So, I was sitting here wondering what the heck to blog about today. And, guess what? I just so happen to have therapy within the hour. So I thought: That’s it! Let’s talk about therapy today.
While therapy has certainly been stigmatized a lot in the last decade, and it’s also become exponentially more accessible (since the Covid era especially), this topic is still one that can be quite emotionally charged. And I get it, mental health is no joke. It can be a delicate, and highly sensitive matter.
This post will cover what therapy is, different modalities of therapy, and 3 reasons for you to start therapy today. Let’s get into it.
Reasons To Start Therapy Now
What is therapy?
According to the Oxford dictionary, therapy means: a treatment intended to relieve or heal a disorder.
Today, I’m specifically talking about therapy in relation to mental health issues, rather than physical health. While the two certainly go hand-in-hand, and impact each other exponentially, there’s definitely not the same stigma around physical health as there is mental health.
What I mean is, if you break your leg and you’re in physical therapy as a form of rehab, you likely won’t feel shame around telling friends or family you’re getting treatment. Whereas, if the accident that broke your leg caused PTSD or anxiety, you might feel confusion, guilt, or shame around seeking a mental health professional.
Nowadays, seeking mental support through therapy is widely accepted, encouraged, and discussed- which has drastically decreased the stigma and shame that comes along with it. However, the conversions need to be constant in order to continually normalize people going to therapy.
Mental illness can come in all different shapes and sizes, the same way that physical ailments or illness can! While one therapy session certainly won’t be a cure all, getting into the constant habit of sharing your thoughts and feelings with a neutral party can help you to create a healthy relationship to yourself and others.
Different Kinds of Therapy:
I’m not a huge fan of blanket statements that ensure this one way of being will be beneficial for everyone. When it comes to food, exercise, work methods, and relationships- we’re all so different from one another. Hell, we’re different from the person we were last year, last month, or even the day before. So, most of the time, those blanket statements are just watered down empty promises that usually come with some sort of a sale at the end.
When it comes to therapy, however, I can say with certainty that I do think this is something that will improve anyone and everyone’s wellness in some way shape or form. The cool thing about therapy is that there are so many different kinds to choose from.
Below are just a fraction of options to consider. I highly recommend doing your own research in your area to see what a good fit for you will be. Therapists offer all kinds of specialties for certain traumas, life events, and mental health conditions so that you can find the best fit for exactly where you’re at today.
Talk Therapy
Most of the time when we think of therapy, we picture laying on a couch talking to some guy with round classes. That’s talk therapy. This is a style that I personally love, because I process through verbal communication. While I find this incredibly effective for my personal needs, I also understand how a lot of people find it ineffective. Or even makes the problem(s) worse by talking about them so much.
It’s really about knowing yourself and your own processing techniques to best understand what will work for you. And remember, sometimes you don’t know until you try. You can always change your mind.
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), EMDR, and brain spotting are all additional treatments often coupled with talk therapy.
Somatic Therapy
Somatic therapy aims to get the body involved in healing trauma. While there is some element of talk therapy present, this style of therapy is more about movement to tap into the areas of the body where emotional or mental trauma is stored.
It’s important to note that someone can become a somatic therapist a heck of a lot more easily than a trained psychologist or psychiatrist. This means that you should choose your practitioner wisely. And know that their credentials likely won’t be as expansive as an actual doctor.
There are also doctors who train in somatic therapy, as well, because it is real. And it is effective.
Psychedelic Therapy
Psychedelic therapy has actually been around for decades, but it’s only being talked about more openly in the turning of the legal tides for the psychedelic movement. Psychedelics can come in all sorts of forms. A few you might be familiar with: LSD (acid), psilocybin (mushrooms), ketamine (K), or MDMA (molly).
Ketamine clinics have popped up all over the US in the last few years, which is one option for psychedelic therapy. Other options include checking out MAPS.org for doctors who offer psychedelic therapy options.
The most effective psychedelic therapy isn’t about taking drugs, and having a good time. It’s about consuming the substance in a controlled manner, and then leaning into talk therapy as support before, during, and after.
3 Reasons To Start Therapy Now
I hope I’ve managed to pique your interest so far. Remember, there are so many kinds of therapies to choose from when you’re seeking therapy. And what works for me, or your best friend, or your brother might not work for YOU. That’s okay. You can continue to taste test the platter of options out there until you find a good fit.
Regardless of the style therapy you choose, I’m certain these 3 reasons will apply to you.
Neutral Party
The number one reason to start therapy is that you get to have a totally unbiased, neutral person help you to navigate life’s issues. As much as our family and friend’s love us, and as wonderful as that love is to receive- this also means there’s nothing neutral about their feelings towards us. Sometimes, this lack of neutrality can skew rationale, opinions, or advice to actually do more harm than good.
The best thing about neutrality in a therapist is that there’s no judgment. This creates a safe environment for you to actually open up, be honest, and explore the gunk that’s been shoved down there and ignored. It’s important to note that if you don’t feel that sense of safety with your therapist, they might not be the best fit for you.
Having a neutral party weigh in on guidance helps to decrease feelings of loneliness. You don’t have to take on the weight of the world alone anymore. Not only do you have someone, but you have someone who’s a trusted, stable source along the way.
Processing Trauma and Emotions
Trauma and emotions impact our health all around. Our mind impacts our body, and our body impacts our heart. Having a way to process some of these feelings, no matter how big or how small they are, allows things to get unstuck, rather than fester and grow in its stagnant nature.
There’s a common misconception that you must have a certain “level” of trauma in order to benefit from therapy. Like something really horrible has to happen in order for you to be affected. And that’s simply not true. Sure, some traumas are big, and noticeable. And other traumas are smaller, and almost unrecognizable.
The point is that you can identify and work with and through them in order to move forward in your life.
Improves Relationships
As you can imagine, if you have a neutral party helping you to process your emotions- your relationships will likely alter, and then improve. A major component of therapy is getting to know ourselves better by understanding our thoughts, patterns, triggers, and reactions. When we have this newfound knowledge about ourselves, we can now work with some of those pieces of self that felt uncontrollable before. Or felt too ugly to touch, or look at.
The first step in coming home to yourself is having an honest look at what’s even there. Therapy provides a safe space for that to happen. Next, you accept yourself as you are, maybe even start to love yourself as you are. And finally, you take that knowledge with you into your life- particularly into your relationships. Relationships make up our entire life: home, friends, work, so on and so forth. They’re unavoidable.
Now that you know yourself a little better, you’re able to navigate your relationships with more kindness, patience, ease, forgiveness, and understanding. You’re able to better understand your needs, your boundaries, and your desires. Overall, your relationships will strengthen as a result of going to therapy.
I know it can feel a little intimidating to start. And, trust me, the search for your therapist is a lot like dating as you’re trying new people out. Just remember that the outcomes are worth the search. You’ve got this my friends.
You deserve to feel at home.
xx,
K
