Should I consult a professional?
05.11.2016 by HermanTheMermanI took the questionnaire and I got a score of 147 points. However, I have a fairly active imagination and construct complex plots not just for writing fiction, a personal hobby, but for my dreams as well often coming up with characters and conflicts frequently and without warning. I scored 18 points for the Restricted Imagination Process portion of the questionnaire so, I'm just wondering if I can justify speaking with someone who knows about alexithymia on a deeper level. I don't want to go through the trouble of going to a doctor just to find out that I don't have this trait and therefore have wasted their time just being curious about myself as that would be terribly selfish. I apologize n I have wasted your time.
Why do you want to b diagnosed?
05.11.2016 by Dave
HermanTheMerman, you haven't mentioned any difficulties you've had in life that might be attributable to Alexithymia, so what is it that you're seeking to find out? If you're having psychological problems, then a psychologist might or might not be able to help you; it doesn't have to be Alexithymia. If you're wondering if your score is accurate, maybe a psychologist could help you determine that, but why goto the trouble if you're not actually having any of the difficulties associated with Alexithymia; e.g.,
- difficulty identifying different types of feelings
- difficulty distinguishing between emotional feelings and bodily feelings
- limited understanding of what caused the feelings
- difficulty verbalizing feelings
- limited imagination
- functional, constricted style of thinking
- physical complaints
- lack of enjoyment and pleasure-seeking
- stiffened posture and/or facial expressions.
Personally, I'd just read the posts on this website and see if you can relate to them. Not every member of this website has Alexithymia, but when somebody describes their issues its usually Alexithymia related.
Professionals often lack the capacity
20.11.2016 by kat3lb
Hello Herman, it would make sense to me to contact a professional if I knew about someone who really understands alexithymia. No professional should be bothered by examining someone who eventually turns not having a problem. But I think the true professionals for alexithymia are rare, mainly due to the fact that it is very recently recognized set of traits. So you might end up consulting one, who will say that you are ok and you will start feeling guilty that you have wasted his time, while in fact it would be just due to his lack of diagnostic tools or ability.
I often wonder whether alexithymia really exists or whether it is something that is in each of us to some extend but only those people who score high in the test are actually able to admit it. I often imagine that all the people are actually pretending their feelings and I am just too lazy or too ignorant to be such a good pretender as the others.
That is why I would also like to have a pro, who would tell me "yes, alexithymia is in you, it's not your fault, its not laziness or lack of ethic, you are not guilty". But I am afraid the diagnostics is not there yet.
