All About Therapy
Never been to therapy? Not sure what to expect? You’re in the right place!
There are many excellent resources that provide a good overview of what therapy is. Some of my favorites to start with are:
However, while these provide a good base definition of therapy, they define therapy primarily through a medical model lens. While therapy can be a powerful treatment to alleviate mental health symptoms, it is also so much more than that.
Therapy can range from having a place to scream out all your frustrations and sorrows to being able to have one quiet, still hour in a week of chaos. Therapy can be a space to talk all about your special interests or hobbies that maybe nobody else in your life will listen to. It can be a training ground for socializing and having healthy relationships, a meditative space of reflection, your reality-check stop, or a space to celebrate your growth and learning with someone who is invested in you living your very best life.
Therapy is a space that can be all about you, with someone who has the caring and knowledge to be warm, present, and attentive. A therapist is trained to walk alongside you as you figure out life and offer you new perspectives and angles to see things from.
Therapy is self-care. If you are willing to apply yourself, through therapy you can expand your mental strength, flexibility, and wisdom.
Types of Therapy
Different types of therapy are usually called therapy theories. Nowadays, most therapists are eclectic—meaning they combine techniques and skills from multiple theories in order to best fit the needs of their client.
However, every therapist has what is called a principal theory. Their principal theory is the therapy theory that most aligns with how they view human beings, our ability to change, and what motivates us. Basically, it represents their philosophical stance as a therapist.
My principal theory is existential therapy, but I have a hefty leaning towards acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), too. Of course, I will also employ techniques from other modalities if I feel they are a good fit for you, but these two viewpoints inform the type of therapist I am more than any others.
Read on to get a crash course on what existential therapy and ACT are all about.
Existential Therapy
Believes we all have the ability to be self-aware
Points towards areas in our life where we hold freedom and responsibility
Emphasizes creating your own identity and making meaningful relationships
Encourages creating your own personal meaning, purpose, and values in life
Views anxiety is a natural condition of being alive, and a stimulus for growth
Looks towards four ultimate concerns we all share: death, freedom, isolation, and meaning
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Based in mindfulness—remaining present to our experiences here and now
Encourages acceptance in order to deal with difficult thoughts, feelings, symptoms, or circumstances
Fosters a commitment to personal values and goals through action
Increases psychological flexibility—adapting and reacting in new, creative, and healthy ways
Helps stop habitual avoidance of thoughts or emotions
Separates the true “us” from our inner thoughts and experiences