← Ask Gina something else

Do I need a psychiatrist or a therapist?

By · Last updated

Clinical care from a psychiatrist or a therapist comes first when you are not safe, when daily life is a struggle, or when alcohol or drugs are involved.

You have been trying to figure out which kind of help fits. Under that question there may be a plainer one, which is whether you are alright. If you are not sure, start here.

A library about patterns comes after that, if at all.

01

When it comes first

If you are thinking of harming yourself, or of not being here, licensed mental-health care is the right door, and you can call or text 988 (US) now.

If you are in immediate danger, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room.

If you are not safe with someone in your life.The National Domestic Violence Hotline is 1-800-799-7233. If tonight is an emergency, call or text 988 (US). This library is not that door.

If depression or anxiety is severe enough that you are struggling to get through the day.

If you depend on alcohol or drugs.

If reactions to something that happened to you are disrupting your sleep, your work or your relationships.

02

Who provides it

Licensed clinicians. NIMH has a guide to deciding whether you need help.

Different clinicians do different things. Cleveland Clinic explains who does what, including who can prescribe.

Nothing in this library is a reason to start, stop or change a medication. That is between you and whoever prescribes it.

03

What this is not

It is not a list for figuring out whether you have a condition. No page here does that. It is a list of situations in which a clinician is the right first call.

04

How it fits with Project Gina

Project Gina is not therapy, medical care, diagnosis or emergency care. It checks practitioners' credentials and publishes what it found. It does not recommend anyone.

If you need a clinician, licensed therapists, counselors and psychologists in Arizona can be looked up with the state boards. What Is Talk Therapy? explains the licenses and links to both lookups.

Clinical care first does not mean never. It means the order matters. When Therapy Is the Right Door has more.

What to do if tonight is the problem is on What If I'm in Crisis Tonight?

Your next step

Read this one page next.

Just one. You don't have to read them all.

More like this (2)What is talk therapy, and who is licensed to do it in Arizona?When therapy is the right door

Looking for a person to work with? See how we check practitioners →

When this may need professional support. If what you are dealing with includes self-harm, severe depression or anxiety, substance dependence, or trauma symptoms that disrupt daily life, licensed mental-health care is the right door. Project Gina does not replace it. In the US, call or text 988.
Next stepWhat if I'm in crisis tonight? →