Finding A Therapist: What Is Therapy and Is It Right For Me?
This is part one of a three part series about Finding A Therapist. It is a collaboration between Laura Louise Green from Healthy Pour and Katy Osuna from Copper & Heat.
Opinions expressed in this article do not necessarily represent the point of view of Best Served. In furtherance of bringing more voices to the table, we are committed to sharing varied thinking throughout the industry.
Mental health is just as real as physical health. And just like physical health, sometimes it helps to have someone to guide you through it, like a personal trainer. Going to therapy can be a great way to have that guide.
The thing is, everyone has mental health — sometimes it’s good, sometimes it’s bad — and you definitely don’t need to find yourself in crisis before engaging in therapy. In fact, it’s much less stressful for you to seek help before things become unmanageable. Again, like physical health, preventative care is essential to staying healthy. Sometimes, it’s even great to start therapy when you’re in a good place and practice coping with challenges as they come.
So how do you go about finding that personal trainer?
What is therapy and is it right for me?
Therapy, at its most basic is a healthing relationship with a therapist “to resolve... behaviors, beliefs, feelings, relationship issues, and/or somatic responses (sensations in the body)” that are challenging for you as a person.
Therapy isn't necessarily laying on a chaise lounge staring at the ceiling while you recount your earliest memories. That’s one way, sure. But there are a lot of ways to engage therapeutically. Sometimes talk therapy is best (and it is certainly the most common), but other forms of emotional expression and connection like art, nature, dance, movement, and adventures can be more beneficial and emotionally accessible. Since there are so many different kinds of therapy, odds are there’s a kind of therapy for you!
What are the different kinds of therapy?
Understanding a little bit about the common types of therapy and who they work best for will help you in choosing a therapist. Oftentimes, a therapist will employ several different approaches depending on your needs. We’ve listed some of the most employed ones, but there’s an even more comprehensive list by Psychology Today here.
CBT - Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
“The focus is on problem solving, and the goal is to change clients' thought patterns in order to change their responses to difficult situations.” If you’re someone that does well with assignments or “homework,” your therapist may use CBT.
DBT - Dialectical Behavioral Therapy
“DBT skills are thought to have the capability of helping those who wish to improve their ability to regulate emotions, tolerate distress and negative emotion, be mindful and present in the given moment, and communicate and interact effectively with others.”
REBT - Rational Emotional Behavioral Therapy
“To help you manage and overcome difficulties or achieve life goals, the therapist will work with you to identify the beliefs and rigid thought patterns that are holding you hostage. The therapist will help you see how irrational these thoughts are and how they harm you. Through a variety of mental exercises, you will then learn how to reduce your negative thoughts and responses, and replace them with healthier, more constructive and self-accepting thoughts.”
EMDR - Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing
“EMDR is a unique, nontraditional form of psychotherapy designed to diminish negative feelings associated with memories of traumatic events. Unlike most forms of talk therapy, EMDR focuses less on the traumatic event itself and more on the disturbing emotions and symptoms that result from the event.”
“In relational therapy, you learn to identify how you may be pushing people away rather than attracting them and also come to understand how these behaviors are related to past experiences. The goal is to develop new ideas about relationships, to build a strong relationship with the therapist, and to use both those new ideas and the therapeutic relationship as a model to create healthier, longer-lasting relationships with others.”
“Narrative therapy is a form of counseling that views people as separate from their problems. This allows clients to get some distance from the issue to see how it might actually be helping them, or protecting them, more than it is hurting them. With this new perspective, individuals feel more empowered to make changes in their thought patterns and behavior and “rewrite” their life story for a future that reflects who they are, what they are capable of, and what their purpose is, separate from their problems.”
“Feminist therapy is an integrative approach to psychotherapy that focuses on gender and the particular challenges and stressors that women face as a result of bias, stereotyping, oppression, discrimination, and other factors that threaten their mental health. The therapeutic relationship, based on an authentic connection and equality between the therapist and the client, helps empower clients to understand the social factors that contribute to their issues, discover and claim their unique identity, and build on personal strengths to better their own lives and those of others.”
“Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) is a modified form of cognitive therapy that incorporates mindfulness practices such as meditation and breathing exercises. Using these tools, MBCT therapists teach clients how to break away from negative thought patterns that can cause a downward spiral into a depressed state so they will be able to fight off depression before it takes hold.”
“Person-centered therapy uses a non-authoritative approach that allows clients to take more of a lead in discussions so that, in the process, they will discover their own solutions. The therapist acts as a compassionate facilitator, listening without judgment and acknowledging the client’s experience without moving the conversation in another direction.”
Solution-Focused Brief Therapy
“Unlike traditional forms of therapy that take time to analyze problems, pathology and past life events, Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) concentrates on finding solutions in the present time and exploring one’s hope for the future to find quicker resolution of one’s problems. This method takes the approach that you know what you need to do to improve your own life and, with the appropriate coaching and questioning, are capable of finding the best solutions.”
“Art therapy involves the use of creative techniques such as drawing, painting, collage, coloring, or sculpting to help people express themselves artistically and examine the psychological and emotional undertones in their art. With the guidance of a credentialed art therapist, clients can "decode" the nonverbal messages, symbols, and metaphors often found in these art forms, which should lead to a better understanding of their feelings and behavior so they can move on to resolve deeper issues.”
Different ways to engage in therapy
There are many different ways to engage in therapy, which we’ve listed below and you’ll likely benefit from multiple arrangements. For example, someone who is looking to have a healthier relationship with substances might engage in individual therapy alongside group therapy with the occasional couples session. Children benefit tremendously from engaging in therapy individually as well as finding ways to integrate the entire family system (and teachers!). There are lots of options, and your therapist will help you make decisions around what is helping and what is not.
Individual Therapy
This is likely the most common and usually includes one-on-one sessions between you and a therapist.
Group Therapy
Drop-In Processing
These kinds of groups are open-door for people who want to stop in for different sessions. For example, there might be a group for survivors of domestic violence where someone can go to meetings when they choose. Another example would be peer support groups like Alcoholics Anonymous (though some AA meetings are closed and require scheduling).
Structured Facilitation
These groups are facilitated by a therapist and different people sign up to be a part of the group. For example, in interpersonal group therapy, the facilitator will select people with different personalities and social triggers that are curated to intentionally trigger and heal others. The facilitator then works with everyone in the group to process together. Another example would be a group of individuals working through a similar but highly sensitive issue where trust and confidentiality is essential.
Psychoeducation
These are group classes on different topics related to mental health and experiences. For example, there could be groups for people with general anxiety disorder that meet regularly and learn about the disorder and different treatments.
Couples
This is not limited to married couples, but can also be effective for non-familial relationships like business partners, colleagues, friends, etc.
Family
Family therapy isn’t always the whole family meeting every week all at once. There might be full family check-ins, but a family therapist might meet with some members one week, and other members the next. Family therapists work to learn the family system (including generational patterns and trauma) to understand what’s happening and help build new systems that are safer and help families to thrive.
Ways to Meet With a Therapist
Online
Teletherapy
This became popular by necessity during the pandemic. Teletherapy is when a client meets with their therapist via video chat or over the phone. Teletherapy works best when both the therapist and client are in a quiet, private space with a capable internet connection.
Text Therapy
Services like Better Help offer access to a therapist through text messaging.
In-person
This article is part of a three part series. For more information, read Finding A Therapist: What To Look For and Finding A Therapist: I Found A Therapist, Now What? to learn more.
Katy Osuna is the host and producer of the James Beard award-winning Copper & Heat podcast. She’s been a cook for 9 years and worked in all sorts of places from the 3-starred Michelin restaurant Manresa in Los Gatos CA, to the sustainable meat company Belcampo before starting Copper & Heat. The interviews and content from this article are from episode 2 of Pre-Shift, the third season of Copper & Heat. Copper & Heat explores the unspoken rules and traditions of restaurants through the stories of the people that work in them.
Laura Louise Green | Founder of Healthy Pour
