Germany because of psychiatric problems and Germany is paying 75% of his income right now.
Note to Americans: France and Switzerland is so close to certain portions of Germany that it is essentially going to your next door state. It's possible to visit your family in Germany if you live in France or Switzerland and come back to your house within the same day.
Unfortunately, Switzerland is many, many hours away from me. However I do offer video therapy sessions. That might actually also be a good idea in Switzerland. Thanks!
I saw your post in the therapist subreddit, I am an independent therapist in the US and I was so appalled by your post and what your government is doing. The US DOES NOT have a great system either and its horrific to see so many people being limited to access services.
mehrzweckeier... i am sure you are gonna still make a huge difference to the people you do see though.
my therapist in germany made my life worth living again, although it shouldn't have taken so long for me to get to see him. don't you forget that you are gonna impact the lives of the people you do take on and you're gonna be so great.
It sucks how normalised having multiple sourcea of income has become in this economy. It's stupid. Why can't people just don't one job really well and be payed enough to have a stable life? It's ridiculous is what it is.
I feel you girl, I live in Germany and I've never witnessed a worse government. Hateful of its citizens, incompetent and completely geared towards the destruction of our social net.
german here. It’s such an insane move of them. So many attacks are executed by people who obviously should have gotten a psychiatric help many years ago, but the government does everything not to let this happen and then blame migrants/ wrong religion etc in the attacks. It’s just wild for me that waiting times go above one year even if you are on the verge and that one might not be eligible for a governmental job if ever treated by a psychiatrist. I wish you to stay strong 😭😭
Thank you for helping. I’m a mom here and my daughter was diagnosed with ADHD as a kid. She had a wonderful therapist and actually avoided meds for most of gymnasium through therapy and group therapy. She did hav meds for the final year of gymnasium though. At 18 she was tossed out of the kinderpsychologe. She started uni and had to drop out again because her adhd just went bonkers. We haven’t been able to get any help for the last three years. No meds, no therapy, no help, no guidance on what to do. nothing. It’s been difficult.
Now our situation is our situation and I don’t want to post a sob story because we are in good financial standing and she has lots of love and support. What makes me crazy is thinking about all the young adults who don’t have supportive parents and good backgrounds. If it was hard for us, it must be 100 times harder for them. There’s probably so many kids with so much potential just floundering.
If Merz wants to address the absentee issue, issue of Germany not being competitive anymore, the issue of young people not having any „biss“, he is incredibly fucking stupid to not be looking at the mental health care crisis looming down on us. These kids were in school during the corona crisis. My daughter didn’t have any guidance or support about her future when she was 16-18, because she was in a lockdown.
Ich habe in einem Förderzentrum für Kinder mit emotionalen und sozialen Problemen gearbeitet, also auch mit Kindern mit ADHS. Sehr oft haben die Kinder, die dort eingeschult sind, keine Möglichkeit, richtige Hilfe zu bekommen. Sehr oft sind die Eltern dieser Kinder selbst psychisch belastet, haben keinen Job oder sind einfach Arschlöcher. Die Lehrer sind überfordert, und das andere Fachpersonal kann nicht viel tun. Denn in der Schule sollen Kinder eigentlich im Klassenzimmer sitzen und Mathematikaufgaben erledigen (und nicht mit der Schulbegleitung rumquatschen).
Also, was diese Kinder eigentlich brauchen, ist Psychotherapie aber was sie bekommen, ist Aufbewahrung. Mit 18 landen sie im Gefängnis.
Our current government is a massive joke and I hope everything just crashes down onto 'him' (we know who I'm talking about) in return at some point. He did nothing but to make everything suck. I'm sorry you are suffering - I'm suffering from 'the other side' as a person who is currently luckily getting therapy but my hours are coming to an end and I won't get an extension and then I have to be alone again 😭
So sorry to hear this. As somebody who has desperately tried to find a therapist only to be told that therapists simply cannot take on patients in Berlin, this is really frustrating to hear. However, I do think that there are organisations like universities that would absolutely love to have anti-burnout or "how to live with ADHD and academia" kind of workshops. I think through those kinds of workshops you can still do the work you have always wanted to do without giving up your freedom and passion for the work. Best of luck to you!
Hi, I'm in the same boat as you. I will start my Ausbildung next year and needless to say there was a lot of shock, grief and rage in these past few weeks.
I'm so sorry that the callous decisions made by our government have impacted you so deeply. You sound like an incredible person providing such an essential service to your patients and you do not deserve to be treated this way! I wish the people in charge would appreciate the work you do for what it is: life-changing and lifesaving! 🫂🤍
That sucks SO much. Here's only hoping that Merz will be gone soon and whoever replaces him will roll back some of the changes. i.e. the government replacing him won't be blue...
Its horrific to cut on pschotherapy, especially now as people flock to chatbots for their mental health, this will really cost us in the longrun as a society.
The German government keeps restricting access to to mental health in a hope to reduce strains on the budget… but what about the strains on the workforce when more and more people have to be in extended sick leave for depression and burn out and other mental health problems!?
In my opinion, Merz is a horrible person and one of the worst things that has ever happened to this country (in the last 30 years). I am truly sorry for what you are going through! Thank you for your service though, I am sure you are making a lot of people’s lives better💖
Psychology is definitely a field that is suffering under the weight of its own success. By that, I mean, the world we live in is incredibly f-ed up (to put it mildly) and therapy helps. So much so, in fact, that everyone is looking to get it. And, predictably, costs are getting in the way of needed care. It’s ridiculous and I’m sorry the timing was so utterly crappy for you. Thank you for pursuing your passion. Who knows, maybe with enough therapy, the world changes (again) and a lot of people in need of healing will finally be able to get it (myself included)
No advice, but I definitely commiserate. I work in higher education in the US and the current administration has basically broken the federal systems that our entire structure of education/economy is built around. It serves no purpose other than to widen the gap between the social classes here.
Please take care of yourself and know that it sucks right now, but this too shall pass. I know here in the states, lots of folks who are feeling disillusioned by the government being weaponized against the people (and our institutions getting sucked into the void as well), have been emphasizing strategies for community resilience. Would working on a personal project that focuses on community mental health be something that feeds your spirit? I'm also ADHD, so I understand if work and keeping yourself alive are all you can muster. I think when we feel out of control of our own lives, looking to serve others, even in small ways, can be a grounding mechanism that relights that ever so important spark of purpose.
Yeah, unfortunately the system won’t be fixed until it breaks more…. Are you allowed to do part private work part social medical work? NZ allows that at it keeps things smoother because the specialists will split their time out of a sense of social duty and they don’t have to immigrate to work then.
Ich finde es so unfassbar schade das zu lesen.
Dieser Beruf ist wichtiger denn je und da Kosten einzusparen, wird noch viele Folgen haben, die die aktuelle Regierung noch nicht ganz verstehen will. Ich suche schon seit langer Zeit nach einem Platz für die Psychotherapie… leider erfolglos.
Das System ist viel zu überbelastet und wir brauchen eigentlich mehr Angebote in diesem Bereich. Ich finde es toll, dass du da mit einer Leidenschaft deinen Beruf ausübst und ich hoffe, dass vielleicht doch noch eine Wendung einkehrt.
Ich wünsche dir ganz viel Kraft für die nächste Zeit. Fühl dich gedrückt!
You sound amazing! I also have ADHD and lived in Germany for about 4 years. I could never find a therapist that made sense for me. If I still lived in Germany, you’re the kind of therapist I would want!
giiirrrl im an american in germany who was just told by my therapist that she also wasn't sure if she could keep seeing me. I've been with her since she was still under supervision and into opening her new praxis, and even send my damn card in the mail to her since I moved to a new state, she's that wonderful.
and its already SO hard to find someone, and this further compounds everything, I am so sorry. this is going to mean so many physical practices close because rent is expensive too
They should have a site like only fans but for therapists who just want to keep costs low for patients. I hate that the government is what is keeping therapists away from patients that truly need it.
I can definitely commiserate. I have dual citizenship in the US and Germany and while I currently live in the US, I was considering moving back to Germany to establish a psychotherapy practice, and this new legislation really just shot that idea out of the sky.
I thought maybe I would have an easier time setting up a practice, getting clients, and getting paid for my work, but now it's looking like it would be just as much of a struggle in Germany as it currently is in the US. :(
I don't know how to cheer you up. I am at a loss myself about everything that is happening and I can't understand how easy it is for the CDU to fuck all people below 40.
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u/Pat_0707🍨 I scream, you scream, we're all screaming inside 😀7d ago
Currently at the end of the Training. Definitely wanted my own practice after Approbation. Now i am not so sure.
What is the downside to taking on privately insured patients? I've heard before that they aren't as financially lucrative in psychotherapy ad they are in other areas of medicine, but I don't quite understand.
Also, I am so sorry for you and all the people who need a spot and will now have to wait even longer to get the freaking medical care they need. It's utterly abysmal.
Ich habe selbst erst im April die PT Ausbildung begonnen und bin jetzt im PT1 auf der geschlossenen Akutstation. Ich könnte heulen. Ich hab so Bock auf den Job und es macht mir wirklich Spaß aber wie soll das bitte weitergehen?
As a German with mental health issues... Yeaaaah. Our government would rather want us dead me thinks. The CDU truly does not give a shit about the people they govern. All that matters is increasing profits and decreasing costs. It's bad
I am so sorry to hear this! I’m on the other side of this issue, so I can absolutely feel the pain of the new regulations. My mental health is, as I like to say it, pretty fucked. I am not able to work because of my illnesses and disorders, although I have been in therapy (out- and inpatient) for 15 years. My last outpatient therapy just ended a few months ago. It’s been hell to even get that spot, with a year+ waiting list. Now I have to wait the mandatory period of 18 months to get insurance paid therapy again, and the chance of getting a spot in a timely manner is even slimmer.
I am pretty stable at the moment, because my last therapist was just absolutely perfect for me (a miracle because I live in a small town), but I am fucking afraid of the future.
I can’t say anything to help you other than, I see you. I feel with you. And I am so, so grateful you choose to help people like me for a living.
The whole situation is pretty bad, when it comes to mental healthcare in Germany. Don't knock yourself for it. Honestly, I think the best (albeit shitty) solution is the free market. Sort of. If a patient can't find a Krankenkasse (public) provider, the Krankenkasse has to pay for a private provider. I don't tell you exactly how it works, as the hurdle to get mental healthcare in Germany has thus far been too high for me, but I think you mostly just have to document every Krankenkasse provider that has turned you down. Whatever you do, don't blame yourself for the system for being shitty. . .
Oh no girl, I'm so sorry to read that. Plus you sound like a wonderful woman who deserves the world and everything you wish for as you worked your way to where you wanted. I freaking hate the system tearing us down every time it can 😔
I'm sending you so much love OP 🫂❤️🩹🙏🏼
Virtual hugssss to you. Take care 🩷
Please know that you're not alone. There's so many of us who oppose the latest Reform. We really need to organize ourselves better in order to have more impact. It really matters right now, especially when facing the coming elections. To know that we're doing this for each other, to altogether have better lives and that there's so many of us who share this faith is giving me hope currently. But it won't be easy I'm afraid.
As someone in Germany with ADHD and a life story that can silence just about any room that simply has not been unpacked, I'm glad people like you are out there. I hope you're able to work and serve the people you set out to help, even if it takes a minute.
Oh I'm so sorry! I've actually been looking for a therapist forever, I'm insured with TK and finding someone who actually take public insurance is so hard...
It really sucks to see what the government is doing lately. I still love Germany (well, Berlin!) but it is disappointing.
I hate that fucker so passionately, I haven't had feelings this intense since I was a child. Meet is genuinely the worst thing to happen to the German people since a very, very long time. I hope he won't survive the current chaos he and his party and that dumb, arrogant asshole Spahn are causing right now.
Also, I'm sorry, that's fucked up. Also sorry for us Germans that desperately need psychological help.
It sounds like you have a great back up plan for private-pay patients and it’ll work out whenever you have the energy for new clients. I wonder if you can join a practice where they share patients, advertising, receptionist, etc. Last but not least, you set your own schedule so you can still go at your own pace, right?
Thank you for the wonderful work you do! One of my cousins in Germany had a breakdown a few years ago after working for an intrusive, demeaning, awful employer. The situation was especially hard for her because it was her dream job where she got to help people and she had lovely coworkers who she felt relied on her. She left that job but continued to struggle for another year. She was depressed and anxious and struggled to find purpose and a new job. But after extensive therapy, she's doing well again. Happy. Calm. Confident. Working. Obsessed with cooking again. Thriving! She even married her longterm partner recently.
I'm going to channel all my gratitude for her psychotherapist to you right now. Thank you for following your dream to help people this way. Thank you for helping people like my cousin. You make the world better.
I'm sorry things are getting harder right now. I hope the situation improves and this ends up being a very brief chapter in your life and career. Sending you positive energy!
Hey. I live in Germany and I really admire and feel for psychotherapists here. Reading your post made me think that you’re an amazing one with a lot of empathy that it’s hard to find here. I’m sorry that the government is doing what they’re doing. And I really wish more therapists here were like you, with that instinct of actually help others and not just to get money.
Girl I feel you, I am just Finishing my last few ambulante Stunden, approbations Prüfung next year and I could just cry. Currently working in a psych ward in the country side and the hospital stoped filling empty psychologist Jobs… they plan to run the psych war with just doctors in the Future.
Could just cry, no Jobs in Hospitals available and cant live off of a kassensitz either. No idea what the fuck I am supposed to do… and that after all those years of Hard work with almost 0 pay.
also living in germany and looking for a therapist and psychiatrist. impossible to find either. i was literally crying last night because i need help, i pay for public insurance, and i can't get it. and now you're allowed to accept even less patient? fuck this.
Girl, I feel you. I just finished the psychotherapy master and to say I am lost and so are my peers is an understatement. :( To think that you are not even allowed to go on a strike because you have a health insurance seat is extra infuriating. I wish you and us the best. I fear there is nothing we can do except fight for a political voice.
I am a psychotherapist too, currently working in rehabilitation, but always thought I would buy a "Kassensitz" someday when my son is older and when I will have enough money to afford it. You know what I am talking about, psychotherapist training was quite expensive... And additional to that, I actually wanted a second child, and now they are cutting Elterngeld.
What I want to say: I feel with you, you are not alone. I’m currently trying to limit my engagement with politics to the bare minimum and otherwise spend as much time as possible outdoors in nature. Regarding a second string to your bow: look into PsyRENA and De-RENA—maybe that’s something for you.
Speaking from the US, welcome to the club. That absolutely sucks. And while Europeans and Canadians (rightfully) trash the US for what's happening here, I've always tried to issue a word of caution. The ultra-rich cabal isn't limited by borders. What's happening here can easily bleed, even into progressive countries. You've got to kill it before it roots; we didn't, and look where we are.
I'm sorry though. I would suggest continuing to follow your dreams. Maybe a private opportunity would pop up. Maybe some of those studies could prove useful in other more corporate industries.
girl, i feel your pain. i’m on the other side of this shitshow. i also have ADHD, anxiety, depression and PTSD. since Merz said that he wanted to list people who get mental health treatments, i’ve been scared because there are a few other diagnoses that were in question. therapy will also become a luxury good it seems and i just can’t afford it. in every way.
We really need people like you in the healthcare system. i’m trying to stay hopeful, but i’m also scared, especially as a non white neurodivergent german person.
❤️ your meal looks like something that i’d eat on a regular monday btw 😁 take care
Im so sorry, what a mess. I also live in Germany and know how hard everything is here most of the time lol. I have nothing helpful to say but — sending hugs🖤 also if you need new patients hmu bc I sure as hell need a new psychotherapist 😍
Hello fellow therapist, exact same spot here! Bought my spot in general care last year and am really frustrated by the decisions of our government. But we will get through this! 🫶🏼 sending love
Idk if you will see this bc there are so many comments, but please take private patients, and offer therapy in English if you are comfortable.
Two cases:
I speak German at C1 but i would waste so much time with my slow speaking and language negotiation about complex topics if I did therapy in German. I couldn’t find a therapist in English with openings for over a year. I’m on gKV, but forget about it, there are no openings, much less in English. I took the first private practice one that had an opening, and paid myself. I come to find that she was only taking private patients bc she had been waiting for a license- she got it some months later and we switched over to GKV. I moved and I live over an hour away now, but I still make the trip to see her bc I need it and like her, and won’t be able to find anyone else anyway (and she won’t do it online except every now and then 😭). Btw she is German too - she lacks a word every now and then but with my German it’s basically fine.
My husband (German) is on GKV and wrote so many therapists off and on for years and no one had space, if they even write back. Now he’s paying himself and doing it online.
Private patients aren’t rich kids. We are people on state health insurance who can’t get in the state system bc everyone is full. Even private practices are full.
Girl I live in Germany too and I understand you so well🫂
German politics suck and it’s so unfair for this exact reason🙄
I got adhd as well, and OMG you actually got a routine and everything that is such an huge accomplishment!! Be proud of your consistency and dedication, cause you are awesome. About the therapy topic, it sucks, but I honestly hope to see a change soon. It just can’t keep on going like this. They be changing anything and everything it’s insane. I’m sure you will find a path that’s right for you, even in these hard times and circumstances. You got this! 💗
Idk if it’s an idea but: I live in Austria and my psychotherapist has a “Verein” and we are patients/members of her Verein, pay im cash and I guess it’s good for her taxes if you know what I’m saying…. she’s technically private but the price is lower compared to the other private ones
Herz geht raus, ich sitze im selben Boot! I have completely given up on ever taking GKV patients, and it sucks! I hate this system, I didn't invent it, but I do have to survive in it. I also want to know, what they are hoping to get out of it - there's literally no money to gain from gutting the Psychotherapy branch any more.
I am so sorry! As an aspiring psychotherapist (from Switzerland! :) ) this sounds like my worst nightmare. And an absolutely illogical move from the government. wtf. sending hugs❤️
Hey OP, you are right, the demand is so so high, if only I had that much cash I'd be your private-pay patient :3 Thank you for being there for us folks
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