Therapists do not take a “one size fits all” when it comes to treating their clients. Every individual has unique issues and goals for therapy. In general, you can expect to:
- Discuss the current events happening in your life and personal history relevant to your problem.
- Discuss progress and insights gained from previous therapy sessions.
Depending on your specific needs, therapy can be short-term in dealing with a particular issue or long-term to deal with more difficult patterns or your desire for more personal development.
Either way, it is most common to schedule regular sessions with your therapist at a pace you feel comfortable with.
It is important to understand that you will get more substantial results if you actively participate in the therapy process. The ultimate purpose of therapy is to help you bring what you learn in each session back into your life. Therefore, beyond the work you do in therapy sessions, your therapist may suggest some things you can do outside of therapy to support your process. An example of these things can be:
- reading a relevant book
- using a journal to self-express
- noting particular behaviors
- taking action on your goals, etc.
People seeking psychotherapy are ready to make positive changes, are open to new perspectives, and take responsibility for their lives.