What is therapy?

This is a really personal decision and there is no real "right" answer. If you are

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• feeling lost, indifferent, or numb about everything

• feeling on edge or looking for something to worry about all the time

• struggling to cope with your past or something really difficult that has happened to you or a loved one

• having trouble holding down a job

• and/or having significant struggles in interpersonal relationships (i.e., romantically, friends, or family)​

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Then therapy is a good option for you.

You can also seek therapy for feelings of "stuckness" in life, general unhappiness or anxiety and even to just learn more about yourself. It can feel incredibly daunting to enter therapy and be vulnerable with another person about what you are going through. However, seeking therapy can be a powerful experience for prioritizing self-care and wellness. It is one hour a week completely devoted to you and learning more about yourself. 

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*If you are feeling suicidal or dependent on substance(s) then you should seek services immediately. For substance use treatment, seek the nearest substance use clinic near you. If you are actively suicidal, call 911. If you are having frequent and/or intrusive thoughts about dying or hurting yourself , call the suicide hotline at 988.*

First, you make the decision to seek therapy. After that, you might email a couple of therapists in your area and then get a little nervous about what to expect. Here is a broad outline of what most therapy is like:

• 50-60 minute sessions once a week 

  • The first session is the most awkward. The therapist has to do a lot of writing or typing while you do a lot of talking, this will feel kind of like a doctor's appointment. It may not feel very personable. Don't discount your therapist or lose hope just because the first session didn't feel comfy cozy. 

  • In the first session, the therapist will likely ask questions about your primary reason for coming in, family history, medical problems, your job or school, your friends, and your substance use

• Virtual therapy

  • You will get a link once a week from a confidential platform - your therapist's office has to be HIPAA compliant so it may be a Zoom link or a GoogleMeet but it is specialized and confidential 

  • You can join from your phone or a computer, most therapists don't care which as long as you have good wifi or data 

• In-person therapy

  • Many offices do things differently. Most will have waiting rooms like doctors' offices and they will come get you from there. 

  • Each therapist's office usually has a chair for them and a couch or another chair for the client(s).

• Expect to feel tired or kind of drained afterwards sometimes. Therapy can be really rewarding but it takes a lot of mental power, that's a good thing. It's like a mental workout.

• Confidentiality. You are sharing very vulnerable parts of you in therapy and your privacy is a core tenet in our ethical principles. Your information stays in your chart. The only time therapists share your information is after you have given them consent to send it to somewhere with Release of Information (ROI) paperwork.

Most everything we talk about in therapy is confidential, however, there are several things that we cannot keep private for safety reasons. As therapists, we are mandatory reporters and must report the following:

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1. Risk of harm to yourself

2. Risk of harm to others

3. Disclosure of abuse to a minor or a vulnerable person. 

You will go over this in your first therapy session and discuss it more in-depth with your therapist if anything pertains to you.

It is normal to feel a little skeptical. How can just talking with another person make me feel better?

Most therapies work by helping you recognize patterns in your life that are not helpful but maybe were at one point. They may be emotional, thought or behavioral patterns. Once you become good at recognizing those patterns, you then work to catch yourself in the pattern and adjust it. It is really hard to do this all on your own because we can get really in our heads sometimes or really stuck in a pattern because it's what we know, it's what's comfortable. Having an unbiased, outside source (a therapist) can be great for this. 

This depends on a lot of factors but primarily: 

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1.  If you feel like you can trust your therapist and be vulnerable with them, therapy is more likely to be successful. 

2. If you are ready to do hard work and to make change in your life. 

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Quality therapy is not about just venting and telling someone how you feel. It's about letting your guard down, making connection, and looking inward with another person (your therapist) to examine your values, your patterns, and any contradictions that may be affecting you, causing your mental health to suffer.

Typically, therapy can last anywhere from 6-9 months. Sometimes it is shorter and sometimes it is longer. Some do best being in therapy consistently and others just need a couple of sessions here and there. There is no formula for how long it will take but the more effort you put in, the better your therapeutic outcomes typically are. If you enter therapy but only self-reflect and address patterns in your life for one hour a week in session, change may take a long time and it may be only miniscule.  Like with most things, the more time and effort you put into yourself, the better the outcomes will be. 

Therapy or the fit with your current therapist might not be effective if you experience any of the following:

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• if you are feeling judged or insulted

• if you are feeling unsafe

• if you do not feel listened to

• if the therapist seems like they are oversharing about themselves or other clients