Why enter therapy? The Top 10 Reasons to Try Therapy:

Like most of you reading this, at some point in your life you may have considered going into therapy. I suspect that many of you will be wondering should I or should I not enter therapy. So let me give you some reasons from my perspective (as a therapist, as to why therapy may help you)

10 – Relationships: Can’t live with them, can’t live without them…we are constantly in relationships and live in relation to others. At any given time the issue of relationships will inevitably become an integral part of therapy. Even your relationship with your therapist may become a talking point, either way they are important and let’s face it, this is partly why people come to therapy. As therapists I like to think that I’m skilled and adept at treating all types of relationship problems. Just remember therapy treats the problem and as a therapist can help you with your relationships. .

9 – No Relationship(s): although getting into a couple/relationship appears easy to some, there are those out there who find it increasingly difficult to connect and forge an intimate relationship. Granted the world is not what is used to be given social media for example, but helping you discover what might be the difficulty in meeting a significant other is a topic for therapy.

8 – Work: Although the stats demonstrate that the majority of people may be unhappy in their work, given that this is where we spend the majority of our time, it is any wonder why so many people experience depression, addiction, anxiety to name but a few? Therapy can help explore some of these difficulties.

7 – No Work: This may be an all too common problem. For whatever reason a person has lost their job or is unable to find one, the sense of loss and identity can be overwhelming. This is a good time to re-evaluate what might be important to you and seeing a therapist who is non-judgemental can be a life saver in a time of conflict and anxiety.

6 – Poor Physical Health: The connection between physical and mental health is something that cannot be underestimated. We make choices and our health is impacted, the key is moderation. Those living with long term physical and/or mental health conditions know all too well the impact that one has on the other.

5 – Feelings of mediocrity: We may look at others and observe that their lives look so much better compared to ours. Therapy can help with moving unnecessary blockages, expanding upon the limiting beliefs you may have about yourself and above all challenging what you feel is holding you back.

4 – Overwhelming emotions: Trauma, sensitivity, loss, fear, and anger can feel incredibly huge at times in fact to the point of feeling unmanageable. Therapy can help you make sense of the emotion, contain it, and point you to the deeper issues that are stirring up such a reaction.

3 – No Emotions: There are many people who suffer from the inability to access and express emotion. They know they should feel sad, happy, angry, or scared, but they can’t. Other people in their life often say they’d like to connect with them, but the lack of emotion makes it difficult to relate. Therapy can help people work past the blockage and access that important component of life. But be warned, it's not always a fun journey. Those emotions may be blocked for a reason.

2 – For Your Loved Ones: If you feel that being a good person is important to you, then the best place to start therapy is with yourself. After all if you feel that focusing on improved communication, responsibility, empathy and intimacy, the common denominator is you. If you want to lead by example, improving yourself for the sake of your loved ones appears to be a good place to start.

1 – For Yourself: I’m a fan of Socrates and his famous quote “the unexamined life is not worth living”. Therapy is about you, your choices, and your way of being in the world. Isn’t it worth taking the time to explore your own life, who you are and what you want? Maybe allowing yourself to understand why you may feel hindered in life, old wounds that won’t heal, relationships that may not work – go on and allow you to be the best you can be. It could be one of the best decisions of your life.