I’ve called 20 therapists, why aren’t any therapists near me calling me back?

Here are some tips to find a mental health therapist (written by a licensed therapist).

I get this question a lot when people are calling to book a new appointment for therapy.  People talk about calling many different therapists in their search for finding a therapist who is the right fit and no one calls them back.   Looking for counseling is hard enough without adding in that many counselors are fully booked.

I decided to write this post because I think that it takes a lot of courage to recognize areas where you can improve and I believe that if more people were like YOU (meaning they are willing to admit that they aren’t perfect and are willing to work on themselves), we would have a less problematic the world.

It is unfortunate that therapists aren’t calling you back, especially since therapists are the ones who are trained in communication (oh, the irony!).  They should at the very least have an outgoing voicemail message that mentions that they aren’t taking new clients.

If you ever call Long Beach Therapy and don’t get a call back within 2 business days (which is rare that it would take that long), please always feel free to call us back.  We are determined to return every single call, even if we are booked.

Here are some tips in finding a therapist:

First things first

Recognize that you are AMAZING for wanting to better yourself and that help IS OUT THERE so don’t give up.

Self-talk

If a therapist doesn’t call you back, it isn’t because of YOU. It’s most likely because they aren’t adhering to communication techniques that they probably preach.  So make sure you aren’t engaging in negative self-talk.

Breathe

Make sure to take some deep breaths and remind yourself that as long as you don’t stop calling therapists, that you WILL find someone.

Try email

Many people aren’t great with returning phone calls, so see if you can find their email and send them an email message.  You can often look them up on google to find their contact info.  If they aren’t accepting new clients, they are more likely to email you back because it takes less time.

Try texting

There is a 50/50 chance that the number you are calling your potential therapist on their work cell phone.  See if you get a response.

Long Beach Therapy will call you back 😊

If you live in California and are open to telehealth, give us a call (we do offer in-person therapy if you live near Long Beach).  Due to licensing restrictions, we can only see clients who are in California.

Ask a friend

If you have a friend who you know is in therapy, ask if they can ask their therapist for referrals.  When you call the referral, let them know who referred you.  It creates accountability for the therapist because they don’t want colleagues to think they are unreliable in calling people back.