What do you want from your therapy?

[andyhp]

Recently there seem to have been (or maybe for some reason I have just noticed) a lot of psychotherapists asking questions like 'what do you think are the elements of therapy that make it successful?' or do you think x or y is more effective with ......?' or 'how can I make my practice more effective?'.

I'm wondering if these questions don't imply jumping the gun somehow. I don't think there's anything wrong with these questions but surely (or surely to me) they can only follow from another question...what does the client want from their therapy?

Tam, in another thread, said what he wanted from therapy;
To coin a cliche, I need someone to help me 'get in touch' with my feelings. To make it ok to feel whatever I feel, to help me actually feel what I feel without trying to change it or stop it or give me advice on how to not feel it, to be sympathetic and caring and totally on my side in doing this.

So, in a very roundabout way (it's been a roundabout day!), I am aware there are quite a few here who are having therapy and I wanted to ask you all some questions,

What is it you want from your therapy?

[Katmandu40]

For me, that's a difficult question to answer as I want different things at different times...it varies. All in all though, I'd say I want to learn how to cope with feelings (as I had learned to suppress them) and I want to learn that it can be ok to trust some people. There are various smaller issues, but those are the 2 biggies for me. What I have learned so far is I can handle feelings without hurting myself and that even very strong feelings can ease up if given time and understanding.

I thought about changing or deleting my response...as time has passed I find myself a bit uncomfortable with my answer. It's a deeply personal question I think, but I'll let my answer stand.

[IndieSoul]

Hmm. Good question. I actually haven't given it much thought. Going into therapy, I just wanted my anxiety to go away. Now, I guess I just want her to be there for me, to listen and understand. She's the only person I feel I could tell my shit to. I just want to have someone there if I ever need them. I know she can't be there forever, so I guess what I want from my therapy is to ultimately become more comfortable with myself and my feelings, and feel more open with other people, the way I do with her. I'm not sure what the reason behind these issues is...low self-esteem maybe? It's something to talk about with her for sure.

[Cherrypie]

:anyone: