What is therapy?

Many of us “want” but are unsure about “reaching out”. We end up folding ourselves into boxes that are often too small but safe enough – until a crisis pushes up into the world of therapy.  In my experience, both as a therapist and a client, therapy can be a wonderful exploration of myself and my landscape, both inner and outer. The landscapes of my life, my relationships and my emotions that often lie unexplored and unknown, even to me. One does not need a crisis or a ‘diagnosis’ to be called to this exploration. Many of us feel blocked in our lives without any clarity of what might be going on. And we invest very deeply in saying “I’m fine”. 

Therapy is an internal/external reality check with a trusted guide who has walked the path and can be creative with the map and with language. 

Therapy is NOT about wiping away ‘bad’ emotions or never having a bad feeling ever again. I remember a client of mine commenting, after a few months of therapy that he thought “dealing” with your emotions meant that they would be dealt with and put to rest. Like reconciling a bank account. Sometimes people understand that therapy is a process where somebody tells you what to do. This is not true either. 

Therapy is, at best, a collaborative process between the therapist and the client.

Therapy is rather about learning to find the resources to carry life, with all its baggage, gracefully.