How to choose a therapist

Finding a therapist who can be a good game can take a lot of time, money and energy for your needs. I would like to offer a few tips that might make "shopping" for a therapist easier. My suggestions are based on my personal experience as therapy patients or in marketing terms, consumers of therapy and on my professional experience as a therapist. 

In general, I see the selection of a therapist is similar to finding and hiring a professional. It is a pre-interview stage where you are a handful of candidates. Next, you interview them either by phone or in person, or both, and then decide who to hire. 

The difference, if you are looking for a therapist that you can express your feelings influence your decision much more than if you hire another professional. It is not usually a good idea to put your feelings or emotions responsible, but therapeutic work is unique because it is largely built around feelings and emotions. The premise of the therapy for the patient to discuss their personal issues with the therapist for the purpose of improving their emotional state and / or life situation. 

 The exposure of personal material makes a vulnerable and should therefore not without a basic sense of security. If something about the future therapist makes you uncomfortable, do not take a second guess and take the survey the next candidate before you spend a large sum of money, only to realize that you and the therapist is not a good fit. 

During the pre-interview stage, you are usually using one of the two sources for the selection of candidates or both of them: personal connections and online resources (online therapist directories and Google search). I do not think a source is in no way better than the other. Everyone has their up and down sides. Some people trust only references that come through their connections to some online directories and search engines prefer, others do both. I personally suggest using two sources, as it increases your chances to find a decent therapist. 

If you get a referral from someone you know, they often will tell you their impression or opinion about the therapist they recommend, and that is a valuable piece of information that you do not get when you are online sources to use . On the other hand, is the fact that this therapist someone you know has helped or is brought to you by someone you know recommended no guarantee that they will be able to help you. You might be very experienced and knowledgeable and not a good fit for you on a personal level. Moreover, if a transfer goes through personal relationships, you will not be able to form their own impression about the therapist before you meet them. In comparison, if you look at therapists online profiles and websites, you can an intuitive sense of who they are before you to contact them and in this way will not waste your time and money on someone who does not respond to you from waste the beginning. 

Could get the online search overwhelming as you have to go through many websites and profiles and see many photos. Pay attention to the therapist first image. Look at the face carefully. Is this the face that you like and you can trust? The face of someone you connect with? That may sound like a childish approach, but as I said before, the therapy is a unique type of work around feelings and emotions, and therefore build, feel safe with the therapist is the basic prerequisite for the therapy to begin. 

After reflection on the therapist image, see their profile or website carefully and see if their approach and philosophy resonates with you and fits your needs, and then decide whether to include these therapists on the list of candidates for interview to. 

If you have selected more than one candidate for the "position", contact and schedule an appointment. Some therapists offer 10 or 15 minute free initial "consultation" over the phone. I personally do not think that phone call will give you a clear idea of ​​what kind of person is at the other end of the line. It may be helpful to talk on the phone first if you decide whether they want to meet with them or not. If you like them talking after a few minutes, then you will not need to waste time and money for a meeting and can move on to the next contact with the candidate. I do not think it is right to call this first interaction on a phone a "hearing" when the therapist is not really "hearing" you all at this time. This is only a preliminary mutual screening if you both decide whether you want to go a step further and make an appointment. 

Remember, though, that it be assessed more than one session for you and the therapist that you can take to work together. The type of therapy work is very personal and it may take a little time to get a feel if you and the therapist are a good match. 

I believe that if both you and the therapist try to judge during a preliminary stage, whether you are a good fit for each other, sessions are offered at a substantially discounted price. Many therapists would disagree with me, but I think that can not work much or should be carried out during the assessment period, while the obligation of cooperation has not yet been made, and therefore it is not fair, the full fee during this fee period . It could also lead to tensions as potential patients, as you might see on a certain level, the injustice of the situation in you. You do not know if you plan to work with this therapist. You do not even know when the first session will be a good experience for you, and even where you have to pay the full fee. Psychologically, it puts pressure on you to work with this therapist undertake immediately because you already paid a significant amount of your first meeting and would feel like a fool if it turns out that a waste! Therefore a reduced fee reduced pressure to commit that brings people at ease and makes her first experience with the therapist more positive. Moreover, if you are not given a freedom hire the therapist, paradoxically, it increases the chances that you will opt for the setting as you realize that you were not put under pressure to commit early. 

When you meet with the prospective therapist for the first time, relax and pay attention to your senses. Do you like this person? Do you feel that he or she is a good listener? Listening might seem like a simple thing to do, but it is not. It requires one to put aside their frame of reference when listening to you and be ready to see your experiences from your perspective. I believe that the therapist is the ability to listen to one of the most important factors in curative therapy. If you do not feel that you have been heard during your first meeting, do not waste more of your time and money with this therapist and make an appointment with someone else. 

During a preliminary stage, it is also important to the therapist, ask about their attitude to work and methods they use, and to ensure that their policy is clear. You can also ask about their credentials and work experience. You must be prepared to answer to all your questions related to their work. 

You have the right not to answer personal questions. In fact, in many cases it would be inappropriate and even unethical for them to do, as their self-disclosure could undermine the therapy work. There is only a personal question, which, I believe, the therapist has to be ready to answer, and that is if they had their own therapy. I believe that it is a legitimate question to ask, as I also believe that education and training are not sufficient to work for someone to do therapy. Need to be effective, and at least do not hurt me therapists know how their own psychological problems with the work they do, and disturbing personal therapy is a must for them to maintain this awareness. In addition, I believe that every therapist know what it's like to be a patient feels has. 

Just like all therapists are different in their personalities, working methods, theoretical background, interests, beliefs, training and experience, and that's wonderful, because you as a consumer have a lot to choose from. It is a quality, however, that each therapist has, and that is a clear understanding of what is a therapeutic relationship and what is not. You should never allow their relationship to develop with you in a close one. You must be able to sympathize with you and to have compassion for your pain and struggles, but empathy and compassion should not be confused with closeness and intimacy. If therapists are confused about their role and do not know how to be helpful without crossing a professional boundary, it often results in people getting hurt instead of healed....

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