Are you feeling nervous about attending your first session? If so… no worries, it is a common feeling. If you have symptoms of strep throat, then you go to the doctor to get support? Honestly, I can remember my first time going to therapy…my thoughts were “Is she going to think I am crazy; will I be judged?. Upon further experience I soon came to realize that in my own therapeutic journey, I was 100 percent supported and given unconditional positive regard.
Instead, I found I received compassion for the willingness to reduce what was not working in my life and the willingness to find a more peaceful route. I am here to tell you that your identity is not in a diagnosis or a traumatic situation that happened. Ishmael Beah writes in his memoir on being a boy soldier in Africa A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Solider, “…children have the resilience to outlive their sufferings, if given a chance.” I believe this wholeheartedly as a therapist, and have seen many individuals step into the discomfort and embrace the chance. The chance to feel the pain, to grieve, to name feelings to tame them and to discover their resilience. Some individuals find that a diagnosis helps them to understand the way their brain works or what maybe going on with them at a biological level. Others find they do not want to be labeled by a diagnosis, they just want a reduction in negative symptoms and better coping strategies. Some find a diagnosis helps them find a roadmap to treatment. Others feel relief understanding they are more than their diagnosis. Either way, together we will strive to help you find what works well for you.
