How to Get What You Want Out of Therapy. Tips from a Therapist in Long Beach.

Therapy proves to be effective for many people, but in order to get the most out of your sessions, there are some things that you need to know. The most obvious of those comes with the selection of your therapist. You want to choose someone who has a personality and style that best suits your own. Do you want someone who is gentle and kind, or would you rather have a therapist who is blunt, direct, and who tells you what you need to know, but you may not want to hear? Your goal is to be as comfortable as possible in therapy, and it all begins with this selection.

You are probably going to require more than one session in order to get the most out of therapy, and in order to make sure that each session is a positive one, schedule your appointments for a time when nothing else is going to be a distraction. If you have a full calendar of events ahead of you immediately after your session ends, you run the risk of focusing more on what’s coming than on what’s happening at the present time. If necessary, clear your calendar on your therapy days, as having free time after your session will also allow you to reflect on what you discussed with your therapist.

If you want to get the most out of therapy, then you need to be prepared to be open and totally honest. You have to understand that you can say anything to your therapist without fear of being judged or scorned. Too many people head into their sessions and spend the entire hour trying to avoid saying what’s really on their mind and in their heart. The therapist’s office is a safe place where you can freely open up and let loose the emotions that you may have been holding for far too long.  Remember that a therapist does not just happen to look in the classifieds and think “hmm, I’m going to try doing this”.  A therapist has chosen to undergo 6 years or more of college, 3000 supervised hours of training and then take a test to become licensed.  They want to be there for you and want to help you and they understand that people experience embarrassing things in their lives.  They have CHOSEN to be a therapist and they understand how hard it is to be vulnerable.

While it’s important that you are open while you are talking to your therapist, it’s also important that you do the work between sessions too. This can be as simple as keeping a journal of your thoughts and experiences, or as difficult as trying to implement the suggested changes that the therapist has recommended for you. Talking things out is wonderful, but that is perhaps the easiest part of the road to recovery. You need to put in the work around the clock, and not just when you are on the clock in the session.

There are probably a lot of things on your schedule at any given time, but you really need to find a way to make your therapy sessions a top priority. Dropping them down the list in order of importance will make it harder for you to get what you need from therapy. If you are going to take the time to commit to getting help, then be a little selfish and put your own needs first for a change.