Types of Mental Health Professionals

Types of Mental Health Professionals

The various types of mental health professionals offer specific services, such as relationship advice, medication management, or spiritual support. Choosing a provider can seem daunting because everyone has unique emotional, mental, or relational needs when seeking professional advice. However, you can make an informed decision for treatment by recognizing the difference between licensed mental health professionals.

1. Psychiatrists

Psychiatrists are medical doctors focusing primarily on the brain. They can both diagnose mental illnesses and prescribe psychiatric medication for disorders such as depression and anxiety. Some psychiatrists also provide talk therapy alongside prescription management, but therapy is not their specialty. Many people may see a psychiatrist for medication and a different professional for therapy.

2. Psychologists

Psychologists are somewhere in between psychiatrists and therapists. They may hold master’s or doctorate degrees (but not medical degrees). These mental health providers can determine if someone has a specific disorder through formal assessments (testing).

After diagnosis, a psychologist uses talk therapies to help clients thrive and address their presenting issues. Often, psychologists are more specialized than other counselors and therapists. For example, those struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) would benefit from seeking a psychologist specializing in that disorder.

3. Social Workers

Social work services are broad, with professionals counseling people in private practice, schools, hospitals, detention centers, the courts, and many other systems and organizations. They may advocate for children and underserved populations, helping clients navigate overwhelming systems. They support people across settings through individual or group counseling services.

Social workers wear many hats, and you may see credentials such as MSW, LCSW, LCSW-C, LISW, or LSW when encountering these professionals.

4. Marriage & Family Therapists

Marriage and family counselors specialize in couples and family therapy. They focus on overcoming dysfunction as a couple or in the family, helping clients work together as a cohesive whole to thrive. The ultimate goal of marriage counseling is achieving healthy living and cooperation together. Marriage and family therapists may hold MFT, MFCC, LMFT, and LCMFT credentials.

5. Counselors & Therapists

Counselors can diagnose mental health conditions but typically focus on working with individuals or groups using various forms of psychotherapy. Their goal is to help people overcome mental health challenges, life stress, and other obstacles interfering in their lives.

The terms “counselor” and “therapist” are often used interchangeably. However, therapists often provide long-term treatment while counselors work with short-term challenges and issues.

LPCs, LMHCs, or NCCs all have master’s degrees in counseling and have passed the required testing to earn their credentials. Mental health providers with “L” in their title have completed a specified amount of clinical hours to receive licenses to practice independently.

6. Pastoral Counselors

Faith-based Christian and spiritual counseling takes place in spiritual and religious contexts. These types of mental health professionals have master’s degrees in counseling or social work and are also clergy members. They combine counseling techniques with religious beliefs and teachings to add a spiritual component to therapy.

How to Choose a Mental Health Professional

Provided services are similar within each general category of mental health professionals. What differentiates these providers is unique requirements, like education levels, continuing professional education, number of supervised hours, and more (depending on the state).

Rather than homing in on the letters behind a name, consider the general type of mental health professional you need. Ultimately, you want to connect with someone who can help you overcome challenges and meet your life goals.

For example, are you seeking a diagnosis and possibly medication? Do you want to work through a particularly stressful life situation? Knowing your goal will help you align with the best professional for you.

Final Thoughts

Knowing the types of mental health professionals can help you determine which approach you need based on your preferences, presenting problems, situation, and intended goals. Consider researching local mental health providers to discover nearby resources.