The 8 benefits of going to psychological therapy
For many people going to the psychologist is synonymous with being a weak person , but in reality, going to psychological therapy can make you a stronger emotionally, and can provide you with tools to be able to adapt better to the difficult situations that may occur throughout your life.
When to go to a psychologist?
So, going to therapy is an act of intelligence and courage , since in many occasions the person who needs help is not aware that he has the problem or avoids confronting reality. Many people still do not know when they should think about going to a psychologist, especially because of the false beliefs about what psychotherapy is and to whom it is addressed. In this regard, we recommend that you read this article:
The 8 reasons why you should go to a psychologist
A psychotherapist is a mental health professional specializing in the cognitive (thinking), affective (emotions) and behavioral (behavior) areas, and can help you to empower yourself in the face of everyday circumstances and improve your quality of life .
For that reason, next we present you the benefits provided by psychological therapy .
1. It helps you feel better
When you face together with a psychotherapist those problems that cause you pain or discomfort, and be able to speak with confidence and with freedom about yourself to someone who does not judge you about your feelings and your repressed experiences, you are letting express your thoughts and hidden sensations, which one it is beneficial for the well-being .
When you express how you feel and release your emotional charge, you feel relieved. This is known as catharsis, a Greek word that refers to purification and is used in psychology to explain the process of liberation of negative emotions.
2. Teaches you tools to handle conflicts
The conflicts they are normal in people's lives and, in many cases, they are necessary for personal growth or coexistence with other individuals. Psychotherapy sessions teach you new ways (more adaptive ) to solve problems.
In addition, it can help you to perceive conflicts in a different way, so that they affect you less and be able to relativize the importance of tense situations. In this way, your way of adapting to the new circumstances of the day to day will be much better and, in general, you will have less difficulties in your personal relationships or even in the professional field.
3. It helps you change limiting beliefs
With our beliefs and values we give meaning and coherence to our world model. The same situation can be experienced differently by each person. The beliefs help us in the end, to simplify the world around us, and are interpretations of reality and not made facts.
Some beliefs are maladaptive or limiting and it is necessary to correct them, because they are not innate, we acquire them throughout our lives. Thus, the psychologist can help you identify them, analyze them, test them and modify them .
4. It helps you to live in harmony with yourself and with others
The introspection that is carried out when attending therapy allows you to know yourself better and overcome, for example, an existential crisis. In addition, psychotherapy is effective for work problems (burnout, stress, etc.) or partner problems.
Therefore, psychological therapy can help you solve these types of problems, and It is beneficial to find yourself and to relate to others more effectively . This will positively affect your mental health, and allow you to find inner peace and well-being.
5. Confidentiality of the sessions
The relationship with the psychologist It is confidential and strictly professional . As expressed in the ethical and deontological code of the Official College of Psychologists, the professional of psychology must guarantee the secrecy and confidentiality of everything referred by whoever consults him.
Therefore, everything you say in a therapeutic session will be a secret between you and your therapist. This allows a relational framework in which very intimate fears can be treated.
6. Relationship of trust and empathy
In addition to the knowledge and professionalism that the psychologist must show, the environment of trust that is created between both will allow you to express the problems and feelings that you consider more delicate (and that possibly you would not tell anyone else).
The psychologist will not judge you and, in addition, has the necessary training to create a good environment of trust and empathy for you to express yourself without fear.
7. Professional advice
The psychotherapist is an expert in psychological therapy, and has extensive knowledge about human behavior , because he has studied psychology in a regulated university. To get to work as a psychotherapist, it is very possible that you have completed some postgraduate university about some specialty (for example, sexology, couple's therapy or clinical psychology), and surely you have acquired the necessary experience to be able to contribute all your knowledge in your benefit.
Psychological therapy is not telling the problems to a friend or family member, there is a solid base (both theoretical and practical) endorsed by science .
8. It empowers you in front of life
One of the goals of psychotherapy is that the relationship between the therapist and the patient is not dependent . Therefore, the psychologist helps you to be the owner of yourself and to acquire new skills that will be useful to you on a day-to-day basis.
Attending psychological therapy is not expecting the psychologist to solve the problems, is to learn to accept and love what one is and to put the will necessary to change what causes us discomfort or prevents us from growing .
Bonus: Psychological therapy changes your brain
Neurological studies are increasingly finding empirical evidence of the capacity of psychotherapy to modify brain structures and improve them, getting a better vital attitude to face the day to day.
You can check it by reading this article by psychologist Eduardo Valenciano:
"Psychotherapy produces changes in the brain"
