Life is a series of constantly changing events. People go through various changes from the time they are born to the time they die – growing up, relationships, school, building a career, and family issues can take a toll on your mental health. Sometimes, these events and changes trigger fear, depression, anxiety, and other unwanted emotions.
Knowing where to get a counselor, when to go for therapy and how to find the right therapist for your specific need is a key to effective recovery. This post will discuss all these and highlight the benefits of talking to an individual therapist.
What is Individual Therapy?
Mental health issues are common in the United States, with over 51.9 million Americans living with emotional disruption. Whether moderate or severe, an individual therapy professional can help you deal with present or past issues in your life.
Individual therapy is also called individual counseling or psychotherapy. An individual therapist helps people get over embarrassing or painful situations such as death, heartbreak, addiction, divorce, or strained relationships.
Through an online, phone, or face-to-face conversation, the therapist goes through the events disturbing the individual until they develop coping mechanisms and feel more stable.
Depending on what the individual is going through, therapists can also recommend family therapy, addiction recovery treatment, or medication evaluation alongside individual therapy.
Approaches to Individual Therapy
Sometimes, a therapist may combine a variety of ideas and modalities to help clients deal with a condition. They may use any or a combination of the following approaches:
- Psychotherapy. The therapist and the patient focus on discovering and changing behaviors which increase their satisfaction at work and in their personal relationships
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). A therapist uses this approach to help clients replace negative thoughts with positive ones by looking at various emotions, ideas, and behaviors. Cognitive-behavioral therapy is usually short term. In this approach, the patient must participate fully in the treatment by recording their behaviors and thoughts. Cognitive-behavioral therapy is one of the most highly effective types of therapy available.
- Interpersonal psychotherapy. This approach helps equip patients with better interpersonal skills and functioning thereby relieving symptoms.
- 4. Psychodynamic therapy. It helps patients understand unconscious experiences and motivations for their behaviors, feelings, and thoughts.
When to Seek Individual Therapy
Do you suffer from depression, substance abuse, low self-esteem, and any other conditions that make you experience intense fear, hatred, anger, anxiety, and other negative emotions? You need to consider a talk therapy session.
In addition, if you feel stuck or dissatisfied with your current life, it is important to talk to an experienced mental health professional for help.
The purpose of individual therapy is to restore functioning, recover from a trauma, or treat a condition. It also helps individuals to adjust to a new phase in life.
You may find yourself seeking therapy sessions after an accident, death of a loved one, relationship conflict, unemployment , strained relationships, or extreme emotions that evoke fear, anxiety, anger, stress, depression, separation, and suicidal thoughts.
In addition, individual therapy may help with conditions such as:
- Addiction and substance abuse
- Eating disorders
- Sexual abuse
- Insomnia
Despite the stigma attached to some mental health issues , it is advisable to start looking for a therapist as soon as you encounter an issue that you cannot face on your own.
You might have already talked to your doctor, spouse, parents, or friends, but your thoughts cannot move from the psychological trauma.
You may find yourself spending sleepless nights, skipping meals and other important obligations, or avoiding everyday tasks because of the event in question.
This is the right time to seek the intervention of a trained therapist for personalized one-on-one individual therapy.
Group vs. Individual Therapy
People dealing with major mental, life, or lifestyle concerns can find support through a group or individual counseling session. What determines the best type of therapy for each person is very personal.
Group therapy involves several patients who talk about their concerns through the guidance of a trained counselor. Family therapy and substance and alcohol addiction recovery are good examples of group therapy, with a typical group comprising about 8-12 people.
Group members can learn from each other and get the support of each other. However, there is less attention to each client’s individual needs. In addition, it is not easy to guarantee the confidentiality of each member.
On the other hand, individual therapy is a one-on-one therapeutic process between a trained therapist and a client and is specifically tailored to your needs. Only a licenced therapist can administer this type of therapy. If you need personal focus and attention from a therapist, consider individual therapy.
What to Expect During Therapy Sessions
A typical individual therapy session is approximately 45-50 minutes.
During the first session, the counselor and their client engage in a dialogue to gather data about their immediate family, situation, and issues of concern.
The client will talk about their specific issues while at the same time checking to see if they are comfortable with the therapist. The fit between a client and therapist is key and it’s very important to feel heard, understood and supported (never judged).
Benefits of Individual Therapy
- Increase peace of mind and control of your life decisions
- Helps clients better understand themselves and their relationships
- Teaches you how to manage extreme emotions like anxiety and worthlessness
- Helps you identify the cause of many different symptoms and issues
- Builds your ability to cope with trauma and life changes
- Facilitates lifestyle changes
How to Find The Right Individual Therapist
You can get therapy from certified and licensed mental health professionals working as Licensed Clinical Social Workers (LCSW), Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists (LMFT), Licensed Clinical Social Workers (LCSW) , Psychologists and Psychiatrists. These professionals have achieved different levels of training and experience.
How do you feel about it?
When hiring an individual therapy professional, you need to ensure they are licensed and experienced in your preferred area of specialization. In addition, remember that therapy sessions are very personal.
You need to walk the journey with someone you can comfortably share your life with and trust that they will offer you the help you need. Finally, ask for the availability of flexible therapy sessions such as telehealth services and online sessions.
Looking for Tailored Mental Health Therapy in San Diego? Call Jan Rakoff For Help
Have you found yourself withdrawing socially from people or losing interest in things that you love? Have you gone through trauma or life-changing events recently? You need to see a counselor to help you recover and heal.
In San Diego, there is no better person to help you with this process than Jan Rakoff. Jan is a licensed psychotherapist who has been helping people in San Diego cope with trauma and PTSD, grief and loss, depression and anxiety, self-esteem, and relationship issues such as divorce, co-parenting, infidelity, and premarital counseling for decades.
Ready to start the healing process? Fill the online contact form or call me on 858-481-0425 for a consultation today.
Sources:
- https://www.csuci.edu/caps/individual-counseling.htm
- https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/mental-illness
- https://www.sdnews.com/view/full_story/27782541/article-The-state-of-mental-health-in-San-Diego-2020–An-Outlook?
