Lately, I've been struggling with some minor depression. I think it's stemming from anxiety about leaving home and starting college in the fall, as well as starting to come out. I haven't felt motivated to do anything recently, and I've just been really sad about nothing and everything. I told my parents that I'd like to talk to someone, so I'm seeing a therapist next week for the first time. I'm a little nervous because I tend to keep things bottled up (another possible reason I'm depressed) and I don't feel comfortable sharing my feelings at all... Or really know how to for that matter. It's a miracle I mustered up the courage to tell my parents that I'm unhappy in the first place. Anyway, I was wondering if anyone could tell me what to expect when it comes to therapy. Maybe it's a dumb thing to be nervous about, but I could really use some advice/encouragement. Thanks.
I've been to several therapists, and thankfully I connected with them quite easily. Don't expect to be able to open up and say everything right away, give yourself time to gradually express what you've been feeling. For me, sessions were always very emotional, tears everywhere and all the time. There will be difficult questions asked and introspection can be hard when delving into something that's problematic or hurting you. You made the first and probably most important step, asking for the help, so it doesn't get much harder after that. The feeling I left with after a therapy session was pure relief. And I also learned a lot of coping techniques and just a whole new perspective on my life. This will be good for you, just be prepared to step outside of your comfort zone but with great results (hopefully). I wish you the best!
Therapy can be very helpful. I too am bad at opening up about emotional problems, but once I found the right therapist it wasn't so bad. Opening up about your problems and talking about yourself is exhausting and extremely difficult, but it's ultimately beneficial. However, they're professionals who are not judgmental and can help you deal with what you're going through. And if you don't connect with the one you're going to see, just know that you can keep switching until you find someone who's right for you.
Before delving into what all of your issues could 'mean' just talk to them about what is clear. That you are dealing with depression and what you think is causing it. It could very well be that that's all your first meeting is, just you being able to tell the therapist why you're there. Even that can be hard, depending on the person. If you can, try to make some sort of list (real or mental) of what you want to tell the therapist, and figure out when you want to tell them what.
keeping things bottled up will definitely make you depressed. that's why i was depressed for so long. regardless of what the therapist tells you, you will feel better just talking to somebody about it. trust me, it will help
I'm going to go against the grain here and say that therapists aren't always helpful. If you get a bad therapist who you don't connect to, they can do more harm than good. I just don't trust therapists, anyways. There's a lot of stuff that they have to legally report if you tell them, so I found myself always thinking really carefully about whatever I would tell mine, to the point where it wasn't even worth going.
Do they have to report your sexuality? I have no depression or take any anti anxiety drugs so that's not a problem. I actually see a Psychologist is that different than a therapist.:lol:
John, I'm glad you speak your mind. My first attempt at therapy was good. I didn't know how good it was, until I looked back. He was genuinely interested in my well-being. When I looked him up later to resume a therapeutic relationship, he had left to go into educational administration. I had a couple of meh relationships with therapists that where neither good nor bad. However, they were kind of brief. However, I had a bad relationship, where I feel I was played. I really think counter-transference, a term I learned here though I knew of the term transference, set in since I had said things that I later learned would have been slights on the way he had managed his life. I was just stating my opinion of situations in life and telling him what I felt, unbeknownst to me that there was some applicability to him and his family. At any rate, I foresee returning to it at some future time, but I have to have someone who will both be interested in my well-being as well has having demographics where I might not inadvertently trigger a counter-transference problem. To the OP, trust your gut. You may not know by the first visit, but you'll know within a handful of visits if there's the right chemistry. It's not rent-a-friend, but you have to respect each other. Without that, there isn't much. So, make sure you respect them professionally and that they validate what you feel and have experienced.
Bad therapy is at best useless and at worst harmful. But rarely harmful, and most people will be able to tell pretty quickly if a therapist is helping or not. Actually, that's not really correct. Therapists are obligated to report only imminent danger of harm to self or others. So if you say that you're planning to kill yourself, or to harm another person, and you have a specific plan, intent, and the means to carry it out, under those circumstances only a therapist would be required to make a report. In practice, most therapists are extremely reluctant to make mandatory reports, and will generally err on the side of not doing so unless they are confident there's a strong likelihood of putting someone at risk. Otherwise, the client will not be able to be honest with the therapist. But it's silly to worry that anything you can say will be reported, because that simply isn't true.
Yup, Chip got it perfect. They only report it if.. *You are going to harm someone. *You are going to harm yourself. *Someone is harming you. And they should tell you this the first time they see you. Other then that they have to keep their mouth shut. And if they follow their ethics then they shouldn't be judging you or have a problem with your sexuailty, depression etc. Yes, there are some bad therapist out there. Shop around and interview a few of them. Keep in mind that if they cross boundaries with you then you can fire them.
