From time to time, prospective clients contact me and express their preference for a mental health “expert.” I respectfully manage expectations by denying that I am an expert regarding any topic.
While I earned two master’s degrees associated with the field of mental health, and as I currently maintain two fully independent state licenses which allow me to practice in the state of Texas, I’ve never been, am not currently, nor ever will be a person who has comprehensive and authoritative knowledge of or skill in the practice of my field.
For instance, I’ve been a male for over four decades and I don’t even hold myself out as an authority on all things related to boys or men. As such, I wholly reject the logical fallacy of an appeal to authority and societal fascination with expertism.
Even as I’ve received primary and advanced practicum training and education from the Albert Ellis Institute, related to Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), I’m not an REBT expert. Despite the fact that I’m the world’s foremost hip hop REBT therapist source, I’m not an expert.
One of the main reasons I reject expertism is because others tend to blindly accept the opinions of so-called experts. Instead, I would prefer that people question everything—including the assumptions of those who claim expertise in a particular field.
In fact, dear reader, question any and everything you hear or read from me. Why? I’m no authoritative source and I realize that knowledge, wisdom, and understanding are dynamic processes, not settled or static in structure.
Practitioners within my field can’t even decide on a standard name for our area of practice (e.g., mental health versus behavioral health), let alone what term most adequately suits the people we serve (e.g., client versus customer). Personally, I question anyone who claims to know everything about any particular area of this field.
Moreover, I invite you to do so, as well. Question everything. In response to this, if you ask why, then you are off to a meaningful start.
If you’re looking for a provider who works to help you understand how thinking impacts physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral elements of your life—and doesn’t claim to know all there is to know about mental health, I invite you to reach out today by using the contact widget on my website.
As a psychotherapist, I’m pleased to help people with an assortment of issues ranging from anger (hostility, rage, and aggression) to relational issues, adjustment matters, trauma experience, justice involvement, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety and depression, and other mood or personality-related matters.
At Hollings Therapy, LLC, serving all of Texas, I aim to treat clients with dignity and respect while offering a multi-lensed approach to the practice of psychotherapy and life coaching. My mission includes: Prioritizing the cognitive and emotive needs of clients, an overall reduction in client suffering, and supporting sustainable growth for the clients I serve. Rather than simply helping you to feel better, I want to help you get better!
Deric Hollings, LPC, LCSW
References:
9gagger. (2013, May 17). Why question questioning everything? 9gag. Retrieved from https://9gag.com/gag/aZmXWP0
Curtis, G. (2017, October 2). Back to the Middle Ages: A century of “expertism” in America. Pittsburg Quarterly. Retrieved from https://pittsburghquarterly.com/articles/back-to-the-middle-ages-a-century-of-expertism-in-america/
Enriquez, A. (2021, October 25). Q. How does fair use work for book covers, album covers, and movie posters? Penn State. Retrieved from https://psu.libanswers.com/faq/336502
Hollings, D. (2022, March 15). Disclaimer. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/disclaimer
Hollings, D. (n.d.). Hollings Therapy, LLC [Official website]. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/
Hollings, D. (2022, March 25). Rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT). Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/rational-emotive-behavior-therapy-rebt
Hollings, D. (2023, March 4). The original hip hop therapist. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/the-original-hip-hop-therapist
Logically Fallacious. (n.d.). Appeal to authority. Retrieved from https://www.logicallyfallacious.com/cgi-bin/uy/webpages.cgi?/logicalfallacies/Appeal-to-Authority