Hello,
Lately I have been overwhelmed with my schedule, finances and social life. I am always trying to improve my mental health. With all of this stress I am considering therapy, mainly for someone to talk, to process all my thoughts, and maybe help me develop ideas or come up with strategies to cope better. I have ADHD, Autism, and some other things if that helps anyone relate.
I have three main questions:
Has therapy helped you enough to be worth the time?
Is it very difficult to find a therapist you mesh with?
How do I find a therapist? From a doctor’s referral? Online service? Through insurance? (I live in the United States.)
Any experience or advice you can provide would be greatly appreciated!
Edit: I just wanted to thank everyone for your help and support! I hope everyone is doing well and has seen positive changes. And I hope all these replies help other people besides myself. I’m feeling more positive and hopeful toward finding the right therapist. Your kindness is appreciated!
Just want to say, yes. A thousand times yes. Therapy is worth it a million times over. If you don’t find the therapist you mesh with immediately, don’t lose hope. Trust your gut and keep looking.
Once I found the right therapist, things really improved in my life and I was able to make sense of things that I had previously been unaware of.
Good luck!
I know there’s technically no correct answer. But this is the correct answer 🫶
If you think you need it, likely yes but finding the right therapist who meshes with you is absolutely crucial. You have to do your research and also understand that with the world essentially on fire that lots of therapists are booked up. I’ve spoken to people who have just not worked with me personality wise and others who I’ve thought were just shitty.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us is a good start. You can sort by what you’re looking for and who might take your insuance. A tip: create a spreadsheet with who you’ve contacted, their response and whether they offered a referral. Treat it like job hunting. You’re going to need to reach out to a lot of people. Most will get back to you within a business day, but it’s been my experience that nearly 3/4ths of therapists on that site who say they have openings do not in fact have openings. Be picky and trust your gut on your initial consult.
Best of luck
Thanks for the website and tips! It really helps take the stress off of the search itself.
The searching is the worst part. Be methodical so you don’t get overwhelmed!
My last therapist disappeared into the redwoods after doing a hit of acid laced with DMT. Seeing as he’d been growling like a tiger all night as part of some Hindu shaman thing he’d picked up on the streets of New Delhi, it was kind of a relief. All that was left behind was his kilt. Sometimes I wonder where he is and whether or not the Hell’s Angels were really hunting him.
True story. Oregon can get wild in the backwoods.
That being said, you probably could do without my advice on finding therapists.
I have no idea if I should be laughing at this, so I suppose I will. I’m sorry for your loss.
Lmao - you’re the first person I’ve ever told this story to who considered it a loss. I figure that there are some things you hold on to in this world, but sometimes you just have to let your therapist fly free…
…especially if the Hell’s Angels are involved.
While it wasn’t for me, therapy is worth for the most people. You can learn new strategies and explore the cause of your problems and how to tackle them. Most people really benefit from it.
I am completely therapy resistant, several tried and gave up on me. This can be the case for you, but that is very unlikely. I am just a psychopath who doesn’t accept authority, that makes it impossible to do any therapy.
In my case it’s unaffordable. It’s just $15 per visit, but it’s a lot in my country. And I’m not particularly rich either
