WorldofSoz

25 | Psychologist |Artist | Reader

[worldofsoz]

While I was living in a very small town for work and had no social life, I developed a deep affinity for spending my time with hobbies. Learning to crochet has been one of them. Ever since I started in 2025, it has made my life so much more beautiful!

[worldofsoz]

In the last two years, I discovered my love for art. It's been one of the best things to happen to me. I got a cat and then lost him (he ran away), made the lives of people around me beautiful and found myself through my art.

The last painting- The Phoenix Project was my attempt to destroy all the things that kept me from being my true self and find out who I really am, connect with the voice in my head and heart. I made choices that took me away from people, places and situations. I wouldn't say it was easy, but it was beautiful, the process of it all.

[worldofsoz]

10th August 2024, the last time I was active on Tumblr. I was just a kid fresh out of college, applying everywhere. Life has changed so much since then. That summer, I woke up one day to find out I no longer wanted to live in the city and hustle. I wanted to move back home, find my roots, my identity. I got a job in a grassroots NGO as a Program Manager. I worked there for a year, hustled, met a lot of people, cried, doubted myself, outdid myself, laughed, made friends, lost friends. In a year, I realised I had achieved my plateau in the place and I quit. There were multiple reasons for the decision but this is the easiest to mention. In the summer of 2025, I met a boy who made it easy to live, to laugh, make art, travel and exist for myself and not others. Part of the reason I quit was this boy, he motivated me to leave the place I'd become too comfortable with. After that, I did a course, started my private practice and also worked on and off as a consultant with an organization. It's going to be 11 months since I quit. I still feel directionless but life is easier, more beautiful and full of art. After a season of bright summer that almost burned me, I allowed myself to rest and relax in Autumn and winter. I don't know when the spring will arrive but I no longer feel my worth is tied to amount I burn myself for visions of others. I have travelled a lot since I met this boy. We have explored different cities and towns of my state. I have seen how beautiful the Himalayas can be. I have seen how quickly worlds change when you travel. I'm still with him and he's still with me. Life has been good to me.

[worldofsoz]

[worldofsoz]

The last few months have been a wild ride!

[macgyvermedical]

Took me until about halfway through college before I realized “study” means “play with the material in a variety of ways until you understand it” and not just “read the assigned chapters and do the homework” and I think that probably should have been discussed at some point prior to that.

[eclaireparlalune]

psychiatrist vs psychologist vs therapist

A question for Americans (and others if someone else wants to chime in).

So recently I became very curious about the distinction of these professions in the US (and around the world, as well, but the media I've been consuming has been, for the most part, American).

I keep hearing these words used interchangeably, and I began to wonder if maybe it wasn't always necessarily as much as lack of knowledge as, perhaps, differences in culture and education.

(Tbh I wasn't aware of all the nuances myself, so to explain the differences in a most comprehensive way I've searched for online acrticles that could explain it better, so the definitions below are translated (and sometimes also edited) paragraphs of online articles and not my own words.)

A psychiatrist is a medical doctor. To become a psychiatrist, you must gain a medical degree (after six years of study at the university) and then undergo an additional five years of internship in the field of psychiatry (similarily to any other medical doctor such as surgeon, endocrinologist, gynecologist etc.)

The specialization lasts about five years and includes theoretical classes and an internship in a designated medical facility. Only after finishing those additional five years of study can a medical graduate obtain the right to practice as a psychiatrist.

A psychiatrist is, therefore, primarily a physician who can work in medical facilities - treating patients with mental disorders and diseases. He also has, unlike a psychologist, the ability to prescribe medication to patients for the disorders they suffer from, as well as order a blood test or some other additional medical examinations.

A psychologist, on the other hand, is a person with a master's degree in psychology (the education lasts for five years). A psychologist, however, doesn't deal only with diseases and mental disorders but can also provide psychological support in difficult moments of life, career counseling and similar areas.

Not every psychologist works at their own office or provides consultations. There are psychologists who recruit employees or conduct training. There are psychologists who deal with psychometrics (development of psychological tests), scientific work, consumer research, etc.

Unfortunately, the profession of a psychologist in Poland has not yet been properly regulated or controlled (as is the case with doctors). Therefore, there are abuses by people who have completed postgraduate studies or courses in psychology in the title and call themselves psychologists despite the lack of five-year master's studies.

There is also somone called a clinical psychologist who has attained the master's degree in psychology and then completed an additional four-year specialization in psychology. They have more practical experience in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders. Clinical psychology is a discipline applied to healthcare. A clinical psychologist is a master of psychology with competencies in the field of specialization in the clinical psychology of adults, children and adolescents.

A psychotherapist is a person who has completed higher education and, in addition, a minimum of four years of psychotherapy training. Psychotherapists are most often psychologists, but they can also be doctors, midwives, nurses, sociologists or educators. To some extent, their competences overlap with those of a clinical psychologist. There are several leading schools of psychotherapy, which means that the training of a psychotherapist may emphasize various elements of the functioning of the psyche. Training in psychotherapy is long and very expensive.

(It should be noted that a psychiatrist, like a psychologist, is not licensed to conduct psychotherapy, unless they have completed postgraduate training in psychotherapy. A psychiatrist deals primarily with the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of mental illness.)

A therapist is an oft confused and overused word. Many may call themselves a therapist because they have completed one-year postgraduate studies in, for example, behavioral therapy for children with autism. Still others have master's degrees in pedagogical therapy with children with dyslexia. For others, completing a weekend-long therapy course is enough to call themselves a therapist. There are also occupational therapists working, for example, with children with disabilities. A therapist does not have to be a psychotherapist or even a psychologist.

Again, I wasn't aware of everything that has been said here, though I think it is safe to say that most people in my country (or at least the people I've come into contact with) do distinguish the major diferrences between a psychiatrist and a psychologist.

I wrote this post because, like I said before, I was often confused by the their perception in (mostly, I'd imagine) American media (tv shows, movies, books, online videos and articles, blogs and fanfics.) I'm curious, does the education look similiar in other countries? How easy/hard is it to study in those fields?

(I know I could search for the answers on the Internet but I guess I'd like to try a more social approach of asking actual people first).

(Sources for the articles can be found here, here, and here.)

[torivegafromindia]

Spreading this for the benefit of myself and others

[worldofsoz]

As someone who is close to receiving her master's degree in India, I'd like to chime in. Your description of the different professions in Poland was similar to that of India, but the duration of the degrees is a little different here.

Psychiatrist: To become a psychiatrist in India, you need a five MBBS degree and then have a 2-year MD degree specializing in Psychiatry. Psychiatrists typically work in hospitals or private set-ups, and they can prescribe medications for mental illness. Only psychiatrists can legally prescribe meds.

Clinical Psychologist: A Clinical psychologist has a 3-year bachelor's degree, 2-year master's degree and then a 2-year MPhil degree which is involves a lot of practical experience. One can call themselves a Clinical psychologist only when they have a MPhil degree from a RCI recognized institution (RCI is the licensing body In India for clinical and rehabilitation psychologists). Clinical psychologists can give diagnosis and carry out psychological assessments. Clinical psychologists also give therapy.

Counseling Psychologist: A counseling psychologist has a master's with a specialization in counseling and one-year diploma in Guidance and counseling. This field is not regulated currently so a lot of people call themselves counseling psychologists after a master's degree or get a low-quality online diploma. A lot of counseling psychologists have their own practice and call themselves therapists. Since the field is not regulated, no-one stops them, it's not illegal. Counseling psychologists can only provide counseling/ therapy for minor life or adjustment related issues, they cannot diagnose, cannot conduct assessments.

Psychologist: In India, most people call themselves psychologists after a master's degree. We have a lot of different kinds. Organizational psychologists, school psychologists. A lot of people work in the corporate industry in HR departments and a lot of them work in consulting, social and market research firms.

We also have psychiatric social workers here: These are people with a master's degree in social work with a specialization in working on community mental health.

Hope this helps!!

[worldofsoz]

Suffer/Silence.

I suffer in silence,You wouldn’t ever see me cry.I call it personal suffering,public display is for the weakHide hide, tears underneath the blanket.what if mother sees?Weak she’d say. y…

A poem I wrote recently. Let me know if you like it?

[worldofsoz]

what are some inventories/ questionnaires that measure political attitudes or political orientation?

Hello, I am working on my master's dissertation, and I need help with identifying a quantitative tool that measures a person's political orientation/ attitudes. Would be great if y'all can help me with finding a tool and getting access to it. So far, my search has gotten me to dead ends and tools that cannot be applied to the Indian context.

[worldofsoz]

pretty scenes from the university in the evening.

[worldofsoz]

My sessionals are starting next week. Even though these are minor tests, I've been struggling. A few days ago, I was happy, satisfied and content with the progress I have made as a person but then I don't know what triggered me. from the past three days, I've been struggling to sleep, having generalised anxiety and a heavy feeling in my chest. I'm constantly on the verge of tears. The fact that I have exams from next week is stressing me out even more. I've been trying to hold myself together though. I'm slowly trying to cover as many topics I can in a day. Also waiting for this phase to be over, it usually goes on for a week. I haven't attended college for the last three days. it's been difficult but I'm handling it I think. I hope it gets better soon.

[nerdywizardflower]

I grieve for the living more than I grieve for the dead. Always. I mourn for all the people I have lost despite having them right in front of me. I get triggered when I am reminded of their existence. Because truly, losing a person to a different realm is much easier than losing someone who is right in front of you, to remind you of the loss, right as you begin to recover.

[worldofsoz]

I am back! The summer was extremely boring. Although there was one interesting thing that happened. I went to the Himalayas to collect some preliminary data for my dissertation. I am not even sure if I am going to do this eventually but since it's my own culture, I felt really called to investigate the spiritual possession practices in Uttarakhand Himalayas. For that I went back home to observe the practices in real time and I was extremely grateful to have had the opportunity of seeing it happen after 6 years. I wrote two blogs that describe my observations there and they're posted on my wordpress account. The new semester started in August. It was going slow but we have our first sessional exams from 18th September so I've to start studying for them. I have also gotten back to reading and I finished normal people yesterday. Can't wait to update you guys about my study progress and the insights I get from reading.

[nerdywizardflower]

[problematicprocrastinator]

Studyblr follow train, like and reblog if you’re a study account! ✨☺️ especially fellow study accounts in their 20s!

[worldofsoz]

I've been living alone for a while now. Everyday I travel to work and I get the urge to get off at a random station and do something, delay returning back to my room. The only place that actually feels like home is my university campus. I've always felt homeless and I know it's just a temporary stop in the grand scheme of things but it still feels true nonetheless. Today, I had a rough day at work. Instead of going straight home, I took a different route and went to my uni campus, spent time there with a friend and the dogs. We had tea and talked life and career. On our way to the metro station, we had ice lollies. It was a simple and fun evening. The wind was blowing my hair in all directions, i felt like a wild child. Even though it was tame, I'm glad I atleast had an adventure. I know i would've come home and cried in self-pity, instead i enjoyed life and i really am proud of myself for choosing my well-being over anything else. It's 1:54 AM and I feel empowered enough to toy with the idea of a solo trip to the hills soon. I really like the person I am becoming.

[worldofsoz]

Ahhh my exams are finally over! This semester was so difficult for me, doing a full-time internship and also doing part-time teaching jobs along with studying. It really was hard on me, i did try my best though, and I'm glad it's over. I re-joined the internship again today and got a chance to attend a conference. It was great. I'm glad that i made it through all this.