You will quickly know whether it is the right thing for you.
The first one or two sessions are exploratory. By the end of the second session you will know whether therapy is the right thing for you. Almost all clients who continue after this point successfully complete treatment. if you decide not to continue, you could still find one or two meetings useful in clarifying what you need, and I may be able to help you by suggesting what to look for.
You will be clearer about the roots of your problem.
You will gain a deeper understanding of the root causes, which is the first step to resolving your problems.
You will feel progressively more comfortable with self disclosure.
Much of the early work is about creating a setting where you can feel comfortable talking about sensitive issues. This can take time, and I will never force you. As you become more comfortable about disclosure your progress will accelerate.
You will gain new insights.
You will start to spot repetitive, unhelpful patterns of behavior. You will begin to see why you respond in particular ways in particular situations. My practice of therapy is guided by some basic principles:
Therapy is fundamentally about a relationship with the therapist.
Qualifications, training, theoretical knowledge and mastery of specific techniques are of course essential, but not sufficient in themselves. The essential thing which makes therapy effective is the quality of the relationship that you have with your therapist. I have weekly consultation to be sure that I can do my part to create this therapeutic relationship in the way that works best for you, without pushing you too hard or projecting my needs, fears, or prejudices onto you.
Therapy is a serious commitment.
After one or two exploratory sessions you need to make a decision. Continuing means finding the time and money for a minimum of 12-25 weekly sessions. If you don’t feel able to make this commitment then we will not continue together, but I will do my best to advise you on what you need and where you can find it.
Therapy is not about dogma, schools or rigid techniques.
There are many schools of therapy based on different variants of theories and offering different approaches. I believe that almost all of them have something to offer and I have extensively trained in two of them, cognitive and psychodynamic. I do not apply a rigid, by the book approach, but strive to find, within the techniques I have studied, the right approach for you in that particular moment.