Therapy requires dedication to yourself and usually means that a part of you holds a vision of a life that includes an increase in contentment, happiness, relational satisfaction, relief from painful emotional experiences, spiritual fulfillment and/or meaningful productivity. Therapy also requires courage and a willingness to explore parts of your experience and inner world that may remain unexplored or unexpressed to another person.

There are many methods and approaches used by psychotherapists depending on their level of training and orientation. PHD level therapists, Licensed Psychologists (what I am), receive doctorate level training, usually focused on an in-depth understanding of the psyche or mind and they also receive training in diagnosis and assessment. MFT level therapists often receive training more focused on family and couple issues and often include an emphasis on behavioral oriented practices. In general, therapy can span a wide range of approaches from short-term behavior oriented therapy to long term depth work such as psychoanalysis or existential-humanistic therapy and many things in-between. The modality that is the best fit for you depends on the issues that you wish to focus on and your personal inclinations.

In general, issues that are new to you may be helped with shorter term therapy whereas concerns that have spanned more time, and/or were highly traumatic in your life will require longer-term therapy for true, lasting change.