Hi @MB95 ,
Wow, it takes a lot of courage to talk about that. If I was to be honest with you. I can imagine a lot of clinicians would like to be able to open up like you just did and speak honestly about the difficulties they experience while managing their own mental health and feeling like a fraud in their profession.
I can 100% say that you are not alone in having a mental health issue and supporting people with their mental health. It is much more common than is discussed. I personally have struggled with my mental health, particularly while finishing my masters a few years ago and I can relate to a lot of what you are talking about.
I know from my experience, sometimes I get caught in the trap that I imagine that all the other clinicians I encounter are some how more put together, more well read than me or are able to handle things better. This may be true on occasion, but often people are doing exactly what I think you are doing and what I do when I am at work. Putting on a mask of professionalism to deal with the difficulties of our job and to handle countertransference. On the inside…they are still experiencing the same highs and lows we are.
So I can wholeheartedly say, I don’t think you are a fraud. You are just human like me, doing the best that they can. 😊
