top of page

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Individual Counseling Questions

1. How long will counseling take?

Changing how you live your life is a process. The length of time you spend in counseling will be different for each person, and depends on your goals. Some people need a few weeks, others need several months, and still others need longer than that. Most people find weekly or every-other weekly sessions most beneficial to their goals.

​

Counseling ideally comes to an end point when you have experienced significant healing, growth, and positive change toward your goals, or when you have accomplished what you came to counseling to do.

4. What if I don't know what to talk about?

Most people don't know what to talk about at first, and that's okay! We'll help you figure out what we should talk about. Even when you've done counseling for a long time you may arrive at your session and not know what you want to talk about. We can always figure out together what to focus on in the session.

2. How can I know if I need counseling?

Counseling helps you fix things about your life that you don't like. Problems such as panic attacks, anxiety, depression, stress, feeling stuck in life, feeling stuck in your job, work burnout, lack of motivation, low self-esteem, anger issues, loneliness and isolation, social anxiety, loss of someone you loved, friendship problems, romantic relationship problems, family relationship problems, or past trauma - just to name a few!

5. Do I have to know what I want to work on to get counseling?

Many people come to counseling because they (1) have a sense that something is wrong in their life, or (2) have had their friends or family members talk about their transformative experiences in counseling and recommend it.

 

If you have even the slightest "I want something better for myself" inkling, then we have plenty to work with in our sessions together. People who work on themselves become better spouses, parents, and friends. 

3. How will I know if counseling is working?

You might notice some of the following:

  • You understand your current problems more

  • You understand yourself and your family more

  • You see your problems differently than how you've seen them before

  • You start to apply what you've learned in therapy to your life

  • You have more compassion on yourself and on other people

  • You react differently to your problems

  • ​You experience more personal peace

  • You're less angry, anxious, or depressed

  • You have more clarity

  • You experience less body symptoms (headaches, stomach aches, tension)

6. What is counseling like?

Counseling is a little bit like meeting a close friend for coffee (having a great, friendly, comforting conversation) PLUS a little bit like meeting with a doctor (talking to a professional who knows a lot of things about humans). We're not analyzing you, just trying to support you and help you get to a new place.

 

People sometimes begin by talking about how they have come to the place they’re in: what's hurting, what’s not working in their lives, what they have experienced, and what they would like to be different. But don't worry, If you get stuck or don't know what to do, we'll help you out and ask questions

bottom of page