I keep thinking about this question and I can't think of anything, in retrospect, that I wish I had known about therapy before I started. I went into therapy knowing absolutely zero about it. I had no preconceived notions, no prior knowledge . . . I barely knew it was a thing. In fact, I didn't know I was going into therapy until literally about 10 minutes before my first appointment. I learned as I went I guess. I never really explored therapy information in any kind of academic sense (right here on PC is probably about as academic as I ever got about therapy and I didn't arrive here until almost at the end of therapy). I knew diddly about different modalities. The therapy terminology that we banter about here on PC was foreign to me during my therapy because my therapist never spoke to me in therapy jargon. In a way, I'm kind of glad that I just learned as I experienced it. I'm glad I didn't know how hard it was going to be ahead of time or I might have just avoided it. I'm glad I didn't go into it wary of therapy or therapists, but rather, just hopeful and trusting that they would help me find my way . . . and they did.

My sister was a radiation therapist by profession -- a profession she chose because of her childhood battle with cancer and the positive interactions she had had with very skilled and caring medical professionals who treated her as a child. I can remember my sister saying her medical knowledge about cancer treatments was at times a real problem for her as she was a cancer patient herself multiple times again in her adulthood. She said she was almost too knowledgeable and that made it very difficult to let go and allow the treating professionals to do their job; it made her level of hope decline at times -- her level of doubt and fear increase because she knew too much in a way.

I think, for me, going into therapy very green and trusting was what helped me just kind of let go and have faith that therapy would provide me the support and direction I needed to survive. I had wonderful therapists who were never anything but professional and skilled and caring, so I was fortunate that my "innocence" of the process didn't lead to problems, but I'm glad to say I've been able to retain that faith in therapy as effective for me personally.