Do I need therapy?

It’s normal to experience some challenges and struggles in our lives. However, if more than a couple of these statements are true for you, it could be a good sign that you may benefit from mental health counseling or therapy.

• You’ve tried managing the issue on your own but haven’t been able to

• Noticing yourself having more “bad days” than “good days”

• Having emotional outbursts that are disproportionate to the situation

• Not enjoying things like you used to

• Having trouble “bouncing back” after frustrations or setbacks

• Consistently feeling “low/empty,” overwhelmed, or hopeless

• Feeling like you have nobody to talk to about the problem

• Struggling with excessive worry about the future

• Having low motivation and energy to complete daily tasks

• Sleeping or eating too much or too little

• Having trouble finding meaning and purpose in your life

• The issue has caused problems in your relationships, work or school

• Feeling unable to cope with day-to-day life stresses

• Experiencing intrusive, unwanted, or disturbing thoughts

• Having thoughts of wanting to die, disappear, or escape your life

• Isolating yourself or withdrawing from friends and family

• Experiencing panic attacks, nightmares, or flashbacks of the trauma

• Difficulty focusing because you keep thinking about the problem

How can therapy help?

People often report experiencing the following benefits from participating in psychotherapy:

• Having a safe, private, and non-judgmental space to talk about your struggle with a knowledgeable professional

• Feeling less isolated and “alone” with the problem

• Clarifying and achieving your personal goals

• Learning more about how your thought and behavior, patterns affect your mood, energy, and relationships

• Gaining insight into how your past experiences influence your present choices and thought processes

• Cultivating healthier, stronger, more fulfilling relationships

• Developing more positive coping strategies to deal with life stresses

• Experiencing more enjoyment and satisfaction with your life

• Feeling more in control of your life and your choices

• Establishing healthy boundaries and effective communication strategies

• Identifying and changing negative thought and behavior patterns which are keeping you “stuck” in the problem

• Improving productivity, mood, and overall health

• Learning how to resolve conflict with challenging people

• Identifying and overcoming the barriers within yourself so that you can achieve your goals and live your best possible life

• Having more confidence and improved self-image and self-esteem

• Experiencing a reduction in your distressing symptoms

What can I expect the process to be like?

Once you schedule a new client session, you will receive an email from Expanding Minds Therapy to complete intake documents via Simple Practice client portal. If you are using insurance, you will also get an email from Headway where you will input your insurance and payment information.

At your first appointment, be prepared to tell your therapist some details of the challenges you’ve been having, as well as some history about the problem. You can also expect to share some background information about yourself, family of origin, current significant relationships, employment status, etc.

During the first session, you and your therapist will discuss treatment goals and establish schedule for future sessions. If you’re using insurance, your therapist will assign an ICD10 Diagnosis Code to use for your work together based on the information you’ve shared.

For more about what to expect during therapy, feel free to read my blog post on the subject.

For more information about paying for therapy, please visit my services page