Asking For Help, Benefits of Therapy, & How To Find a Great Therapist

02/28/2025

 1.)  How do I know it’s time to ask for help? If you are experiencing unwanted behaviors, physical symptoms, or challenges maintaining healthy relationships, that’s a good sign its time to look for professional support. If your symptoms cause a disruption to your daily routine, making it difficult for you to navigate your home life, work life, and physical health you also might benefit from support. There has been an increase in conversation around mental health and mental health awareness over the last two decades. One thing we haven’t discussed is the importance of identifying the barriers that keep people from asking for help and accessing care. The five most common barriers I hear from clients are: fear of being a burden, fear of being judged, shame of not being able to navigate a situation on their own, the idea that overcoming only counts when the battle is fought and won alone, and a BIG one I hear is avoidance and fear of having to make very difficult changes to their life. The energy spent avoiding areas of your life that are begging for your attention will manifest in other areas of your life if left unchecked. The longer we wait to address our needs and challenges both the frequency and intensity of our unwanted behaviors, habits, and symptoms grow over time. Feeling stuck in the same disappointing behaviors, habits, and relationships, and symptoms? It might be time to ask for help!

2.)  What are the benefits of therapy? The benefit of seeking therapy goes beyond relief, clarity, and increased daily functioning for you. The benefits extend to your family, friends, and coworkers as well. Therapy creates a safe space for you process, problem solve, and build tools to help you live a more confident, calm, and self-aware lifestyle. An experienced therapist will look at your current challenges through a holistic lens. This means, they will consider your childhood experiences, physical health, mental health, social relationships, trauma history, cultural and religious experiences, current family relationships, occupational satisfaction, self-esteem, and substance use history. One of the most valuable aspects of seeking support from a clinical expert is you’ll have objective feedback and professional support to understand your symptoms, behaviors, and relationship challenges. When we find ourselves entangled in weeks, months, and years of dysregulation and pain, it often becomes difficult to navigate where to start on our healing journey. A good therapist will gently push you, challenge you, and be a compassionate partner while you work together to untangle difficult challenges in your life.

3.)  How do I find a great therapist? Many of my clients have expressed challenges with finding a therapist that is a good fit for them. If you are in the market for a good therapist in your state, there are three key questions I want you to keep in mind. The first questions I want you to ask yourself is, where do I want to start? Identify your most pressing need, for example anxiety symptoms, childhood trauma, domestic abuse, suicidal ideations, intrusive thoughts etc. When asking for a referral from primary care, browsing providers on Psychology Today, or asking a friend for a recommendation, identifying your most significant need can serve as a guide to connect you to a provider who specializes in your most immediate need. The next questions I want you to ask is, what is my style of communication? This might seem one off, but it’s one of the most valuable observations I’ve had as a provider. Clients engage and build trusting relationships with therapists they can communicate well and meet their clients where they’re at. Before completing an intake appointment ask the therapist what their style of communication and therapy is so that you can ensure you’re off to a meaningful start. Some clients need a gentle and soft approach, other clients prefer direct and gently challenging communication. Knowing your communication style is key to finding a provider that is a good fit for you. The third question I want you to ask is, what kind of support am I looking for? Therapists utilize different modalities to support clients depending on their license and specialization. Identifying what kind of support you’re looking for will help you guide your search for a great provider. Perhaps you are looking for tools to help you heal and manage physiological symptoms, maybe you are looking for a provider to support you with processing a traumatic experience? Narrowing down what kind of support you are looking for will help identify the right provider for you. The modalities below can be used to treat, process, integrate, manage, and heal a variety of complex mental health issues Common therapy modalities include:

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Dialectic Behavioral Therapy

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing

Exposure Therapy

Psychotherapy

Internal Family Systems

Brainspotting

Family Therapy

Couples Therapy (I highly recommend the Gottman Method)

Happy Friday, friends! See you again next Friday at 09:00 PST.