Started therapy

[AnCapJavi]

Had my first therapy session yesterday. It wasn't very fruitful. The therapist thinks she may not be the right one for me. I think I might agree but I wanna see it through a few more sessions before switching.

 

Before I went to her I looked her up and found out she's a pretty serious Christian. I'm an atheist and have some pretty bad history with religion but maybe she can help. I mean it's possible.

 

I don't have a car right now and she's the only therapist that's really walking distance.

 

I've been reading self-help for a LONG time and lately I've gotten into Dr. Albert Ellis and Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy. Over that last couple of weeks I've been able to identify my irrational beliefs about certain things and not get too upset about certain things any more by using his stuff precisely.

 

Being a smart guy and someone who tends to get very immersed in things, I wanna find a therapist who does REBT in particular since I'm reading about it but it's not absolutely necessary. If I don't think the therapist is sharp or I'd say someone who impresses me with their ability (as I am with anyone I'd listen to about anything) I tend to not wanna take them seriously.

 

Thoughts anyone?

[Kaki]

Have you considered looking for a therapist who offers Skype sessions?

I have experience with therapy over Skype and I think it works very well. While it is not the same as meeting someone in person it is, in my opinion, still far more productive to talk to someone who is great, through Skype rather than someone in person who is merely so-so....

 

The relationship you have with your therapist is extremely important. You can only grow as far as your therapist has grown and you might lose money, time and possibly trust in therapy as well as in yourself, when working with someone who you don't really feel is the right one.

I can only speak for myself, I would not be comfortable working with a therapist who believes in god, this carries far too much baggage I am not willing to confront myself with. (I should mention as well, I do not even have a bad history with religion like you, I don't really have a history with religion at all).

 

I can of course not tell you what the right thing to do is but if I was in your position I would trust my guts.

 

I just typed "Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy" and Skype into google and got quite a few hits. Many therapists offer a free 20min consultation, others you have to pay for from the first session on. Before you make a decision you could just have a look around and maybe talk to someone else to get a feeling for what options you have.

 

[AnCapJavi]

I'd hope I can find someone who takes my insurance. Not having a car right now means I don't have a lot of money. That's why I'm getting the therapist I can right now.

[Drew.]

Hey, I'm a therapist, and I would like to offer my services.

 

I don't take insurance, but my rates are very affordable (30-50USD per session). I do it over skype, so you don't even need a car. I also offer a free 30 minute consultation to see if we be an appropriate match for each other. Let me know if you're interested. I do IFS, which I have found to be really effective in my own personal life and with my clients. I'm not very familiar with REBT, but I'm sure that there will be some overlap, as most effective therapeutic systems have very similar methods, and often just label things with different terms.

I would like to share about your current therapist, I think that if she is sensitive to the fact that you've had negative experiences with religion then you could find some value with her. I think what matters between the relationship is that the client and therapist have similar values. For example, if she values healing through embracing God, then I would imagine that would be a really bad therapeutic relationship to enter for you.