Feigning joy: illiterate coaches cripple the psyche
The vast majority of bloggers offering psychological help to Russians have no special education. Doctors see the main danger in the fact that these pseudo-doctors offer universal recipes for happiness to everyone, ignoring complex emotions. What is a "toxic positive", how not to fall into the trap of scammers and whether it is possible to heal with the help of psychological literature — in the material of Izvestia.
A blogger or a psychologist
One in six Russians watches blogging content on psychology, according to a survey conducted jointly by the Be Healthy clinic network and Ingosstrakh with the participation of the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation. Psychological analyses of films and stars are the most popular (10%). Researchers draw attention to the fact that the vast majority of popular psychological bloggers (up to 70-80%, according to analytical centers) do not have the proper professional education and experience necessary to provide competent psychological support.
— At the same time, of those who follow bloggers, almost 80% followed their psychological recommendations, including buying courses (19%). Psychological advice from bloggers helped 61% of respondents, and 22% described their effectiveness as "50-50." And among those who bought blogger courses, half (53%) noted their benefits," said Konstantin Letts—Orletsov, head of the Virtual Clinic project.
Olga Umanova, a clinical psychologist and a specialist in BOS therapy at the Be Healthy Harmony and Health Center, calls the lack of qualifications the main negative side of pseudo-teaching. As a result, communication with non-professionals sooner or later turns into a problem for those who hope to find peace of mind.
"The so—called toxic positive should also be alerted: propaganda and calls to "think positively" ignore complex human emotions, which exacerbates psychological problems such as depression or burnout," comments Olga Umanova.
According to the clinical psychologist, a typical example is "life coaches" who easily promise happiness without solving systemic problems. "Marathons" often offer universal schemes backed by business models with beautiful stories that ignore a person's personality.
— Most bloggers offer universal solutions, ignoring the individual characteristics of each case. In addition, blogs often serve as a monetization tool, and the sale of courses and services of questionable value becomes a priority, warns Konstantin Letts-Orletsov.
In his opinion, in order to protect one's mental well-being, it is important to carefully choose a source of information: check the author's reputation, study the reviews of real customers and make sure that there is an official education.
Olga Umanova draws attention to the fact that blogger coaches, as a rule, use pseudoscientific methods: esotericism and "digital psychology" without an evidence base.
— To protect yourself from being deceived and not fall into the trap of psychology scammers, always check the information about the coach before trusting the recommendations: education (graduate diploma from the Faculty of Psychology at least, ACT certificates, CBT), license. Avoid those who use the terms "institute" and "academy" without confirmation of accreditation," Umanova comments.
A clinical psychologist advises to beware of loud guarantees of results. The red flag is advertising slogans such as: "I will heal in three days!".
—Therapy is a process that depends on many factors," the clinical psychologist comments. — Look for a scientific base, giving preference to specialists working with evidence-based methods. Study independent reviews on platforms, avoiding pages with deleted comments.
The toxic positive
A person's confidence that they have gained a positive experience as a result of communicating with a consultant depends on many factors, says psychiatrist, psychotherapist, and author Alexey Vilkov. It can also be a "placebo effect" based on suggestion and autosuggestion.
— For example, a person is motivated in advance for the result. When he communicates with a coach, it is super motivation that gives him confidence that he can really change his life for the better. Autosuggestion creates the illusion that life is actually improving, but then disappointment sets in, warns the psychiatrist.
But, according to Alexey Vilkov, it also happens that a person, for the most part, through autosuggestion, actually achieves victories in those areas that are important to him. Therefore, a certain proportion of people can have a positive result, but precisely at the expense of motivation and self-improvement.
— In some cases, toxic positivity can exacerbate the problem, because you cannot force yourself to always think positively, — explains psychiatrist Vilkov. — Sincere joy is possible if a person is psychologically well-off and he has a resource for this positive. And if he is in severe anxiety or depression, then hyperexertion in the synthesis of these positive thoughts will cause an even greater deterioration of his condition. The symptoms of depression and anxiety will worsen, and it will be much more difficult to cope with his real disorder.
A person who fails to artificially portray joy will be even more disappointed and dissatisfied with himself, the psychiatrist believes. Comparing himself with others, he tries his best to set ambitious goals for himself, not understanding his condition or not taking into account the features of the disease. This can lead to severe disappointment and worsening of depressive symptoms.
How to find a real psychologist online
It is really difficult for an inexperienced person to figure out which specialist to turn to for help, because he does not have the necessary competencies to assess professionalism, warns Alexey Vilkov. And if a blogger or coach has certain manipulation skills or minimal psychological knowledge, is confident, and boasts pronounced charisma, then all this attracts clients much faster than having diplomas.
— A pseudo-specialist usually takes emotions for which there is no knowledge and verified information, — warns Alexey Vilkov. — Emotional factors easily involve clients in interacting with questionable people. As a result, they forget to check their education and job reviews, and sometimes they don't pay attention to these important points.
The danger of underachievers is not only that a person who needs professional help gets a pacifier instead. From the point of view of a psychiatrist, people who do not have special education very often present some knowledge from the angle of their subjective experience.
"Their messages sometimes do not reflect reality, and therefore quite often a person receives direct or indirect harm from such consultations,— Vilkov continues. — This erroneous or distorted information will then affect his psychological well-being and attitude to life. In particular, it can lead to a deterioration of the condition.
Coach or book
According to the survey results, 37% of Russians receive psychological help and knowledge through a more conservative resource — books. Women are more likely than men to read psychological literature: 43% versus 31%. At the age of 18-30, 54% of respondents report an interest in books on psychology and self-development. However, this indicator decreases markedly with age: 31-40 years — 39%, 41-50 years — 37%, 51-60 years — 30%.
— Psychology books are a powerful and accessible tool for self—discovery, gaining useful knowledge and skills, improving the quality of life and personal growth. However, they are not a panacea and do not replace professional psychotherapy, especially for serious psychological problems. Their effectiveness directly depends on the quality of the book, your willingness to actively work on yourself and your understanding of their boundaries," says Olga Umanova.
Experts emphasize that the reasons for the popularity of literature on psychology are primarily due to their accessibility: books are cheaper than therapy.
"People are looking for practical, here-and-now methods, especially in times of crisis,— says Umanova. — "Digital stress" is among the factors of popularity, as the growth of anxiety and burnout stimulates the search for self—help. The trend in society towards "mindfulness" contributes to the growth of interest in the relevant topic, books on emotional intelligence as part of "mental health hygiene".
Mostly people read educational literature on psychology and research (29%). This is followed by books on parenting (28%) and on dealing with depression or anxiety (9%), the expert emphasizes.
"Experts often recommend books as a tool for self—discovery and support," says Konstantin Letts-Orletsov. — Books enrich the process of therapy, but they do not replace it and are not suitable for self-diagnosis or treatment. It is worth using the literature as an addition to the main treatment, and not as the only method.
From the point of view of a psychiatrist, being an important part of education, books are also one of the options for psychotherapy.
— There is such a therapy option as bibliotherapy. It is good if a person changes his attitude to the situations that concern him with the help of new knowledge, through introspection, with the help of new information, in a calm environment and without any external influence," comments Alexey Vilkov.
But the psychiatrist draws attention to the fact that books are still devoid of feedback, emotions and other factors that exist in interaction with a specialist. Therefore, he considers bibliotherapy only an addition to psychotherapy with a psychologist or with a psychotherapist.
— Definitely a good book, of course, is more useful than an illiterate coach, because reading pushes for a thought process and self—education by processing new information, - says the psychiatrist. — And the emotions that people receive from coaches pass away, and after them there is either nothing left, or negative consequences arise.
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