Be open

One of my main jobs as a counselor is to provide you with a safe space for you to be open about things you wouldn’t share with anyone else. The extent that you’re willing to go into those places with me, which you may have been avoiding for years, will have a great bearing on whether you will find counseling effective.

Let go of skepticism

Sometimes, people can be skeptical of whether counseling can help. Admittedly, there are no guarantees. However, if you approach counseling thinking that it can’t really help, then, unfortunately, you are setting us up to fail.

I honor your right to be skeptical. If you will share this with me so we can discuss it, we have a better chance of determining if counseling is right for you.

Trust the process

Sometimes, you may feel like a session has been a great relief or that you had some profound insight. Other times, you may find that it was draining, challenging, or maybe you’re not sure what you got out of it. If you persist and continue to engage in the work of exploration through counseling, you have the chance to realize the benefits that you wouldn’t discover otherwise.

As we work together, I may recommend certain methods that have been proven to be effective, such as EMDR or mindfulness-based approaches. You may find these approaches odd or wonder how they could be helpful. Again, it helps if you’re open to trying them and seeing what might happen. You may be surprised.

Work outside of sessions

It’s also important to try ideas suggested in sessions outside in your world. I may suggest trying something out consistently to see what happens. Then you can tell me whether you found it helpful or not and we can make adjustments accordingly.

Talk to me

If something happens in counseling that was particularly challenging, or you are dissatisfied with, it would really help us both if you could let me know. I would like to have the opportunity to discuss anything like this so that we can both continue to learn from our experience.

Be persistent and consistent

Like so many other things, attending sessions as scheduled will also have a big impact on whether counseling is helpful. Most often, counseling is really only effective if you come every week. During a crisis, it might be better to have several sessions a week.

Continuing our work together consistently will allow us to realize gains from week to week. As you realize these gains, then we will likely taper off our sessions so that you attend less frequently until our work together is complete.

We’re in this together

The best news about counseling is you don’t have to keep trying things out on your own. I will be there to help and support as you engage in these courageous steps you are taking.

You are worth it

If you are paying for counseling without insurance, it might seem rather expensive. However, if you really show up and do this work, you have the opportunity to change your life. How much is that worth?

If you’re ready, contact me at (512) 656-9877 for a free consultation. I look forward to talking to you.