How do you guys feel about therapy? Your therapist? Do you think that your therapists have done enough for you or no?

[stopdog]

I don't feel anything really other than frustration. I don't know exactly what the woman is supposed to be doing so it would be hard for me to say if she has or has not done it enough. She does stay back now which I appreciate.

[elaygee]

My therapy is tough work. I push through tough trauma work and sessions are intense. It's like pulling teeth without medication is how it feels at times. Hard balance of "push me more" dang it, and sometimes it's like "stop crazy lady!" But I trust her more than anyone right now to get me through the confusion, anger, loss, and so on. Guess it's what you make of it. Mine's complicated and painful, sometimes helpful, sometimes headache, roller coaster.

[haier]

I don't feel like it helps. Talking does nothing for me, thinking of quitting. Sad.
Everybody talks about how it helps but i don't understand it at all.

[Wren_]

Mine is an intense rollercoaster ride of so many downs and some ups but we are moving and overall it's a positive ride and I'm sure I'm much, much better off than I would have been without my T.

My T is great even if he does drive me crazy at times

Originally Posted by haier

I don't feel like it helps. Talking does nothing for me, thinking of quitting. Sad.
Everybody talks about how it helps but i don't understand it at all.

doesn't she give you advice or something?

Originally Posted by tigergirl

Mine is an intense rollercoaster ride of so many downs and some ups but we are moving and overall it's a positive ride and I'm sure I'm much, much better off than I would have been without my T.

My T is great even if he does drive me crazy at times

what do you mean by you're much better off than you would have without your therapist? in other words, you regret it a little.

[Wren_]

what do you mean by you're much better off than you would have without your therapist? in other words, you regret it a little.

i mean that I'm not sure if I would be here without having had therapy

Originally Posted by tigergirl

i mean that I'm not sure if I would be here without having had therapy

oh i get it. I mean therapy didn't really work out for me in teh beginning, but now i might reconsider. my therapist was really intrusive asking all kinds of questions. sometimes the topics did not pertain to what I was going through. For the most part, I had used deception and finally get out of that office. That was two, three years ago. now I have an addiction that I'm suffering from and I would love to talk again. I hope that therapy will work out this time though.

[Wren_]

it takes time, and sometimes a few different therapists and a lot of hard work to find what works; i also find that i get a lot more from the experience if i'm as open and honest as possible - which can be hard while you are building trust

I find it frustrating, rewarding, a waste of time, comforting. I feel my T is not perfect, he makes mistakes but is constantly readjusting things to find what works for me. At the moment I feel i'm not making progress fast enough but the more I read on these forums the more I understand that it is not a quick fix for people with mental illness and trauma issues. So I'm going to stick with it for a while longer and see how it goes. My T and I did an audit not long ago because I complained I wasn't getting anywhere. Then he listed all the issues I had worked through just to get to the important work I NEED to do. The deeper stuff. I was quite surprised at how far I have come in 3 years.

[Miswimmy1]

I loved therapy before I was terminated by old t. I felt a real connection with her, felt listened to, felt like I was making progress and that there was hope for me. Now with new t, I do not like therapy. I feel like it's a waste of time.

[ECHOES]

I find therapy to be very helpful and rewarding. What my T "does for me" is to help me know and understand myself better. What I learn as we examine everyday life, my life history, my relationships then and now, helps me very much. I feel like therapy has opened up my world by relieving many fears, and enabling me to understand my relationships. My perspective and perceptions have changed and that affects everything.

[GenCat]

It has its ups and downs. I get every emotion possible in therapy, sometimes too overwhelming. I like going, but it hasn't really changed my life or anything miraculous.

[gayleggg]

I've found therapy to be very helpful, unfortunately, right now I can't afford it. I've had several therapists and a couple were not helpful, but I've a couple that helped keep me grounded and work through many problems.
Gayle

[BlessedRhiannon]

Originally Posted by heyitsme7

How do you guys feel about therapy? Your therapist? Do you think that your therapists have done enough for you or no?

Therapy is a difficult experience, but one that I'm glad I'm going through. I'm not sure I'd still be alive right now if I hadn't sought out my current therapist.

I greatly respect my therapist. I think she's very skilled, she's a great fit for me in personality and treatment style. I genuinely like her as a person. I appreciate the help she has given me. I've had previous therapists that I can't say the same about, but that's why I'm no longer seeing them.

I think my therapist has done quite a bit for me. She goes above and beyond to support me when I need it, and she's been very patient with how long it's taken me to trust her. She never hesitates to suggest things that she thinks will help me and supports me if I decide to try those things. Yes, there are times I wish she could do even more for me (like having a talk with my mother, so I don't have to, or going with me somewhere for support), but I recognize that's not her job and is really just my fear talking.

[Asiablue]

I need it but i don't want it right now. I'm not sure what is keeping me going every week. Therapy sucks.

i think that what keeps us from going to therapy is that we might not feel comfortable initially to share everything. I suggest sharing everything because that way you will have less of a burden on your shoulder.

[Hope-Full]

My T has said that it takes a strong person to go through therapy. I didn't realize I was strong.

I would be long off this earth if it weren't for therapy. My T knows some of my deepest crap and still hasn't gotten scared off. T is extremely firm, to the point of annoying sometimes, but at the same time, T is very caring and understanding and patient and provides me a safe place to muddle through the crap from my childhood. I'd be lost without T, yet, I know I can survive on my own, cause I've done it my whole life. T makes everything more tolerable, even the painful moments are easier to handle with T.

Painful? Yes. Hard? Yes. Leaves me feeling like a mess? Sometimes. Costly? Yes. Worth it? Absolutely.

[Victoria'smom]

How do you guys feel about therapy? Your therapist? Do you think that your therapists have done enough for you or no?

I don't really know how therapy has helped me but it's solely my fault because I won't / can't ask for help when it's needed. T treads carefully during those times and I don't know if she knows how to help but without her I would have been hospitalized at least 3x this year. I can't say enough good things about her because she was/is willing to strap in and ride the coaster with me even in my instability she tries to get through to me. She has sat down and taken into account my fears of meds and hospitals before suggesting anything. Yes, she has.

[haier]

Originally Posted by heyitsme7

doesn't she give you advice or something?

No. They're not allowed to. When i ask a question the answer is always "what does haier want?"
I feel so lost and confused. I don't know myself period.

[1stepatatime]

I know that I need to be there, that I have become dependant on her. ( my T) I feel very vulnerable sometimes, very....other times I feel really safe, protected, cared for. Abandonment is always in the back of my mind. Through this process I am becoming more self aware, my T says I am growing.... sometimes growing hurts.

[content30]

When I read this question earlier today, I thought about my T and actually became a little misty-eyed. I NEVER cry. That is how much my T means to me.

Therapy and my current T, in general, meant everything to me. My T was the catalyst and the huge part of my recovery--she helped to save my life! Without her, I would NOT be here.

I have to say, though, I balk a little when I read things like has a T "done enough" for you. It seems like so many people expect their T's to wave a magic wand of healing over them. In order for a T to help you, you have to disclose everything that is necessary, communicate with your T, do your homework, make changes to your life, work on changing your thought patterns...you have to work HARD! Your T can only take you as far as you want to go. My T helped IMMENSELY, but I worked extremely hard on myself. I opened up to T. I told her everything. I never missed a session, never walked out, did all of the homework. I started eating better and walking. I lost 20 lbs. I got a new job. I changed my living situation. I got a new job. As I got better, I did more and more. I used to avoid responsibility and cleaning when I was depressed. As I worked through things and got better and better, I did more and more. Now, I organize all my mail, and my home is perfectly neat. My T is AMAZING, intelligent, kind but challenging, professional, and just a wonderful T...the best T I have ever been too. None of that matters, though, if I don't do my part.

Anyway, because of therapy and my T, I am alive; I am thriving; and I am now going to graduate school to become a T. My life is drastically different in a positive way from 1 1/2 years ago. I can't thank my T enough...ever...for how much she has helped me!

Therapy is tough work most of the time. Some days we just chit chat and laugh. I love my t.she is more like a mentor thsn a t these days because of the situation we are in, her being so far away for so long. My t is awesome. Most of the time. It is hard to do all that digging deep and talking but i also like learning new things and all that deep thinking.

[WikidPissah]

I am taking an extended break from therapy, I do feel it helped me some, but in other ways it made me way too self focused. I was having a difficult time leaving the sessions in the T room.