What to Expect From Therapy
Effective therapy takes place in a safe, supportive, and confidential environment which allows you to open up enough to explore issues of concern to you.
What's it like to interact with a therapist?
Each therapist is different, but a good therapist expresses empathy and is focused on you, on your life, and on the issues which are important to you. A good therapist listens to you and works hard to understand things from your point of view. An effective therapist allows you to feel heard and understood.
A good therapist always works to make sure you feel safe in your interactions with him or her. Central to successful therapy is fostering an environment in which you feel safe enough to talk about whatever is bothering you without being judged.
A good therapist is honest. They will answer questions honestly and be honest about their own views. You should be able to ask your therapist questions and be able to trust their answers.
Is there anything I can say to a therapist that would shock them?
Possibly, but it’s unlikely. Most therapists have been exposed to a myriad of human behaviors either directly through therapy or through education.
Don’t therapists give advice?
A truly masterful therapist will not give you advice or engage in problem-solving for you. A good therapist will help you find your answers and your solutions. Most of us are wise beyond our awareness and we have strengths we rarely acknowledge. A good therapist helps you tap these resources in yourself and define your life in your own way. A good therapist can help you identify obstacles to tapping those resources and to identify flawed beliefs that get in your way. Effective therapists do not define the path. That is for you to determine.
Do therapists diagnose people?
Therapists are able to make diagnoses. Many therapists are opposed to diagnosing clients, believing diagnoses are too narrow and that labeling people is detrimental. However, if someone is suffering from Schizophrenia or Bipolar Disorder, sometimes it is helpful to identify the source of their symptoms because medication is often helpful in these situations.
If you are being treated by a therapist through your insurance company, the insurance company may require that the therapist provide a diagnosis in order to pay for your treatment. Should this be the case, you should talk to you therapist about what diagnosis they are giving you and what it means. At My Online Therapy we do not take insurance reimbursements for this and many other reasons, so our therapists are not required to diagnose you. If you have questions about the individual therapist’s position on diagnosing we strongly recommend that you discuss it with them.
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