About the Counselling Forum

[Big A]

In this forum you can discuss various issues such as depression, death, relationships, jobs, motivation and dealing with anxiety.

This forum will help members to deal with self defeating, irrational thinking that causes people trouble in life. And this is certainly needed in the bodybuilding community!

Not only that as usual, all our members will be able to help members in need on this forum, but we also now have resident qualified clinical psychologist (Sigmund Roid) and a PhD Psycholosgist (OuchThatHurts), on our staff who will also help with any problems you might have.
Sigmund Roid and he is also a top bodybuilding competitor who always turns up in amazing shape and carries a great deal of muscle, so he is especially aware of the issues that surround bodybuilders.
OuchThatHurts is also a very dedicated musclehead, that has been at this for a long time and just recently he's been putting up some serious lifts!

[Sigmund Roid]

Greetings Professional Muscle Members.

I am here to attempt to help people out in anyway I can as time permits. This is a wonderful opportunity for me to aid any who might desire some of the benefits of my training. We have many learned individuals here who can advise members in the area of nutrition, training, supplementation, and contest preparation. I think we can all agree that the mental aspect of the whole scene is tremendously important. It is in this area that I might be of some use to board members. My theoretical framework lies in the area of Choice Therapy (reality therapy) and Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy. To avoid a lengthy post I will sum it up by saying the following: for all practical purposes we choose everything we do, including the misery we feel. This is true unless you are hungry, sick, or poor. Other people can neither make us miserable, nor make us happy. I believe we have much more control of our lives than we realize! Hopefully, we will all be able to learn to make more effective choices, through back and forth interaction on the board. It is my desire to use the anonymous nature of the board to openly teach some of this theory to others. Remember it's not so much what happens to us in life, it's the way we choose to think about it that matters!

Sigmund Roid

[OuchThatHurts]

Hello members of Professional Muscle.

I’d like to take a moment to thank Big A and the other members of professional muscle for hosting and maintaining a site where we can ALL come to blow off some steam, discuss our favorite things, and most importantly, share in the wealth of knowledge of other members. There is no monopoly on wisdom. These forums give us all an opportunity to express our thoughts and desires without them becoming public record. Although touted by many as “underground”, anonymous forums online are simply a technological byproduct of the age in which we live. There is no difference, in my opinion, whether posting a question or concern to a forum OR sending a “Dear Abby” letter to a newspaper columnist.

One is technologically analogous to the other.

I choose my patients and have experience with various mental disorders although my primary focus has been attention disorders, eating disorders, anxiety and depression, and case-by-case drug abuse. I argued my dissertation, to some subjective success, that citizens of developed nations are over-stimulated and as a result need greater and greater levels of sensory input in order to stay focused. In short my theory was, and is, that you can’t take a child away from a widescreen television, a box of chocolates, and a high-impact video game and place him in a chair under fluorescent lights and expect him to concentrate on the fact that two plus two, amazingly, equals four. I could go on with disassociation, and desensitization, etc. but I’ll assume you get the idea.

I hope to contribute to the boards as they have contributed to me. I am 34 years of age. I am a non-competitive powerlifter. I rock climb all over the world and have summited some nice peaks. Most recently, a winter summit of Mt. Baker in WA left me with frayed patellar tendons. I am PADI certified Advanced Open Water Diver and spent a month diving the Bloody Bay Wall off Little Cayman.

I am 5’9” and 215lbs.

current:

501lb bench press (still unofficial)
615lb squat (hips below knee, 3 witnesses)
620lb deadlift (unofficial)

3 lift total:

1736lbs

So, that would be my introduction to you and I ask that you please mind my disclaimer below. Take care of yourselves and see you in the forum!

Jon

[Big A]

Welcome our third resident psychologist, Strongmind.

She is a master's level clinical psychologist and doctoral candidate. She is currently working on her dissertation and her specialization is in body image issues and eating disorders in men and women, athletes, as well as the general population.
She's also involved in research related to steroid abuse and body dysmorphic disorder, specifically muscle dysmorphia.

So make her welcome guys and girls, she's a great addition!

[lilkoreangirl]

I personally don't have anything to discuss with either of the counselling MDs, but want to say you both are an amazing resource that I hope people will come to. Thank you for being here, really. It's comforting.
LKG

[strongmind]

Originally Posted by lilkoreangirl

I personally don't have anything to discuss with either of the counselling MDs, but want to say you both are an amazing resource that I hope people will come to. Thank you for being here, really. It's comforting.
LKG

Thank you, LKG. I hope you are enjoying PM so far. I have really enjoyed being a member here, as well as a resident psychologist alongside OuchThatHurts. OTH is awesome and gives great advice. I hope I have been able to help a few peeps along the way as well.

Feel free to stop by and say hi anytime!!

[OuchThatHurts]

Originally Posted by strongmind

Thank you, LKG. I hope you are enjoying PM so far. I have really enjoyed being a member here, as well as a resident psychologist alongside OuchThatHurts. OTH is awesome and gives great advice. I hope I have been able to help a few peeps along the way as well.

Feel free to stop by and say hi anytime!!

Thank you stongmind and hello lilkoreangrl. Without a doubt, stongmind, the pleasure has been all mine. I welcome your perspective on any topic, any time.

LKG, feel free to jump on anytime. Strongmind and Sig can surely tell you that it's a welcome change at times even to hear someone say "You can't believe what a fantastic year I'm having!"

Nothing wrong with that. BTW, I have to tell both you gals that your boys looked fantastic this year. I'm sure you had to put up with a lot of grouchiness but really, both of them came in looking really lean and thick. Can't imagine what they must look like in the off-season... Hope you're training alongside them since you both are quite attractive (sorry BD21 and Luc). It needed to be said... haha!

[Thor]

am glad you guys/gals are here, I keep way too much pain inside my simple little mind but It is nice knowing that you are here to listen if I EVER decide to open it up. this board is just so great!

[minister]

It is so special for this board to have this kind of service, it shows that that people here really cares for us, we all go through hard times in lifeand is good to know we have people from all different backgrounds ready to support us. God bless all of you.