Will Therapy Fix Me?

Therapy is different than going to see a medical doctor when you have a broken bone. the doctor can clearly see a broken bone on an X-Ray and know how to treat it or fix it. Therapy is very different in the sense that it can't fix any issue or person. People do not break, people learn how to cope with incidents or issues in their lives the best way that they can. Just because they may cope with something maladaptively, it does not mean that they are broken or need to be fixed.

Unlike fixing a broken bone, therapy does not have a set timeframe for how long it takes to learn healthier coping mechanisms. It may take three visits or it may take three years, there is no time limit other than what is discussed between a client and therapist. Everyone responds to therapy differently, and so you cannot compare two similar cases because the individuals are not the same person. This may lead to a client believing that they are broken and cannot be fixed, however, the truth is that they are probably making progress, even in small amounts, but are not seeing the full picture yet.

A large part of the therapeutic process is growing into the person that the client wishes to be. Growth can look different from person to person because no two people have the exact same goals. With that in mind, it's important to understand that sometimes growth can feel sad or bring up anxious feelings. Again, that doesn't mean that the client is broken it just means that they're going through a growth spurt.

While a therapist can't” fix” you, they can help you work through traumas that created ineffective coping mechanisms. They can teach you alternative coping mechanisms that feel more comfortable and are more effective, all while helping you grow into the person that you want to be. It's important to remember that you are not broken and do not require “fixing”, you are an important human being that has lived life and has encountered moments in that life that were not comfortable. Therapy can definitely help with that!