Can I become a psychiatrist if I've been to rehab?

[sexy_mess]

Hello,
Let me just start by saying this is my first time posting, so I apologize if anything I say isn't right, & if so, please correct me.

Today I changed my major to psychology as it's really the only thing I'm truly passionate about.

I'm concerned that I won't be able to become certified or find work as a psychiatrist because I was hospitalized for mental illness & addiction in the past.

It was not court ordered or anything. I have a clean record (other than work in lieu of arrest in high school, which I believe was to keep my record clean), but the first time I attempted college, I was addicted to heroin and benzos (the benzos were prescribed to me). When I started college four hours away from home, I was unable to find opiates & began withdrawal. One night I called my mom to tell her that I was having suicidal thoughts but did not want to act on them. (I had made one attempt in the past in which I didn't say a word to anyone. Very grateful I was unsuccessful.) The next morning, she was there to withdrawal me from school & take me "home." But instead of going home, I went to a mental hospital. Once I had accepted that that's where I needed to be (on the ride there) I willingly admitted myself as an adult (18). The first night I was there I was in the unit for regular mental illness for my anxiety & depression. After questioning & me revealing that I was a heavy drug user, I was moved to dual diagnosis. I spent 11 days detoxing from the benzos (the opiates were already out of my system by this time). After my stay in detox, I was moved to a recovery center. I spent a total of 42 days hospitalized. I left early on account of the facility mixing up my suboxone (genuinely a mix up on their behalf, I had no idea I was on double what it should've been), I ran out & had worse withdrawals than the first time. The facility did not allow me to sleep through the illness & I began to feel trapped. Because my mom's worst nightmare is being held captive & drugged by an asylum, she understood & sent my dad to come take me home. I did not pack up my belongings because I knew the facility would put up a fight in letting me leave (even though, like I said, I was there voluntarily!) Anyway, I was eventually able to leave. Since then I have returned to college & though I haven't been doing perfectly, I have not gone back to those behaviors. I'm now at a point where I'm almost finished with my AA, which up until today was going to transfer into business to help my dad with his company, but he finally told me that he thinks I need to follow my own passion. It would mean everything to me to be able to help those who have suffered the way I have, as well as continue to learn about my own sick mind. Even before this became my field of study, I have been researching different aspects of psychology every night for the past year or so. I'm currently taking general psych as an elective & it's the first college course I've ever had over 100% average grade in!

So please, if anyone has any knowledge about whether this past situation will prevent me from pursuing my future dreams, please let me know. I would hate to go through 12 years of school only to find that I can't pursue this career because of what I did as a teenager.

Thanks for reading & especially would appreciate if you could offer any insight.

 

[steewith2ees]

Welcome to Bluelight! First of all allow me to congratulate you on the effort that you have made and continue to make and the self belief you appear to have regarding not only the control you have regained over your substance misuse, but in also sharing the most positive of aspirations that one could wish to read.

Hopefully you should get some answers from those who have a greater understanding of your local employment law and policies as for reasons that are too boring to explain, I am from the UK despite being tasked with keeping an eye on this, American, forum.

Over here I cannot imagine any of your former problems being a total barrier to registration with the General Medical Council (the professional body which all Doctors practising in the UK belong to). They would of course assess the situation on its own merits but all considerations would be made from an occupational health perspective - as long as you have not committed a crime they would just ensure that you are well enough and are likely to remain well enough to keep up with the standards of any training you require and the subsequent practise.

I do realise though that the US all bets are off and people are sometimes jailed and kicked off the voting register for smelling vaguely of their parents cannabis smoke when only 12 years old.

 

[sexy_mess]

thank you for the response & encouragement. I will have to look into who to speak with about the regulations of my particular state.

 

[finis]

In the USA -

A psychiatrist is a medical doctor who has acquired further education beyond MD thus psychiatrist. Psychiatrists can perform medical procedures, as shock treatments, and write prescriptions.
A psychologist is one who majors in psychology obtaining a BS degree, but at least a masters degree will be needed to work in this field. Psychologists cannot write prescriptions and are counselors for the most part. Your personal history would make you a better counselor for those who struggle with addiction. You are looking at a four-year degree in psychology then another two years to obtain your masters degree. You can do it.

 

[jtkirk]

As long as you are not a convicted felon you won't have any problems becoming a psychiatrist. My sisters son was in the same boat in Colorado and the only thing the school or licensing board cared about was that he had a clean criminal and child abuse record.

 

[billthepill987]

oh ya.......they have cannabis scheduled as a schedule 1 in some states! Rediculous.