Therapeutic

 

Twenty some odd years ago I went to therapy for the first time. I won't share the catalysts, but suffice to say it was a rough time in my life and I was in need of emotional support beyond the good friends I've been blessed with through the years.

It ended up being a very small number of sessions. The therapist was, let's just say, pretty terrible. I probably would've been better off cutting things off after the very first session, but decided to do a few before calling it a day. 

Nevertheless, it felt really good to go to therapy. Independent of the content of the sessions themselves, the act of scheduling and attending them were good things for me to do, which made me feel like I was prioritizing my own wellness in ways that perhaps I had not previously.

Fast forward to the present and I am back in therapy. Again I won't share the catalysts, although please don't worry about me. I'm actually in a pretty good place emotionally. But I also have enough self-awareness to know that asking for help is a good thing, and that there are seasons when that extends beyond what you can ask of your family, friends, and colleagues.

Once again, just like before, the act of going to therapy feels good. But fortunately, unlike last time, my current therapist is great. In fact, he's hitting it out of the park: good listener, gives me room, asks probing questions, and knows when to interject his own explanations and frameworks. What an amazing combination: feeling good about making time for self-care, and then getting really good help in working through hard stuff. 

I will leave the details out but suffice to say that therapy has been therapeutic, for which I am feeling deeply grateful. If you have the opportunity and need for the same, I strongly encourage it. You are worth it, and there is no better time than now to put that into motion.