Therapy for Therapists: Does Your Process Look Like Ours?

Therapy for therapists is a funny thing. In so many ways, it’s very much the same as it is for our clients - it's personal, comforting, deep, hard, and incredibly rewarding. Therapy challenges me to face my pain points and ugly parts, and my therapist holds space for me compassionately and warmly. I'm incredibly grateful for each of the therapists that have invested and guided me in my growth and healing. 

As a clinician and client, I have a lot of respect for the therapeutic process. To me, it is a process that really is a distinct privilege to get to walk alongside my clients in. I recognize that clients are entrusting me with some of the most vulnerable, confusing and difficult parts of themselves. And frankly, as the therapist and as the client, that's not something I take for granted. 

On the other hand, being a client, who a therapist is and how they operate is something that I tend to have a lot of opinions about! As you can guess, this tends to make it difficult when searching for a therapist - which I've done on more than one occasion. I prefer to work with certain treatment modalities over others, I have learned that I have a "type" when it comes to therapists, and yes! I want to know what their cancellation policy is! Finding this unicorn that is also not in your professional circle (dual relationships are generally avoided if at all possible) is an uphill battle. 

Thankfully, there are therapists that focus their clinical practice toward working with therapists and, thanks to telehealth, the market for "available" therapists has gotten wider in the past few years. As a therapist that very much believes in the importance of a holistic good fit (personality, location, availability, vibe, financially, modality, etc....), I hold the same intentionality and respect for the process as I pursue my own services that I encourage clients to pursue a match with.

While there are some quirks to being on both sides of the therapy room, it's something I'm incredibly grateful that I invested in for myself. As a human, woman, loved one and provider - I appreciate all the gifts that therapy has brought me and that I lovingly get to share with those around me, professionally and personally.