faq
Some people may find the idea of sitting in a room with a stranger for the first time and talking about their problems uncomfortable. These uncomfortable thoughts and feelings could be about a number of things which we can hopefully answer below and help to put your mind at ease.
“I don’t know what's going to happen and I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do”
If you have never been in therapy before, then it is normal for you to feel unsure about what will happen and to be uncomfortable. Remember
that you can take some time with your therapist to focus on the reasons that you are uneasy before getting into the reason you came for therapy.
This will help you feel more comfortable.
You may feel this because you feel somewhat hopeless about your
situation, if this is the case, tell your therapist. Asking how therapy
would help you is a good question to ask because every
therapist has a different view of exactly how therapy would work for you, depending on what your goals for the therapy are.
Your discomfort is very understandable. Therapy is a place where
embarrassing and painful emotions can be worked through. One of the goals of therapy is to help you to understand how difficult emotions may
be adversely affecting you and as a result experience less conflict and pain in your life. You can always delay some discussions (in order to
not feel too overwhelmed) until you are somewhat comfortable and able to trust your therapist before you being expressing difficult emotions.
The chances are that you may feel foolish, awkward, and even scared
when you begin therapy. You have probably never opened up to a stranger and expressed your deepest feelings, desires, and fears. It is a unique
experience to have someone listen to you attentively for an extended period. At the same time, as a result of taking that risk you will
learn more about yourself and you eventually will become congruent, or more comfortable with revealing your feelings. When you have achieved that degree of
trust, you will have unlocked your potential for growth, self-discovery.
We
are flexible for those on low budgets, and even if
therapy seems expensive at first, what has more value to you
than that of your mental well-being? What is more important than getting the most out of life? Therapy can provide you with immeasurable rewards in
well being, greater energy, and joy for living, which will be more than adequate compensation for personal expenditures.
You have to remember that a therapist is trained to understand and
empathize with emotions. You may have not felt understood trying to explain yourself to family or friends in the past, but it is likely that
when you are speaking to a trained professional, that you will be better understood. If this point is a sticking block for you this may indicate
that you have some fears or blocks associated with dealing with your feelings. Discuss these issues
in our free consultation.
The fact that you've enquired about counselling and psychotherapy
services indicates that subconsciously you want help but you are not feeling good enough about yourself to feel okay with receiving
comfort and professional help. You may have learned from your family that "you should not be selfish" or that you "don't deserve anything
good". Remember that you do deserve it, why be a victim?
No.
If something goes wrong with your TV, do you feel that you have to
fix it yourself? Once you've checked the plug and maybe hit the side and the
unit doesn't get better after several days, you probably will want to call a specialist - a technician who spends his days fixing
televisions. People and emotions are much more complicated than your television set. Learning how to solve emotional problems isn't part
what we are taught at school. Fortunately, there are people (therapists) who specialize in deciphering emotional problems in order
to help people recover from emotional difficulties and traumas. (Unlike the television technician though, the therapist can only facilitate you
to heal yourself, they can't do your healing for you).
Therapists are not mind readers. They are good at noticing body cues
and facial expressions, but they do not know what is going on in your mind until you tell them. Good therapists, will not blame, ridicule, or
pass judgment on you. If they do, then they are not doing their job properly. If you feel that a therapist is being judgmental then discuss
this with them and if you are not satisfied with the outcome, then find another therapist.
There is always
a risk with any relationship, but why think
that he or she will not like you? Your therapist should identify deeply with your situation and
he or she will should fully accept
you for who you are. Good therapists are very accepting and you owe it to yourself to give it a try.
Whenever you are in
contact with more than one person, every
encounter will always have actions and reactions. If things are not going well with parents, spouse, or friends, and it is all "their
fault," then consider that you may be able to learn more effective ways of dealing with their reactions.
All therapists and counsellors keep clients details confidential, we at Accredited Counselling keep strict confidentiality guidelines and follow full BACP procedures, we will always discuss confidentiality with our clients in full and are happy to go back over it at any time. |
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