The psychotherapy process begins the moment we decide to receive psychotherapy. Sometimes the traumatic events we experience and our reactions to them, and sometimes we realize that we have difficulties in coping with the problems ourselves; It shows us that we need help.
Deciding to seek help is not always easy. Especially in our society, getting support from specialists such as psychologists and psychiatrists is called "going to the insane doctor", and it can be devalued and labeled. This situation prevents many people from getting help during periods of mental distress. Considering these disadvantages, to get help; First of all, a mental preparation is required.
When we are mentally ready and decide to seek help, a new question arises? Who and what kind of support should I get?
Sometimes we hear from our surroundings; There are those who convey their experiences such as “I went to that psychotherapist, it was very good for me or it was not good at all”. Sometimes we think of going to the most well-known and popular people. Sometimes, we meet with a specialist who appears in a clinic that we applied completely by chance. In this quest phase, we sometimes meet the right psychotherapist. In case we cannot meet; Unable to solve the problem and not meeting expectations from psychotherapy are common situations.
Then; We can say that finding the right psychotherapist is the most important condition for getting the right help. So, how can we find the right psychotherapist?
First of all, let's talk about what psychotherapy is and who can do it. Psychotherapy is an intervention aimed at improving mental health, addressing the problems people experience with their feelings, thoughts and behaviors, aiming to change by raising awareness. In order for a specialist to perform psychotherapy; must have received some training and supervision on how to do psychotherapy. So not every psychologist or psychiatrist is a psychotherapist!
As a client, the following should be considered when choosing a psychotherapist:
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Whether the specialist we will seek help from is a psychotherapist. To understand, ask whether he has received training in any school of therapy. Examining their certificates or diplomas will give us an idea.
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We can ask her if she has experience with the subject of our complaint, if she has seen similar clients before, and with what method she has worked.
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Psychotherapists need to have extensive knowledge about psychopathology, that is, mental disorders, but still, not every psychotherapist may work for every disease and may specialize in certain areas. For this reason, asking the psychotherapist we will meet in which field he/she specializes in will enable us to make the right choice. For example, a psychotherapist who specializes in sexual therapy may not be adequately equipped for a client who has some difficulties as a result of the trauma he has experienced.
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Finally; Even when meeting with a psychotherapist we have chosen by paying attention to all these, we should give time to ourselves and our therapist knowing that this process may not always be linear and it is a process with ups and downs. At the point where we think that we do not benefit from therapy; we can share this with our therapist and find out together what is holding back.
Remember, mental health is at least as important as our physical health, and making the right interventions when necessary increases our quality of life.
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