[la doctora]

Saw a T for the first time yesterday. I have to say that I was very impressed. It was easier for me to let go and talk about some things than I thought it would be. I only held back a little now that I am looking back on it. I enjoyed speaking freely with no fear of judgement. That really helped. Since it was my first visit it was mostly about me answering questions, but I know that we will get into the techniques soon enough. I see her again in two weeks. I am encouraged. She definately thinks that I am bipolar and we really didn't touch on my anger issues much, other than to say we would get to them.

My question for you all is this: How long did it take before you began to see real and measurable results from your therapy? I don't want to rush things, and I know it will vary b/t people but I just want some sort of realistic idea of some time frame that I will really see results from this.

Hoping that you all are well...

It took quite a long time for me as I was dealing with very uncontrolled bipolar disorder. It took getting me medically relatively stable before I saw progress in therapy. Perhaps without the medical issues, I could have made progress much earlier.

[purple_fins]

I'm glad that your first session was comfortable and you feel good about it.

How long before I saw measurable results and change?? well, I struggle with personality disorder/s and complex-PTSD so there isn't a pill for that, that they know of yet anyway -- except to control the depression and anxiety-- it took at least a year to notice tiny changes and now-- after two years-- the changes are still happening-- it's just VERY slow......

was told I need to change my thinking 180 degrees- it's extremely difficult.

Just remember-- therapy can be hard and it can have ups and downs.

Good luck to you

[sittingatwatersedge]

Originally Posted by purple_fins

I'm glad that your first session was comfortable and you feel good about it.

How long before I saw measurable results and change?? well, I struggle with personality disorder/s and complex-PTSD so there isn't a pill for that, that they know of yet anyway -- except to control the depression and anxiety-- it took at least a year to notice tiny changes and now-- after two years-- the changes are still happening-- it's just VERY slow......

was told I need to change my thinking 180 degrees- it's extremely difficult.

Fins maybe you and I are "twins". I could have written all of that you said.
LD good to hear from you again. If you can commit yourself to trust (difficult!!) patience (ditto) and courage (ditto) you will progress; it may be that you will have to go down the road a while before you can look back and see the difference though.

[sunrise]

Originally Posted by la doctora

I know that we will get into the techniques soon enough.

What sort of techniques will you be trying?

How long did it take before you began to see real and measurable results from your therapy?

A lot depends on the issues you are going to therapy for as well as yourself and your T. Some issues are harder to work on than others. You sound very motivated, so that is a BIG plus. We never really tried to measure things too much, although my PNP does that, with Likert scales and such. There have been so many things that therapy has helped me with, and some of my biggest gains, and ones that have ended up being very important to me, have come in areas I didn't know I needed help with! After the first session, I felt my T pretty much "cured" my depression, even though I wasn't nearly as depressed as the year before I went to see him. (I didn't realize I was still depressed until I felt so much better after seeing him.) He gave me hope, and that made me feel much less depressed. I don't know if that is a technique but it helped me a lot. Things that took longer were processing trauma, learning to recognize that I was feeling something (I tended to stuff everything inside), and then to be able to name the feelings, and then to be able to express them. This went pretty slowly, and was not what I thought I would be helped with by going to therapy. But my gains in the "feelings" area have been huge. I have also learned to be a better listener, and to "hear" people better. And I have much better relationship and communication skills. I also feel more empowered, and I accomplished some very important tangible goals with my therapist's help, like getting a divorce.

I don't want to rush things, and I know it will vary b/t people but I just want some sort of realistic idea of some time frame that I will really see results from this.

I have been in therapy for 3 and a half years and we still are working on new material. I am still learning. I actually think I have made really fast progress, but probably some people might shudder and say, "three and a half years!?" But I did see some results quickly, as I mentioned. I guess one thought I would offer to anyone beginning therapy is to be open to being helped with things you may not have gone to therapy for in the first place. Be open to gains in areas you didn't even know existed. Good luck.

[chaotic13]

I think everyone is different. If you are committed to achieving specific goals then they can happen really fast. If your kind of lost and not sure why exactly your going or what you looking for, then it may take some time to figure that out. For me when I first entered therapy I had some very specific objectives, I had some raging fires to put out. When I look back, I got these issues address and under control pretty quickly. However, once they were managed then I started working on what created them in the first place...THIS work has been long and very complex to work through.

[splitimage]

Everyone's different. Some people really benefit from a short course of CBT. Me i'm doing psychoanalysis and deep trauma work. I've been in therapy 10 years and it's only in the last three that I've noticed a difference. I still have a ton of work to do around the trauma and it's an extremely slow process.

--splitimage

[jexa]

Definitely depends on your therapist's approach, the problems you want to work on, etc. If she has a solution-focused or behavioral approach, like CBT, and you are trying to work on a specific problem you are dealing with, such as managing anger, you could see improvements very quickly, within the first month or two. I will be in therapy for a while because I am dealing with a constellation of things. And I don't work on all one problem first -- I work on different problems as they come up in my week. So results take time in that case. It took three or four months before things started to get slightly better. This is working with a T who has a mindfulness-based behavioral approach (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy), which can be a short-term approach if working with a specific problem, but I expect to be in therapy for quite a while due to the type of problems I deal with. Other types of therapy (e.g., psychoanalysis) take longer.

[la doctora]

Wow guys! Thanks for all the very helpful responses. I think that I will be having to deal with a few big things first, but then we will probably get down into things I didn't know was wrong. Your responses were all very helpful to have insight into the different situations that could be when going to therapy.
So thanks again. I'm looking forward to my next session.