Frequently Asked Questions
Q. How does psychotherapy work?
A. Psychotherapy can include a number of different types of therapy. Each one uses techniques intended to help you become more aware of your thoughts and feelings, and some focus on making changes in behavior. And each psychotherapy has a theory for how those changes take place.
There are many forms of therapy. Some types of treatment work better than others when handling different issues. It is common for therapists to combine ideas from different approaches when addressing a person's needs.
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is one of the most popular and effective types of therapy. This approach helps people look at the connection between thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. Then, people can replace negative thinking patterns with positive ones. The belief behind CBT is that healthy thoughts often promote positive feelings and productive actions.
Q. How does psychotherapy help you?
A. Psychotherapy reduces emotional pain as efficiently as possible, builds and enhances strengths, and refines and teaches you skills that you need to cope with life’s ups and downs and create the life you want. Your therapist will work with you to learn clinical techniques and often suggest exercises in between sessions to help speed up the healing process and to cultivate self-confidence, real world practice, and greater independence.
Q. What is the role of a therapist?
A. Effective therapists function as both experts; conducting therapeutic techniques in session, educating clients about mental health issues and the scientific and research that supports the treatment of these issues, and as collaborative equal partners who recognize we are all in this together; empathizing and humanizing the experience of suffering and the path to healing and growth.
Q. What is the difference between psychotherapy and counseling?
A. Psychotherapy and counseling are often used interchangeably. Historically counseling was often taught in departments of education and may have focused on working with students and/or dealing with career development. Many counseling programs focused on strengths and were client focused. But there has always been a great variety of approaches within counseling.
More important than whether someone says they are providing psychotherapy or counseling is the specific theoretical approach, technical skills, and styles they use. For instance a counselor and a psychotherapist may both practice the same kind of therapy, while two psychotherapists could have two very different theories for how therapy works, use different techniques, and differ greatly in their personal style.
So if you are considering seeing a professional counselor or psychotherapist, it is important to ask him or her to tell you what their theoretical approach is, what kinds of techniques they use, if those techniques are supported with scientific research, and what their style is like.
Q. What are all those letters? LCMHCS, LPCS, LCSW, LPA, Ph.D…
A. Knowing what license your therapist holds…or doesn’t… is very important. Licensed professionals have completed a minimum of a Master’s Degree along with a clinical internship, passing of a licensure exam, and completing a number of supervised clinical hours. The requirements vary by state.
Anyone can call themselves a “therapist.” That doesn’t mean that someone referring to themselves as a therapist is a licensed professional. Licensing is done by the state, so different states license different kinds of professionals. If someone refers to him or herself as a therapist, it is a good idea to ask if he or she is licensed, and if so as what kind of a professional and what kind of training have they had.
Q. Should you see a therapist or psychiatrist?
A. This question differs depending on the person, symptoms, diagnosis, etc. The important thing if you are experiencing symptoms is to see a qualified professional who can accurately assess what you are experiencing and then recommend the appropriate kind of treatment.
A psychiatrist, who is a medical doctor, can provide psychotherapy ( not as common) and/or prescribe medication to treat mental health disorders. If it is determined you need medication, a psychiatrist, nurse practitioner (NP), or Physician’s Assistant (PA) is necessary in North Carolina. If various kinds of therapy are required a psychiatrist if trained in effective therapy may be a good choice, or a psychologist, social worker, or mental health counselor could be effective as well.
Again, the important first step is to have a well qualified professional assess what you are experiencing to determine who will be best able to help you.
Q. What disorders can be treated with psychotherapy?
A. Fortunately, there are many mental health disorders that can be effectively treated. There is scientific evidence that Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Depression (Major Depressive Disorder), phobias, Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Bulimia Nervosa, Binge Eating Disorder, and many other disorders can be effectively treated with certain kinds of therapy.
Unfortunately, there do remain some disorders that we have not yet demonstrated we can effectively treat and even for the disorders above, there are some people who do not improve as much as we would hope.
What is also critically important to know is that not all kinds of psychotherapy have been shown to effectively treat the disorders listed above or others. Some forms of psychotherapy have not been shown to help these or other disorders and there is evidence in some cases, particular kinds of therapy can even make problems worse. So it is incredibly important to find professionals who are able to provide scientifically supported treatments for the specific issues you are experiencing.
Q. What do you do in psychotherapy?
A. What takes place in psychotherapy will vary greatly depending on the kind of therapy and the particular psychotherapist. But it will often involve questions and exercises that help you become more aware of your values, goals, feelings, beliefs, behaviors, sensations, relationships and how all of these interact to produce your overall sense of satisfaction, meaning, and vitality (or when things aren’t going well dissatisfaction and unhappiness).
Q. How long is a session with a therapist?
A. Individual therapy sessions typically run from 30-55 minutes. There are clients and kinds of therapy where 80-90 minute sessions are also conducted.
Q. How often should you see a therapist?
A. The most common frequency is once a week .
But there are times when two or more times per week could be appropriate, especially if the issue is acute and serious, or if the goal is to provide therapy in a condensed format for a reason like someone is preparing to go away to college, etc.
There are also times, when going every other week or once a month could make sense. This is more common when a client’s symptoms have been significantly reduced and they have learned the skills to cope better on his or her own.
Q. How much is a therapy session?
A. Psychotherapy in Charlotte can range from $100 to $225 per session. You will want to call the psychotherapist and ask what their rate is.
Q. Is therapy covered under insurance?
A. Therapy is frequently covered by insurance. Depending on your insurance plan you may have to see an in-network provider or you may have out-of-network coverage where you could see someone who isn’t in-network, but your insurance company will pay for a portion of the cost. You can call your insurance company and ask them if you have out-of-network coverage for individual psychotherapy.
Q. How do you know when it is time to stop therapy?
A. Ongoing assessment of your symptoms and your goals is a good idea for effective therapy. Together with your psychotherapist you want to discuss when stopping therapy or gradually tapering makes sense. While some clients can continue to benefit from ongoing therapy, you never want to become dependent in a way that is countertherapeutic, i.e., decreasing self-reliance, confidence, or independence. Likewise therapy takes time and money, so those are resources to consider as well. No one should ever feel they can’t leave therapy. Therapists should happily have clients complete therapy when the client is ready. At the same time, if the client is continuing to benefit, dependency isn’t being fostered, and has the resources, a client doesn’t necessarily have to discontinue therapy either. Therapists should work as efficiently and effectively as possible to help clients achieve their goals as expediently as possible. Terminating therapy should be a very open dialogue between the therapist and client.
Q. What kinds of problems might be addressed in therapy?
A. Emotional problems, such as anger, anxiety, embarrassment, depression, and shame can be targeted. Therapy can help to reduce how often you experience these feelings and how intense they are. As you learn to change your feelings you will become more confident as you feel a sense of control. You will also learn how to behavior towards your goals even if you are experiencing an emotion. Once you are confident you are in more control of your life, you can continue to revise your life goals and get back to embracing the changes you want to make at work, with friends and family, and any other area of your life.
Q. Can therapy help? Why not just talk with a close friend?
A. Therapy is not for everyone and it is not for every problem. Certainly good advice can come from a number of sources, including friends and family members. There are problems that require scientific and clinical expertise. There are also issues that may require careful assessment to determine what the actual problem is. And finally there may be issues that are so private in nature, revealing them to someone in a personal capacity may not be an option yet. There may also be chronic problems or unfulfilled dreams that people have been trying unsuccessfully to help you with. That is when effective therapy with an expertise in the area may be appropriate.