13 things your therapist wishes you knew

Psychotherapists, psychologists and other mental health professionals are well known in society as good listeners. However, we’re going to let the therapists speak here, and you’ll learn a few things they’d like to tell you:

1. “Coming to us does not mean you are weak or that you are crazy”

The truth is that the latest therapies are designed in a way that helps people upgrade their minds and experiences by helping them to understand themselves and what ails them. Contrary to popular belief in the past, most people with problems are actually the ones who have the sharpest mind and seek support and help in trying to curb it.

2. “Search for information about me on the Internet first”

Most therapists maintain pages on the Internet, from which it will be clear to you exactly what they do, what they look like, what they are like as professionals, etc. That way, you’ll have a much better chance of finding just that person who will make you feel good.

3. “Don’t hire me if we’re not a good fit”

Most therapists will answer some questions by phone or email. If you feel that you don’t like the particular therapist, don’t hire him/her – he/she won’t resent you. In order to make progress, it is important to meet someone who makes you feel comfortable and talk freely.

4. “Drugs are not the only way to treat psychological conditions”

Sometimes drugs can be used as an important tool, but the mainstay of treatment is psychotherapy. Medicines can accompany the treatment in cases of severe depression, anxiety and others, but it is not mandatory.

5. “Serious conditions usually require medication”

Many people think that a therapist will cure them by seeing them once a week and without medication. However, this is not always possible. Some more severe cases need not a therapist and psychoanalyst, but a psychiatrist to help not only with a conversation and analysis of your condition, but also with the help of medication.

6. “Turn off cell phone during therapy”

Yes, therapy is yours and so is your time. After all, you have paid for this time with the therapist, and he is not a supervisor to enforce order and discipline. But every distraction harms you.

Because the purpose of your visit is to help you, not to stick your nose into your cell phone while someone across the street is trying to solve your problems. Very often the use of the mobile during therapy is an attempt to avoid solving your problems and facing them face to face.

7. “Change will not come instantly as if by magic wand”

Therapy is a process in which you gradually try to improve your life while getting to know yourself, the world around you, and your own feelings. Change is slow, requiring patience and cooperation on your part. It cannot happen instantly, just as summer cannot come in one day.

8. “You can talk about anything during your therapy, including sex”

Leave shame at the door when you go to therapy. Many people feel very embarrassed when they have to talk about sex, but they don’t have to because therapists are trained to talk about and analyze every area of ​​life, including problems that are related to sex. So if you want to change your life, you need to talk about everything that worries you.

9. “Be prepared to pay your therapist for every therapy”

If you forgot your wallet at home, your therapist probably won’t refuse you a session, but it will at least affect him and he will more distracted during therapy, and this will affect you. Just as you need his help to live a full life, so the therapist needs your help to live as a full person. It’s all collaboration.

10. “You may feel worse before you feel better”

Therapy is about dealing with difficulties. That is why you will most likely have to face the things that bother you the most and immerse yourself in them, because only then will your mind be able to “process” them and move on. If it is very difficult for you to talk about your problems, do not fail to share this with your therapist.

11. “Don’t expect me to tell you what to do”

This is one of the biggest fallacies – that you will go into the therapist and he will tell you “Do this and that and you will be fine”.
The therapist’s job is to point out your blind spots, guide you, help you understand your behavior and emotions, but never judge you for your behavior or what you feel.

12. “You may feel angry with me, but I don’t have a problem with it”

Some styles of therapy may cause the patient to become angry during therapy, but this is normal. The therapist knows how to respond and maintain the necessary atmosphere in the office. There are therapies in which there can be no progress if the patient does not find a way to release the accumulated anger. It is the therapist’s job to direct this anger outward in a proper way and continue the healing process on a sound basis.

13. “Some of the things you share with the therapist, he must report to the authorities”

Your therapy is confidential and everything said in the therapist’s office stays between you. But there are things, such as cases of abuse or murder, that the therapist must report to the authorities. Before you begin therapy, your therapist will have you sign an agreement that clearly explains exceptions and extraordinary circumstances .