Frequently Asked Questions

A psychiatrist is a medical doctor who has taken a psychiatric specialisation. They are able to prescribe drugs and may or may not do psychotherapy.

A psychologist is trained at a university. There are different types of psychologists: some work in education, some in testing, some in research, some in advertising and other specialities. Some psychologists do one-to-one therapy. Clinical psychologists work on one to one therapy and tend to use Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and to do only short term work. Some clinical psychologists also do psychotherapy.

An analyst is someone who has trained through a Psychoanalytic Institute. Their training is post-graduate in nature and involves high educational standards and personal qualities. Selection into the training institutes involves exhaustive personal, professional and clinical appraisal and rigorous interview processes. Analysts work from a set of theory from the various Psychoanalytic perspectives, e.g. the Jungian perspective for the analysts at North Coast Psychotherapy. They have to undergo a long, personal analysis as part of their training. This means they know what it is like to be in the place of the client or patient. Analysts are the only group that have to do a compulsory personal therapy as part of their training.

A psychotherapist can be trained through a university degree or a psychotherapy training organization. They work with individuals, couples, families and groups to help them overcome a range of psychological and emotional issues. With the client as an active participant, psychotherapists use personal treatment plans and a variety of non-medical-based treatments usually working with the unconscious dynamics of the mind. Some psychotherapy trainings include a compulsory personal psychotherapy process.

A counsellor can be trained at a university or a counsellor training organization. Counsellors assist people to understand themselves by explaining options, setting goals and helping them to take action. They tend to work on a short-term basis.