What do you use therapy/your T for?

For me, I use her as the one person I can be honest to about things/qualities/behaviours I'm not proud of.

He is good at getting me to look at my thoughts and behaviours from a different perspective. He thinks of things I might not have thought of and that helps me to better understand myself.

I use therapy as a way to talk about things that are bothering me and/or things that are preventing me from living my life. To have someones undivided attention for an hour. Someone who is there for me, helps me, cares about me and helps me. Therapy has helped me so much and has changed my perspective on so many things.

to keep myself from doing something stupid.

To learn how to navigate the world better.

To help me on this seemingly impossible journey toward having the quality of life I want. To help me chip away at all the barriers that are in the way. To help me understand why I am the way I am, because when I finally understand, maybe I will stop despising myself

Healing.

To heal from my past is my ultimate goal. But right now, learning to talk after being silenced about my abuse for so many years because I was threatened and very scared of my abuser

She's my anchor for healing and change. Lots and lots of healing and change.

She keeps me accountable. She is my safety net. It's a place where I can talk about all my problems and pains, and be encouraged to keep moving forward. It's a reality check. And a place to just feel safe and shielded from the world for an hour a week.

A place to heal and grow.

Well, before we got my depression figured out, it was mainly trying to cope with life. Now that we've figured out the root cause of my depression (biological), therapy is to help me re-orient how I think, process things, etc. Twenty years of hellish depression means I don't know what average people experience from day to day. I used to be utterly baffled as to how *anyone* got out of bed. Like, didn't they feel the existential weight on their chest that made them feel like they were suffocating?

Clearly not as I have spent the last two months free from said weight. But it's like I have some emotional stunting because I had to cope with starvation for so long.

So my T exists to help me retrain my brain. He's DBT trained so it's all very practical.

To practice making an emotional connection with primarily. Also to reassure me, to introduce new more positive thoughts/ outlooks, for general advice / counsel.

To be that one person that supports me with honesty.

I don't have to deal with her reactions to things I say.

A sounding board. The one person who knows the tangled mess of my life. She helps me understand why I feel and act like I do and helps me create new ways of being and feeling.

Learning and growing. To get to know myself and my motivations better and to help facilitate change especially in areas that I have not been able to change myself effectively.

A healing relationship with a compassionate, attuned and safe person.

Healing. She said one time that she's "whatever I need her to be" and that didn't make sense to me at first but it became clear as I looked back and could see how at times with projections or transference or whatever you wanna call it I've "used" her as my grandmother, my mother, my dad, etc. as I've worked through different phases of my life with her. Also t is a safe place to practice just being me.... as I learn what my own truth is and how to speak it....