During your first appointment, you and your therapist will ask each other questions and sort out the logistics of your treatment plan. During your first session, you'll also get a sense of your therapist's style. This first meeting is sometimes known as an “intake session.”
Psychotherapy is an approach for treating mental health issues by talking with a psychologist, psychiatrist or another mental health provider. It also is known as talk therapy, counseling, psychosocial therapy or, simply, therapy.
Your first session is a chance for you to make sure you feel comfortable with your therapist, and for them to check they have the skills and expertise to support you. It will include introductions, contracting and a chance for you to tell your story and explain the problems you're experiencing.
The therapist will ask questions about your presenting concerns, as well as your history and background. Most likely, you'll find yourself talking about your current symptoms or struggles, as well saying a bit about your relationships, your interests, your strengths, and your goals.
Your first session will probably involve your therapist asking you a lot of questions about you, how you cope, and your symptoms (it's basically an interview). You may also chat about goals for therapy, expectations, and more.
Starting therapy can be especially awkward if you've not been in therapy before. If you feel weird at first when you're talking to your therapist, don't worry. It takes a while to get used to therapy, but you'll eventually get the hang of it.
The first therapy session is the hardest—not because the session itself is grueling, but simply because trying new and foreign things can cause some butterflies in your stomach. For some people, that intimidation may cause them to procrastinate booking that appointment.
So the best way to approach your therapist in public is to do as my patient's friend suggested: Say hello. Most of us will simply return the greeting and look forward to seeing you back in the office.
The basic stages of counseling are: 1) Developing the client/clinician relationship; 2) Clarifying and assessing the presenting problem or situation; 3) Identifying and setting counseling or treatment goals; 4) Designing and implementing interventions; and 5) Planning, termination, and follow-up.
The first stage, exploration, involves helping the client examine his or her thoughts and feelings. The second stage, insight, helps clients understand the reasons for these thoughts and feelings. The third stage, action, involves the client making changes.
Counselling is a talking therapy that involves a trained therapist listening to you and helping you find ways to deal with emotional issues. Sometimes the term "counselling" is used to refer to talking therapies in general, but counselling is also a type of therapy in its own right.
In therapy, people meet with a therapist to talk and learn ways to work out their problems. At the beginning, the therapist asks questions about your problems. They also ask about other things in your life, such as family, school, and health. They listen to what it's like for you so they can understand you.
Barnett, PsyD, past chair of APA's Ethics Committee. It's OK to pull up a client's personal website or Facebook page during a therapy session to see pictures of his or her children or to better understand a personal crisis he's coping with, says Barnett. But spying just because you can is inappropriate, he says.
The short answer is that you can tell your therapist anything – and they hope that you do. It's a good idea to share as much as possible, because that's the only way they can help you.
Start by identifying broad motives, hopes, and dreams. At your first therapy session, when your therapist asks, “What brings you to therapy?” the first thing that comes to mind might be a simple, heartfelt statement like, “I just want to be happy,” or “I feel stuck,” or “I'm tired of just going through the motions.”
Yes, it is perfectly okay to cry during therapy. Therapists are trained to deal with difficult emotions on a daily basis; if you start crying, any competent therapist will respond in an empathetic, non-judgmental way.
People come to therapy to alleviate a disorder or symptoms and treatment lasts as long as those unpleasant symptoms exist, from a few weeks to a few years. If you are symptom-free and that's all you wanted out of therapy, you're all done. In the wellness model, going to therapy is like going to the gym, Howes says.
Cognitive behavioral therapy is considered the gold standard in psychotherapy.