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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
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Posted by AppleG on March 19, 2009, at 18:30:25
How do I find a competent therapist? What qualities should I look for and what questions should I ask? I don't know much about the different therapies, but I know what I want out it. What do you do at a first appointment as well?
Posted by Dinah on March 19, 2009, at 19:04:26
In reply to How to find a therapist?, posted by AppleG on March 19, 2009, at 18:30:25
http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20031213/msgs/290414.html
I bookmarked this post a while back. It's my favorite on the topic.
I can't say I am good at this myself. I found my therapist mostly by accident. He was giving a seminar on anxiety, and while I wasn't terribly impressed with the seminar, he was the only therapist I had spoken to who actually seemed interested in working with me. Which isn't a bad criterion really.
But my two temporary therapists, and my various auxiliary therapists were less than wonderful.
My main advice would be to go into it sort of like dating. It's not necessary to continue to see the first therapist you interview. You might want to ask what sort of therapy they do, to see if it matches up with what you're looking for. And get a general impression over the phone. But trust your instincts. If you meet with someone who doesn't feel right they probably aren't.
Posted by AppleG on March 19, 2009, at 19:35:55
In reply to Re: How to find a therapist?, posted by Dinah on March 19, 2009, at 19:04:26
Thanks. It is incredibly daunting to attempt to narrow down a list of 70+ therapists off my insurance website in my area, in my zip code alone! EEK!
> http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20031213/msgs/290414.html
>
> I bookmarked this post a while back. It's my favorite on the topic.
>
> I can't say I am good at this myself. I found my therapist mostly by accident. He was giving a seminar on anxiety, and while I wasn't terribly impressed with the seminar, he was the only therapist I had spoken to who actually seemed interested in working with me. Which isn't a bad criterion really.
>
> But my two temporary therapists, and my various auxiliary therapists were less than wonderful.
>
> My main advice would be to go into it sort of like dating. It's not necessary to continue to see the first therapist you interview. You might want to ask what sort of therapy they do, to see if it matches up with what you're looking for. And get a general impression over the phone. But trust your instincts. If you meet with someone who doesn't feel right they probably aren't.
Posted by Annierose on March 19, 2009, at 19:55:07
In reply to Re: How to find a therapist?, posted by AppleG on March 19, 2009, at 19:35:55
Sometimes you can do some initial searching on the web. See if they have a web site and you can do some screening on-line. Psychology Today has a comprehensive therapist search. Or by googling the therapist name, their web site will pop-up if they have one.
You can also nararow the search by type of therapy.
Posted by lucie lu on March 19, 2009, at 20:17:39
In reply to Re: How to find a therapist?, posted by AppleG on March 19, 2009, at 19:35:55
In addition to type of therapy, another criterion may be what problem you want to address. I actually went through this recently, even though I have been in long-term therapy for several years with someone I think is really great. I wanted to get a fresh perspective on the relationship so I was looking for a consult. I live in an area with a huge number of T's per square foot. This was a consult, so I didn't want to ask my T, obviously. So I started by looking on some websites listing Ts in my area, read their statements about their specialties, orientations etc. Because my issue was about the therapeutic relationship (in the context of long-term trauma therapy), I looked for a T who had training in that area. I had a feeling that someone with that background would understand my questions and would understand the quality of the relationship. I found someone who looked promising, exchanged emails, and she was perfect. We really hit it off. So I think you can get an awful lot out of the websites. Then email and/or talk to them and see how it feels. In my experience, a good fit makes itself apparent very quickly. Her response to my first email told me that she would understand what I was looking for, and I was right. She has been very helpful as an adjunct to my therapy.
Hope this helps.
Lucie
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