Top 10 Myths About Therapy And Counseling

This myth is rooted in Freudian psychoanalysis. During the psychotherapy process, we will focus on your present problems. Depending on your goals, we might talk about your childhood too. However, we will work out through your past experiences only to understand what effect these experiences have on your life today.

Online counseling online can be as effective as face-to-face therapy. If you are willing to work on your issues and if you find a therapist who is a good fit, there is no reason for your therapy not to work. In fact, many clients have found tele-health sessions by our secure video system to be preferable as they can be in the comfort of their home, office or even their car while having sessions. This provides a level of safety and security that often permits clients to be more comfortable sharing and talking about serious and deeply sensitive topics.

Both psychotherapy and medications have their advantages and disadvantages in treating psychological issues. It depends on your specific needs, which form of therapy will help. However, for some problems such as relationship problems, anxiety, and depression, psychotherapy is often the best choice.

Many people don’t feel comfortable opening up to a therapist because of the fear of being judged or blamed. However, therapists don’t judge or condemn. They bring an objective insight into your problems and encourage you to take responsibility for your life.

Although psychologically intimate, the therapeutic relationship is strictly a professional one. You pay the therapist to help you work on your problems. A therapist who breaks the boundary between a professional therapeutic relationship and friendship risks losing their license. The psychotherapist should limit the therapeutic relationship to sessions and necessary phone, text, or email.

Some people think that therapy is a waste of time because they are smart enough to solve problems independently. However, this is a very damaging myth about therapy as it prevents people from seeking help.

Although therapy isn’t a never-ending process, it is incorrect to expect somebody to fix your problems in one or two sessions. It usually takes many sessions overtime to get to the core of the problem and start the healing. However, don’t expect your psychotherapy sessions to last for excessively long periods, either. The average therapy course lasts three to four months.

A common myth is that your psychotherapist can prescribe medication. However, most psychotherapists are licensed psychologists, social workers, or marriage and family therapists who cannot prescribe medications. They are trained and certified to help clients work through their problems using specific strategies.

A therapist’s professional role is to help the client understand their problems, develop, and grow. The therapist is also responsible for establishing a safe environment of trust and setting the boundaries and structure in the therapist-patient relationship.

Your therapist will help you work on your feelings, manage stress, change behavior, and set clear goals, but they will not develop ready-made solutions to your problems.

One of the most common misperceptions about psychotherapy is that only crazy or mentally ill people seek psychotherapists’ help. For this reason, many people bottle up their problems, unwilling to ask a professional for help.

However, seeking therapy is not a sign of weakness. Most people who come to therapy struggle with day-to-day challenges such as communication issues, relationships, low self-esteem, work-related stress, parenting concerns, anxiety, and depression.