Searching for a therapist can be daunting. People often feel overwhelmed and frustrated and don’t know where to start.
I often compare the “therapist hunt” to dating and looking for Mr. or Mrs. Right. When looking for that person who is “first date worthy” not only does someone need to seem like a good fit on “paper” but he/she also needs to appear attractive or presentable enough for someone to be willing to invest the time and energy to meet them.
Upon meeting, there also needs to be a connection, a chemistry of some kind, and a flow to the conversation, some sense of safety and satisfaction.
If we look at getting the right match with a therapist, we can look at it from a similar point of view. There initially needs to be some appeal when reading about a therapist (online) and then there needs to be something attractive about the therapist and what he or she is presenting. And upon meeting, there needs to be a feeling of rapport and safety and medium to high comfort level; a kind of “they get me” feeling, as we all like to feel in the dating world.
SO, I always recommend that people shop around a little bit to see who fells like the right fit (not withstanding fees, location, and availability). Some people will have a priority of someone being in a convenient location and will pay anything for it. (some people will not date out of a 10 mile radius), whereas some people may not have a lot of money to spend on therapy but will drive far to find that right fit (some people don’t mind spending time in the car in traffic and will make sacrifices to meet the right person).
When searching for the therapist, decide if you feel understood and if you feel safe and comfortable in the office and if you feel as though you can be yourself. If these match and the other logistics do, then give it a shot and you will likely be pleasantly surprised!