Counselling and Therapy: Four Reasons Why Therapy Can Help Everyone

When you saw this title, you might have thought, “Huh! Of course, she will say that therapy is for everyone ; she's a therapist.” If you had this thought, that is valid (and even if you didn’t think that your thoughts are still valid) because the general idea about therapy has been rather narrow, at least in India.

Some people still believe that psychologists are only for people who wish to get a diagnosis or seek therapy for Clinical Depression , Anxiety Disorders , Schizophrenia , various Personality Disorders , etc.- Additionally, there is a stigma associated with reaching out to psychotherapists or psychologists.

But when we hear “Therapy is for everybody”, it does not necessarily mean that everyone should go to therapy; it implies that everyone can benefit . A good therapist will provide a safe, non-judgmental space irrespective of what you wish to talk about and whatever goals you wish to achieve.

What is Counselling and Therapy, and Who should go for it?

Counselling is a form of talk-based therapy where a person shares their concerns with a professional trained to aid them in finding helpful resolutions. Psychologists follow various schools of therapy like Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Transactional Therapy, Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy, Person-centred Therapy, Schema Therapy, Narrative Therapy or even Arts-based therapy when doing talk therapy alone. There are other modalities outside talk therapy, like movement therapy, play therapy, and art therapy.

4 Reasons Counselling Can Benefit Everyone

Counselling and therapy can help us find different perspectives on our concerns

When facing a crisis ; we might feel stuck and miserable about the situation and ourselves- this can make it difficult to find a resolution or even see other perspectives. Therapists are trained to provide tools and guide us to find different ways to tackle our emotional concerns- this can be accessed by anybody even if they do not need to/cannot attend sessions long-term.

Non-judgemental space for sharing our concerns

At times, people in our lives might not be emotionally available at each moment or might not provide a non-judgemental space for us to open up. Efficient therapists are trained to create an environment that is free from judgement and confidential, i.e., you can share your thoughts without them being revealed outside of the session. However, there are a few exceptions to confidentiality where therapists are bound to reveal aspects of the session, like when the client is in harm’s way or could harm others, if required by law or if the client is underage.

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Learning and practising interpersonal and emotion regulation skills

Therapy sessions are a space for venting and sharing our emotional and psychological turmoil and equip us with skills that, irrespective of what is being shared, are beneficial. Many individual, couple and group sessions involve techniques to accept or challenge thoughts and skills to regulate emotions or acknowledge and sit with our emotions. All of this is done in a professional setup where we can practice the skills to apply them in the real world.

Not confined to receiving a diagnosis

This seems to be a misconception among many people. That is, therapy is only for those who wish to seek a diagnosis or have a “shortcoming”- as if people who seek therapy or psychiatric help lack something. We are complex individuals coping with societal expectations from life in our ways and at our own pace. This also means that people can approach therapy with the intention of getting a diagnosis and adequate treatment or simply start by using it as a tool to explore themselves and work through individual concerns.

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It would be hypocritical for me as a therapist, not to mention the cost of therapy, which often is what discourages many people from seeking out sessions long-term. Some therapists accept insurance, which can be very convenient. But often, insurance isn't an option, depending on the country or personal preferences.

In that case, we can always ask whether the therapist has a sliding scale (the lowest and highest limits of their fee), which might at least give an idea as to whether paying the fee is feasible. But, irrespective of the session fee, checking in with yourself and the therapist about the goals being met or not met is vital.

Sometimes, clients (people who seek therapy) and therapists are incompatible due to differences in communication styles, values, culture, the school of therapy and many more. In such situations, it helps to either openly converse with the therapist or, at best, discontinue the sessions and seek out another professional. Therapy can benefit many people, but compatibility between us and our therapists can bring out the most from the sessions.

Additional Resources

https://uk.sagepub.com/sites/default/files/upm-binaries/60092_Aldridge__A_short_introduction_to_Counselling.pdf

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/7564837_On_judgment_and_judgmentalism_How_counselling_can_make_people_better

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10503307.2023.2183155