Watch out!

Jeremy Palmer said:Honestly, I wish I could just stay quiet too
- Who are these people on this subforum acting like psychiatrists or specialists, trying to run a therapy clinic through their posts?
- Or better yet, who are the ones pretending to be professionals just to mislead innocent users with psychological jargon?
- Does anyone actually know someone who was misled by these "experts," potentially leading them down the wrong path and making their situation worse?

If the original post included actual facts, it would carry much more weight because it would be based on reality rather than just a gut feeling.

Kenneth Peterson5 — I'm not quite sure what to say to you. This woman basically told you straight up that you're talking nonsense and that your comments are getting on her nerves, yet you claim to enjoy her exact way of being... I was really expecting your usual style of sharp, intelligent rebuttals backed by solid logic... but hey, if that's the kind of treatment you're into... 🙂

Donna Sullivan7 said:-Personally, I don't mind if someone's just trying to offer some genuine, well-meaning advice
(without digging too deep into someone's private business)...
-but trying to dictate someone's dosage or
telling them to scale back on meds they were officially prescribed by a doctor based on a single sentence or some vague info... that's just plain wrong. It's honestly pretty childish.

@Jeremy Palmer-which ones?
-I ran into this guy who, because of his own little "convictions," was basically telling people to ditch their therapy (questioning how they even function without it). He even went on record advocating for drugs, publicly... and now, word is he's actually on medication himself...(you know the type...)
-There were even hints of actual illegal activity involved, but isn't that what the moderators are here for?? To step in when posts cross the line.👎

Carol Baker6 said:But what about all that garbage advice you see in tabloids, like the New York Post?

I've lost count of how many times I've seen people fall for their nonsense—lies, scams, straight-up manipulation, twisting facts... you name it. And when you actually try to warn people, they just stare at you like you're the crazy one, saying, "Are you kidding? It was in the paper!"

And don't even get me started on the rest of the mainstream media outlets. They're all running the same playbook, maybe just slightly less aggressively than the Post, which is basically the gold standard for this kind of junk.

Jerry Green59 said:During my very first psychopathology lecture—held over at the university clinic—some guy walked into the classroom, looking incredibly serious. He gave us a quick nod, introduced himself as our professor, and... well, he got straight to work.

He talked about illnesses.
About disorders.
And various diagnoses.

The man was throwing around heavy terminology like he was getting paid by the syllable, just rattling off terms while we all sat there staring at each other, desperately trying to scribble everything down.

Then he moved on to case studies and patients, though it was impossible to ignore the palpable sense of contempt in his voice whenever he mentioned them.

Suddenly, a woman walked in accompanied by two nurses.
She greeted the class, acknowledged the "professor," and took her seat at the head of the room while the nurses escorted our "colleague" out. She then turned to us and asked one question.

"Which one of you actually believed he was a professor?"

Every single one of us raised our hands.

Unbelievable.

Kenneth Peterson5—whenever someone on a forum starts handing out clinical diagnoses or life advice based on thin evidence like "I didn't grow up with my father"—just know you're likely dealing with a "professor."

Being able to toss around technical jargon certainly suggests a person is familiar with the subject matter.

But it doesn't tell you if they're familiar with it as an expert, or simply as a patient.

So, please, be skeptical when accepting "professional" advice from internet forums.

That’s all.

Sandra Parker3;14310750 said:yeah, but their influence hasn't really been that strong, at least not up until now]
I don't follow every single thread, obviously, and I'm definitely not an expert on everything, so I was wondering.... did you say anything when you noticed those "sketchy" pieces of advice

-hey-,Sandra Parker3-, if I remember right, you were hanging around this thread last year too,... plenty of people called him out on his crap, and I even told him myself how I barely clawed my way out of drug hell, just to have him talk nonsense to me. He was all like, "well, as if drugs are any better than heroin..." lecturing me on "human boundaries"... hare krishna stuff... he just constantly equates prescription meds with opioids... acting like nobody can talk sense into him because he knows best and all that... then, well, his last update was about how he ended up relapsing during detox...(I think you know who I'm talking about, and I know you do)😉

Donna Sullivan7 said:..like nobody can talk sense into him because he thinks he's the ultimate authority on everything... and if I recall correctly, his last update was about how he ended up in rehab...(I'm sure you know exactly who we're talking about)😉

Jerry Green59 said:The professor's name is Professor Miller, the building is the Liberal Arts college, and the lectures used to be held over on Oak Street.

(You missed the entrance; the pub is actually located in the Liberal Arts building)

@nina333: Who exactly is defending free speech here? Did someone actually advocate for getting rid of free expression?

Jerry Green59 said:During my very first psychopathology lecture—held over at the university clinic—some guy walked into the classroom, looking incredibly serious. He gave us a quick nod, introduced himself as our professor, and... well, he got straight to work.

He talked about illnesses.
About disorders.
And various diagnoses.

The man was throwing around heavy terminology like he was getting paid by the syllable, just rattling off terms while we all sat there staring at each other, desperately trying to scribble everything down.

Then he moved on to case studies and patients, though it was impossible to ignore the palpable sense of contempt in his voice whenever he mentioned them.

Suddenly, a woman walked in accompanied by two nurses.
She greeted the class, acknowledged the "professor," and took her seat at the head of the room while the nurses escorted our "colleague" out. She then turned to us and asked one question.

"Which one of you actually believed he was a professor?"

Every single one of us raised our hands.

Unbelievable.

Kenneth Peterson5—whenever someone on a forum starts handing out clinical diagnoses or life advice based on thin evidence like "I didn't grow up with my father"—just know you're likely dealing with a "professor."

Being able to toss around technical jargon certainly suggests a person is familiar with the subject matter.

But it doesn't tell you if they're familiar with it as an expert, or simply as a patient.

So, please, be skeptical when accepting "professional" advice from internet forums.

That’s all.

Keith Lee2 said:But get this—the next day, since you missed the lecture and I was there, the same
guy shows up again—the "Professor."
Naturally, we all give him a huge round of applause because, hey, he totally fooled us.
But then he goes:
"Who among you believed that woman yesterday when she said I wasn't the professor, but she was?"

We all put our hands up again.

Man, seriously...😁

Jerry Green59 said:Kenneth Peterson5, give me a break.

(And by "give me a break," I mean I see you lurking on every single thread, demanding justifications and deep dives into everyone's motives.)

I rarely find myself browsing this specific forum.

I get it—sometimes people are dealing with real issues but feel too uneasy about seeing a doctor, so they take the path of least resistance by trying to DIY their problems online.

My goal with this topic is actually quite well-intentioned: I want to advise people that seeking help from verified professionals is much smarter than relying on internet advice. In my experience scrolling through here, I've run into plenty of cases where users offer suggestions that aren't just uneducated, but are downright catastrophic—the kind of bad advice that turns a minor issue into a total disaster.

Do you honestly think it’s unnecessary to warn forum users when someone starts "prescribing" medications or treatment plans?

If so, I suppose your stance is that anyone naive enough to follow amateur medical advice should simply be left to deal with the consequences of their own ignorance.

Joseph Moore4 said:😲 🤣

Look, if someone is actually going to take medical advice from a "doctor" on an internet forum, a warning isn't going to do much. They’re already way too far gone. 😬

Keith Lee2 said:@Sanjo
Just wanted to say—you can never be too careful.
You never really know who’s being genuine and who’s just messing with you.

There's this old fable about a sparrow, a cow, and a cat—pretty vivid stuff.
It goes like this:

Poor little sparrow freezes on a branch and drops like a stone.
A cow wanders by and... well, leaves a mess right on him.
The sparrow thaws out.
He starts getting all worked up.
The cat hears him.
She digs him out of the mess and eats him up.

But honestly, there are some real life lessons in there.
1. Just because someone screws you over doesn't mean they meant any harm.
2. Just because someone pulls you out of a hole doesn't mean they've got your back.
3. If you're already stuck in the mud, sometimes it's best to just stay quiet.

So, my takeaway? Even if Jerry Green59 leaves me in a mess, it doesn't mean she's out to get me.
Same goes for when you tell someone to "cut the crap"—it isn't always an insult.