Therapy Is Different For Everyone: Finding The Right Mental Health Care

Therapy is a collaboration that combines the efforts of two minds – yours and your therapist’s – to help you through any persistent problems in your life.

In this article, we will discuss the different therapeutic styles that exist today, how to find the right therapist for you, and how to know when therapy is working or if you should consider looking for a new provider. There’s nothing shameful about seeking help. We don’t walk through life alone. And, we don’t have to overcome problems on our own, either. Let’s discover what options are available and what might work best for you.

The most common types of therapy for anxiety, depression, and other mental health conditions

Below are some of the most common types of therapy.

Cognitive behavioral therapy

Cognitive behavioral therapy, or CBT, is a popular type of therapy that focuses on making permanent positive change by shifting away from negative patterns of thinking. Essentially, through consistent practice of various techniques (such as mindfulness or writing exercises), the brain can be rewired to function more positively and effectively while simultaneously working through mental health issues like depression or other concerns.

Through this type of treatment, you and your therapist will identify what needs to change. Your therapist develops an action plan for you to follow. This type of therapy focuses on individual thinking and feelings and how they affect the way you behave. CBT is one of the most widely used forms of psychotherapy and it has been proven to help with a number of conditions, including:

• Depression
• Anxiety
• Substance use disorders
• PTSD
• Phobias
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
• Schizophrenia
• Eating disorders
• Bipolar disorder
• Trauma

Existential therapy

Existential therapy focuses on free will, self-determination, and the search for meaning rather than only focusing on symptoms. Its intent is to emphasize our ability to make rational decisions and bring out our maximum potential. This type of therapy is usually effective for people who are living with substance use disorder or who have difficulty making meaningful choices due to existential reasons.

Psychoanalysis

The aim of this type of therapy is to bring forth unconscious or deeply buried thoughts and feelings to the conscious mind. This is for repressed experiences and emotions, often from childhood. Psychoanalysis seeks to unearth repressed memories that affect clients’ thinking, behavior, and relationships in adulthood. This form of therapy may be helpful for people with self-destructive behavior patterns, personality disorders, or neurotic behavior patterns.

This is by no means an exhaustive list of counseling approaches. This list is simply a reminder that therapies target specific behaviors, and there are many types of therapies capable of achieving this. If you don’t find any of these therapies appealing, refer to this list to get a more comprehensive picture of what might work for you.

How to choose a therapist

There are plenty of resources to find life-changing therapists. Focus on honoring your preferences and finding a provider whom you are able to trust deeply, rather than just choosing the first one available. Keep in mind that the best outcomes of therapy happen when the client is being as authentic and honest as possible, both with themselves and the therapist.

Here are a few to find a therapist who suits your needs:

Family recommendations

Family recommendations are a sure-fire way to get a recommendation based on personal experience. If a family member or friend has good experiences with their therapist and you trust their judgment, that might give you an indication if this person would be a good fit for your personality and concerns.

When in doubt, find a personal reference. You will, hopefully, know a lot about these people. If a family member who shares similar values or experiences as you has had exceptional sessions with their therapist and experienced improvement, then the likelihood of the same happening for you is higher.

Theory

In psychology, a theory is the method of change that a therapist believes in. If you find that a therapist believes in a therapy opposite from your thinking, you may not feel as comfortable during your sessions. No therapist will practice everything. Go through the lists of therapies available to you because you will most likely have a preference.

Some therapies focus on specific mental health conditions, others on growth and development as a means of improving mental health, and yet others are based on the idea that our thoughts and behaviors are acquired through childhood trauma or significant experiences, whether positive or negative.

If you take the time to look through all the resources available to you and determine the factors that are important to you, you’ll increase your chances of successful therapy.

Therapy is different for everyone: Are you receiving the right treatment?

You are the determiner of the treatment you are getting. If you feel that you are making progress with your problems and you enjoy speaking to your therapist, then there isn’t a need to overcomplicate it. The ultimate purpose of therapy is to help you, but sometimes we may wonder if our weekly sessions are really working. Here are a few things to consider:

Are your mental health symptoms improving?

The sole purpose of going to therapy is improving, whether it is your mental health symptoms, your relationship with yourself or others, or anything in between. If after going to a few therapy sessions you feel better, your relationships seem healthier, or your symptoms have improved, then you are probably heading in the right direction with your therapist. If you’ve been seeing your therapist for weeks or months and haven’t noticed any improvement, it may be time to consider a new therapist or therapy approach.

Are you looking forward to working with your therapist?

Therapy should be enjoyable. While it is a time to be vulnerable with ourselves and to talk about the problems that we may be experiencing, it can also be a safe place where we can fully enjoy our progress and peace. If you are enjoying talking with your therapist and feel a positive change in your thoughts and behaviors, this is a sign that therapy is working. However, if you don’t feel you connect with your therapist, you don’t look forward to sessions, and don’t enjoy talking with them, this is a sign that you and your therapist may not be a good fit.

Can online therapy help you?

Therapy can be an excellent opportunity to figure out more about yourself and what makes you tick, and it's also a form of self-care. There are online platforms, such as Regain, that connect you with licensed mental health providers for an affordable price. So why not take the opportunity to see real change by seeking a little help? There’s nothing shameful about getting help – in fact, it’s quite admirable! We all have our own perceived problems, but we don't need to go through them alone when there are people who can help.

Regain has thousands of therapists with various specialties and experiences. By taking a short questionnaire, you can be matched with a therapist who is most likely to meet your needs and preferences. If at any time you don’t feel it’s a good fit, you can switch therapists. Additionally, sessions can be held via phone call, video chat, or in-app instant messaging anywhere you have an internet connection.

Effectiveness of online therapy as a treatment for depression, anxiety, and other forms of mental illness

Online therapy has been found to be overall just as effective and advantageous as in-person therapy for a variety of mental health conditions and concerns, as well as for some physical issues such as chronic pain and fatigue. A recent study analyzed 11 studies focused on the efficacy of internet-based therapy for older adults facing a variety of concerns, including anxiety, PTSD, and depression. They found “internet-delivered treatment was found to be more effective in improving depressive symptoms in older adults compared to when the intervention was delivered face-to-face.”