Therapy is a valuable resource for individuals seeking mental health support by providing professional guidance and tools for personal growth. Therapy is a gradual process that improves mental health over time and may be part of an overall treatment plan that includes medication or other treatment options.
In this article:
Key points
Therapy helps individuals build coping skills, strengthen relationships, and improve self-confidence while addressing mental health challenges such as strong emotions, past traumas, and social injustices.
Different types of therapy cater to different needs and conditions, offering tailored solutions for mental health recovery.
Success in therapy requires setting clear goals, being open and honest, embracing change, and practicing skills outside of sessions to reinforce progress.
Benefits of therapy
Therapy can help you to:
- feel stronger in the face of challenges
- change behaviors that hold you back
- look at ways of thinking that affect how you feel
- heal pains from the past
- build relationship skills
- figure out your goals
- strengthen self-confidence
- cope with symptoms
- manage strong emotions like fear, grief, or anger
- enhance problem-solving skills
- navigate prejudice and social injustices that impact mental health
- learn how to ask for help when you need it
- set healthy boundaries and communicate effectively
- receive support for substance use recovery
Types of therapy
There are many different types of therapy. The type and length of your therapy will depend on the challenges you are trying to work through. You can learn about your options by talking with your doctor, people who have experience with mental health conditions, or staff at your local Mental Health America affiliate.
The following are a few common types of therapy:
- Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) has two main aspects. The cognitive part is about challenging ways of thinking that might be negatively affecting you. The behavioral side helps you learn to take healthier actions in response to your thoughts and feelings.
- Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) focuses on helping people manage strong emotions and relationship challenges by talking through them and teaching skills.
- Interpersonal therapy focuses on improving relationships and helping a person express emotions in healthy ways. It also helps develop a daily schedule that supports recovery.
- Family therapy helps family members communicate, handle conflicts and solve problems better. Forms of family therapy often are used for treating eating disorders and bipolar disorder.
- Psychodynamic therapy helps people develop a better understanding about their unconscious emotions and motivations that can affect their thoughts and actions.
- Art therapy can include using music, dance, drawing and other art forms to help express emotions and promote healing.
- Psychoeducation helps people understand mental health conditions and ways to promote recovery.
- Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) helps people process trauma through a sequence of specific eye movements or body tapping. This therapy changes the way traumatic memories are stored in the brain.
- Internal family systems therapy (IFS) works to identify the different subpersonalities or “families” within each person’s mental system. The goal of IFS is to then change the way the different “parts” interact to create a sense of balance.
Therapy can happen in person or virtually. Teletherapy—or virtual therapy—takes place through a secure online platform or app where you can chat with your therapist over video, audio, or messaging. Teletherapy may be a good option for people with changing work schedules, transportation concerns, or a lack of providers in their area.
Choosing the right therapist for you
If you’re going to be talking to someone about your most personal thoughts, you want to feel comfortable.
Before finding a therapist, it can be helpful to identify what kind of support you are looking for. This will help you find a provider who has the kind of training and expertise that will be most beneficial to you.
You can also think about what traits might make you feel more comfortable with a therapist. Some things to consider are:
- Gender: Would you prefer a man, woman, or someone who is gender non-conforming?
- Age: Do you want a therapist who is about your age, older, or younger?
- Cultural background: Is it important that your therapist shares your cultural background?
- Style and tone: Do you prefer someone with a style that’s more formal or casual and friendly?
What to expect
Depending on your situation, therapy can be fairly short or longer-term. Often, people see their therapists once a week for about an hour. Your first session will be a “getting to know you” session. This will help your therapist get an idea of the challenges you’re facing and how to proceed with your treatment. Future visits will help you work on your mental health and the challenges you’ve identified with your therapist.
Getting the most out of therapy
- Tell your provider your goals for treatment. Think about whether there are certain behaviors or issues you care about most. If you are unsure about your goals, ask your therapist if you can take time to reflect on them together.
- Talk to your therapist about privacy and confidentiality. If you’re concerned, you can ask about privacy expectations. Usually, though, it’s understood that a therapist respects your privacy; and that group members do too, if you’re meeting in a group. Your therapist will probably ask you if you want notes/records from your sessions to be shared with doctors or other members of your care team. It is also important to be clear about what things your provider has a legal obligation to take action on.
- Be open and honest. Your therapist will be able to help you most effectively if you are honest about what you are going through. It can take time to develop trust with a new person, but do your best to open up about how you’re really feeling.
- Embrace change. Be willing to consider new ways of behaving and thinking that might improve the quality of your life. Some suggestions your therapist makes may seem silly or like they won’t be helpful. But do your best to give them a try. We all resist change, so don’t be surprised if you are tempted to quit right before some real progress happens.
- Practice at home. You might consider keeping a journal or asking your therapist for worksheets or guides that you can use at home to continue developing your skills.
- Discuss progress. If you don’t feel like things are improving, you should tell your provider. A good therapist will want to work with you so you can get the most out of your sessions. After discussing your concerns, if you’re still not comfortable, you might consider meeting with another therapist for advice and possibly switching.
Additional resources
- Finding therapy
- Non-medication treatments
- What to do if I’m unsatisfied with the mental health care I’m receiving?
- How does online therapy work?
- Can therapy help with psychosis?
- Should I go to therapy?
- How does therapy work? What to expect
- I don’t want to go to therapy!
- I can’t afford therapy!
- How do I find LGBTQ-friendly therapy?
- How do I find religious-focused therapy?
- Getting the most out of therapy
- Video: How to ask for help with your mental health
- Video: How to find a therapist
- Video: “The person I am today was born” – Lanee’s mental health story
- Video: “Mom, I need to see a therapist” – Trace’s mental health story
Survey
Take a mental health test
If you or a friend are struggling with your mental health, take an anonymous, free, and private mental health test. It only takes a few minutes, and after you are finished, you will be given information about the next steps you can take based on the results.
