Not at all. People who ask for help know when they need it and have the courage to reach out. Everyone needs help now and then. In our work together, I’ll help you explore and identify your strengths and how to implement them to reduce the influence of the problems you are facing.

The difference is between someone who can do something and someone with the training and experience to do that same thing professionally. A mental health professional can help you approach your situation in a new way– teach you new skills, gain different perspectives, listen to you without judgment or expectations, and help you listen to yourself. Furthermore, counseling is completely confidential. You won’t have to worry about others “knowing my business.” Lastly, if your situation provokes a great deal of negative emotion, and you’ve been confiding in a friend or family member, there is the risk that once you are feeling better, you could start avoiding that person, so you aren’t reminded of this difficult time in your life.

Medication can be effective, but it alone cannot solve all issues. Sometimes medication is needed in conjunction with counseling. Our work together is designed to explore and unpack the problems you are experiencing and expand on the strengths that can help you accomplish your personal goals.

Because each person has different issues and goals for counseling, it will be different depending on the individual. I tailor my therapeutic approach to your specific needs.

Unfortunately, this is not possible to say on a general FAQs page. Everyone’s circumstances are unique to them, and the length of time counseling can take to allow you to accomplish your goals depends on your desire for personal development, your commitment, and the factors that are driving you to seek counseling in the first place.

I am so glad you are dedicated to getting the most out of your sessions. Your active participation and dedication will be crucial to your success.

It is false to say that there are normal people and abnormal ones. Unfortunately, when talking about mental health, only reference is made to the pathology and how to treat it, and not to the causes that are affecting the person. In recent years there has been an increase in the rate of anxiety, depression, self-harm, obsessive-compulsive behaviors. Also, there is a large increase in child suicides. According to statistics, one in five people in the United States is diagnosed with mental illness in any given year. Suicide is the second most common cause of death in the United States for youth ages 15-24. Kills more than 800,000 people a year worldwide and 48,300 in the United States What's going on?We can make two assumptions: either this is due to an unexplained increase, and there is nothing causing it, or we can recognize that we need to grow up and educate ourselves more about mental health. Rather than judging people as normal or abnormal, it is important to identify what individual conditions are leading adults and children in those directions. Being isolated or uninformed about mental health affects the development of children and the lives of adults in unhealthy ways and evidently this presents imbalance, despair, and a very high risk.

First, I introduce myself, I explain my way of working, fees and policies. I explain about the therapeutic process and everything about confidentiality. We will discuss any doubts that arise and of course you can comment or ask me whatever comes to mind. It is important that you ask the questions that arise in your mind and evaluate if I am the ideal person to accompany you in this process. To achieve successful psychotherapy, you need to feel comfortable because I know that it is not easy to talk about breakups, fears, traumas, disappointments, things that affect your emotions and do not allow you to achieve well-being. It has been shown that trust in your therapist is as or more important a factor than the psychological approach used. The key is to figure out if you are trusting enough to be vulnerable and reach your emotional goal. The therapist will also ask you several questions to understand the reasons for your visit. Explore when the problem started, what it is associated with, the feelings it produces and what are the specific difficulties it generates in your life. The objective of these questions will be to know your situation, evaluate your objectives, and expectations. Before the end of the session, I will summarize everything that has been discussed to assess whether it has been understood correctly and see if I am the right person to accompany you in the process.

Conversations with family and friends are very valuable. Heemotional support and connecting with other people gives us a very deep meaning to life.However, it also happens that friends do not understand what is happening to you and give you advice that, instead of helping you, hurts you. Occasionally, they tell you things that worked for them but that don't apply to you. The process with a mental health professional is totally different. A mental health professional will accompany you to approach your situation from an informed point of view, will ask questions designed to increase your perspective, will listen to you without judgment and will not give you advice that is not consistent with what you are experiencing, and that, in turn, long, they would limit your learning. Also, therapy is confidential. You don't have to worry that what you said will reach the wrong ears or that you will be judged. Nor will you have to worry that you are bothering, worrying a friend with your things. The therapist is trained to accompany you in moments of great anguish. The therapist does not have a moralistic approach to things, understands human functioning and will not judge you.

Therapy can be short-term, focusing on a specific issue, or long-term, addressing more complex issues. The number of sessions will depend on many factors.: · Problem longevity. The longer the psychological problem has been occurring, the longer it takes to solve it. · Complexity of the problem. It is not the same to treat something that affects a single area and depends entirely on the person who comes for a consultation than to treat a multiple problem that is also enhanced by the presence of others (comorbidity). · Intensity of the problem. What happens daily and causes a lot of suffering usually requires more time to be solved. · Task fulfillment. People who do the tasks the therapist asks them to do tend to improve faster. · Therapeutic relationship. Whether the relationship between client and therapist is appropriate (commonly called therapeutic alliance orreport) the situation will improve faster. As you can see, it is impossible to take into account all these variables; and even less in a quantified way.There are no magic dates for this.

Going to therapy once a week is the most common frequency. It is the recommended time so that the space between sessions is not too long and the rhythm of the work carried out in the consultation is lost. However, there are times when an appointment can be scheduled every two weeks.

There are many genetic aspects, but despite this, it has been shown that most aspects or personality traits have been acquired through experience and the inculcation of our family, friends, environment and culture. Therefore, we are a sum of acquired habits of thoughts, emotions and behaviors that interact with genetics. Then we can unlearn what hurts us and learn healthier responses.

In most treatments, relapses are the norm and not the exception. Usually relapses promote emotions like guilt. While it is somewhat natural for this to happen, we are forgetting our main goal is to learn from what happened in order to gradually adjust our behavior with this new information. If we park ourselves in the relapse and in the judgment, you will lose the opportunity to do a dispassionate analysis of the circumstances that led to the relapse. Identifying the behavior patterns that are generating the relapse is of vital importance. If we want to learn about ourselves, well managed relapses can be a useful tool in this learning process. We must have the will, willingness to know where we failed and reformulate the strategy that we maintained so as not to relapse. Being honest with ourselves can be difficult, but it is essential if we do not want to fall into self-deception.

The law protects the confidentiality of all communications between a patient and a psychotherapist. Information is not released without prior written permission; however, there are some legally required exceptions to this rule. The general requirement that the psychotherapist maintain the confidentiality of information does not apply when disclosure is required to protect clients from serious and foreseeable harm or when legal requirements require that confidential information be disclosed.

Seeking therapy is an individual choice. There are many reasons why people opt for therapy. Sometimes they want to deal with childhood traumas, anxiety issues, and depression. Other times it is due to unexpected changes in life, such as a divorce or work situations. Others exploration and personal growth. Working with a psychotherapist help develop new strategies for all kinds of life challenges. Therapy is suitable for anyone who is interested in getting more out of their life by taking responsibility, creating greater self-awareness, and working for change. Everyone goes through challenging situations in life, while you may have successfully overcome many of the difficulties you have faced, there is nothing wrong with seeking professional support when you need it. Being sufficiently aware that help is needed is something to be admired. Therapy provides lasting benefits, giving you tools to better manage your emotions, thoughts, and behaviors.

The therapeutic approach will depend on your particular situation, your personality, your age, your goals, and objectives. Therapy should be tailored to your specific needs. Each therapy session is unique and tailored to you and your specific goals. In the first sessions, the patient relates the reason for seeking professional help. It is usual to schedule a series of weekly sessions, where each session lasts around fifty minutes. Sometimes the patient will be asked to read a relevant book or keep records to track certain behaviors. It is important to process what has been discussed and integrate it into your life between sessions. For therapy to be most effective, you must be an active participant, both during and between sessions. People seeking psychotherapy are willing to take responsibility for their actions, work for change, and create greater awareness in your life.