Therapy

Why might someone seek out therapy?

You might be dealing with severe or long-term stress from a job or family situation, the loss of a loved one, or relationship or other family issues. Or you may have symptoms with no physical explanation: changes in sleep or appetite, low energy, a lack of interest or pleasure in activities that you once enjoyed, persistent irritability, or a sense of discouragement or hopelessness that won’t go away.

A health professional may suspect or have diagnosed a condition such as depression, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress or other disorder and recommended psychotherapy as a first treatment or to go along with medication.

You may be seeking treatment for a family member or child who has been diagnosed with a condition affecting mental health and for whom a health professional has recommended treatment.

An exam by your primary care practitioner can ensure there is nothing in your overall health that would explain your or a loved one’s symptoms.

Evidence-based therapies” have been shown in research to reduce symptoms of depression, anxiety, and other disorders.

How can therapy help?

Therapists and therapy can:

1. Help a person become aware of ways of thinking that may be automatic but are inaccurate and harmful. (An example might be someone who has a low opinion of his or her own abilities.) The therapist helps the person find ways to question these thoughts, understand how they affect emotions and behavior, and try ways to change self-defeating patterns. This approach is central to cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).
2. Help identify ways to cope with stress.
3. Examine a person’s interactions with others and offering guidance with social and communication skills, if needed.
4. Teach relaxation and mindfulness techniques.
5. Provide exposure therapy for people with anxiety disorders. In exposure therapy, a person spends brief periods, in a supportive environment, learning to tolerate the distress certain items, ideas, or imagined scenes cause. Over time the fear associated with these things dissipates.
6. Help track emotions and activities and the impact of each on the other.
7. Make safety plans that can include helping a person recognize warning signs, and thinking about coping strategies, such as contacting friends, family, or emergency personnel.
8. Provide supportive counseling to help a person explore troubling issues and provide emotional support.

What reasons would I seek therapy?

• Overwhelming sadness or helplessness that doesn’t go away
• Serious, unusual insomnia or sleeping too much
• Difficulty focusing on work, or carrying out other everyday activities
• Constant worry and anxiety
• Drinking to excess or any behavior that harms self or others
• Dealing with a difficult transition, such as a divorce, children leaving home, job difficulties, or the death of someone close
• Children’s behavior problems that interfere with school, family, or peers