How to Prepare for Therapy
Not knowing what to expect can be terrifying as a first-time client or meeting a new therapist. I created a guideline to help you with preparing for your intake session as well as future sessions to make sure you are getting the most from therapy with me.
Questions - Most of the intake questions I will ask will derive from the paperwork that you completed so you know what to expect. These questions are used to assess your symptoms, concerns, family history, social relationships, coping strategies, and goals for therapy. Ongoing therapy questions will be based on what you bring up to work on.
Goals - Communicate what your goals are for therapy and what are you hoping to gain from the process. What are you hoping to be different from what your life looks like now?
Honesty - For me to provide you with the most accurate and supportive care, it is beneficial that you are honest with yourself and with me. This can mean bringing up issues that you’ve been suppressing when you feel ready, letting me know when something isn’t working in therapy or if I have misunderstood you, or discussing your needs.
Preparation - I welcome any concerns or questions you may have. I will make sure I answer them to my best ability or if I don’t know the answer, will try to find them out for you.
Open Mind - You are okay to feel skeptical about therapy and how it can work for you. It’s normal to question how talking about your feelings can help you with your stress or reliving past traumas can help you with your current relationship. We can talk about your hesitation. I will walk with you through them to make sure you are heard.
Expectations - Discuss the expectations you have for yourself and expectations for me as the therapist. What kind of therapist are you wanting? How much change can actually happen in # weeks? How much work will you engage in? Are you willing to “go there" now? What are therapeutic boundaries? Do you expect immediate change? What’s your role and what’s the therapist’s?
Practice - You may learn helpful intangible and tangible skills in therapy. Practice them by implementing what you’ve gained outside of therapy as change doesn’t happen magically in isolation.
Plan - Creating an actionable plan can help you reach your goals to make sure you keep yourself accountable. What are you willing to do differently to make sure you reach your ideal life?
Journal - Writing things down can help you keep track of your thoughts, experiences, and emotions throughout the week. Sometimes, we forget a lot of the things we want to talk about in therapy, so keeping a log of items you want to address can be helpful. Clients may find keeping a therapy notebook open during therapy to jot down insights or reflection questions to ponder between sessions.
Challenges - You will face challenges and setbacks. Don’t let this deter you. Growth is not linear, however, that doesn’t mean taking two steps back is a failure on your end. It can propel you forward. Bring up these challenges in therapy so we can problem-solve together.
