What is therapy

I asked someone the other day if they were in therapy for their depression and anxiety.

"I don't believe in therapy. I want to get better on my own."

"How's that working for you?"

Of course it's a rhetorical question. Specific types of therapy are very good for the treatment of mental problems like anxiety, depression, trauma, and situational problems. The basic idea is that feelings like anxiety and depression come from how someone perceives their experiences and what they tell themselves about who they are, and how the world is. By changing what people tell themselves, they can change their thinking, and can further change their mood and change their responses. It's a structured form of treatment. In some cases medication may be used used to augment therapy, but in a number of cases therapy is as effective and often more effective than medication alone.

Types of therapy that are effective have a lot of research that has been done to show effectiveness. These are called empirically supported treatments. There are several types of empirically supported treatments available for therapy for depression and anxiety. These include mindfulness, cognitive behavioral therapy, rational emotive therapy, and behavior therapy. Some types of specific psychoanalytic psychotherapies are also effective. These same therapies and crisis intervention are also effective for trauma.

I used to ask my clients to explain back to me what we were doing in treatment. None of them would ever say that they came in and talked to me. They would tell me they came in and worked on things. Therapy had homework. Therapy had exercises. Therapy involved the setting of goals and the formulating of a treatment plan. The goals would be assessed and the treatment plan revised if needed.

With the internet, most forms of empirically based treatment are described in detail online. People can research what forms of treatment might be best suited to their way of problem solving.

Information about mental problems can also help friends and relatives attempting to provide assistance to someone dealing with the effects of common problems like anxiety or depression, or less common problems like more serious mental illness. The American Psychological Association has specific information on therapy, and many types of mental problems people seek treatment for. In addition, every state has a psychological association that can also provide guidance for seeking treatment. Most State Psychological Associations can provide referrals to licensed psychologists and some have detailed specialty lists.