Whether you live in NJ or anywhere else, you may find yourself needing family therapy. If it is your first time seeing a counselor, you may be worried or ashamed. There is no reason to feel this way and there are some tips that can help you get the best experience possible and really work through your problems, whether you have been going to therapy for a while or for your first time.
Be Real
Everyone puts up walls when they are around certain people or even themselves, but in order to get anything from your family therapy sessions, it is important to be completely real and honest with yourself and the therapist. If you have trouble with this in general, talk with your therapist and tell him or her that you don’t really want to be honest with yourself sometimes. Your therapist may have some tricks or tools to help you.
Right Counselor
If you don’t feel comfortable, you won’t want to go to therapy. You may need to go to a couple of therapists in NJ before you feel comfortable enough to continue. This is normal and why most family therapy practices have two or three different options for you. Remember, counselors are humans too and they have their own styles and personalities.
Homework
Most counselors will offer some type of homework for you to practice what you have already learned. If you dislike your body, the therapist may ask that you look in the mirror every day and tell yourself three things you like about your body. If you aren’t getting homework, ask for some because you will receive more from each session and find it easier to drop your protective wall faster.
Sometimes, homework can be in the form of a journal that you keep after each session. You may dislike journaling, but it can provide you with personal growth and there are many great types of journals. You can always select a notebook and do it by hand, use a word document that you password protect, or use an online journal that you set to private.
Pre-Session Letters
Most people want to go to counseling to better themselves. Consider writing a pre-session letter to yourself before your first session and explain the reason you are going to counseling, what you want to get out of these sessions and what your obstacles have been. You can then read the letter to the counselor.
Family therapy in NJ may seem strange at first, but you can make it easier. Consider Institute for Personal Growth (IPG) today. Read more about IPG counseling.
