Our counselors provide therapy in Cary, NC

My standard approach to individual therapy is most often cognitive behavioral therapy or dialectical behavior therapy. First and foremost, I evaluate the needs of the individual in determining the best course of treatment, and my skills are eclectically borrowed from a variety of approaches as a result. I enjoy working with clients to determine the approach that will fit best with their goals as well as their personality. I find that CBT and DBT have broad scopes and applications across a multitude of diagnoses.

The following skills are taught in individual therapy:

• Increasing awareness - Helping clients become more aware of their own thoughts, feelings, and patterns of behavior.
• Psychoeducation - Educating clients as to the therapy approaches, concepts, and terms.
• Cognitive challenging - Learning to identify and disprove cognitive distortions.
• Cognitive reframing - Replacing untrue or unhelpful thought patterns with patterns that are both true and helpful.
• Dialectics - Holding two seemingly opposite concepts together at the same time, such as the concepts of acceptance and change.
• Behavioral tools - Understanding how we motivate, reward, and/or punish ourselves and others.
• Emotion regulation - Learning how to effectively identify, decode, and express our emotions.
• Self-soothing - Giving ourselves the power to meet our own needs for comfort.

I know clients are making meaningful progress in therapy when they are tracking progress toward their goals and establishing how they want to proceed with ongoing sessions. Some clients prefer to look at therapy as a course of treatment where they will want to reduce and spread out sessions until they feel confident in terminating treatment. Other clients will view therapy as a form of ongoing self-care, similar to someone who continues attending the gym after meeting a physical fitness goal. Either perspective is indicative of meaningful progress as we look for a reduction in the frequency, intensity, or duration of the issue being treated.

Clients can supplement their time in individual therapy by establishing healthy supports outside of therapy. If you are lacking support, you might consider joining a club, class, or volunteer organization. If you have established supports, you may want to reach out and let them know more about what has you seeking therapy services. Very often, we find that people in our social support systems are experiencing similar difficulties, and this can have a positive effect on clients who have realized that they aren't alone in what they have been feeling.

To prepare for individual therapy, you can give your open and honest feedback throughout the process. The most effective part of counseling comes down to the therapeutic relationship—in other words, how well you click with that provider. Like any other relationship, sometimes you click, and sometimes you don't. You are seeking counseling for a service, and the odds are good that if you feel that you're not connecting with the provider, they can also feel the disconnect. It's okay to advocate for yourself and your needs or preferences!