When looking for a therapist, it’s important to look for a good fit. And a good fit means different things to different people. The first thing you need to know is what you need. Everybody is different. So there is no one ideal therapist for you.
What you need is a therapist who will work with you, who will listen, and who will respect your choices.
- A good therapist will encourage you to try things in your own way, even if he or she thinks those ways are crazy.
- A good therapist will interpret what you say as meaning what you choose it to mean, not the way you think it’s meant. You want a therapist who will help you figure out whether you’re on the right track.
- Someone who will point out the flaws in your thinking, and suggest better ways of thinking.
- Someone who will encourage you to face your fears and face them alone, and who won’t try to cheer you up when things go wrong.
- You want a therapist who has enough experience to help you through the rough spots.
- Someone who can help you sort out what works and what doesn’t, and who isn’t precious about his or her ideas.
- Someone who doesn’t mind being wrong.
- You want a therapist who is more interested in helping you solve your problems than he is in making you feel better. Someone who will help you find solutions to your problems.
- Someone who will help you figure out how to get what you want.
- You want a therapist who is interested in you as a person, rather than as a symptom.
- Someone who will listen to you with genuine interest, and who will respect your feelings, even if you don’t always agree with them, and won’t try to change your feelings.
- Someone who will respect your boundaries. You want a therapist who will help you define your goals.
