The truth about therapy
by Mira and Charles on July 2nd, 2010It works, it’s fast, and (surprisingly often) it’s easy
Oy, what people don’t know about therapy. Sometimes I think it’s all Woody Allen’s fault. He’s helped promulgate the image of therapy as something that goes on forever, is gut wrenching, and accomplishes little. But in fact the opposite is true.
A recent piece in the New York Times illustrates how, with a good therapist using appropriate, evidence-based treatments, therapy
- works. Problems really do go away; people really do feel better and function better; relationships and families survive and thrive
- is fast. It’s amazing how quickly big problems can be brought down to size—you have to see it to believe it, but it happens all the time
- is easy. Yeah, you have to show up, do the homework, and be willing to let go of the patterns that haven’t worked for you. But it shouldn’t be gut-wrenching either. It’s not like hip-replacement surgery. It’s more like tennis lessons. Easier, actually.
Dear Lord, I wish more people understood this. There is so much depression, anxiety, indecision, and sheer not living up one’s potential for accomplishment and satisfaction. And all this could be changed so much more quickly and easily than people think.
Here’s thing. Yes, we really are deep and complicated. I get that. But that doesn’t mean that therapy has to deal with all the depth and complication. In that sense, good therapy is like auto repair: cars today are incredibly complicated too, but often a simple repair can change everything. And therapy is usually even easier (and cheaper!) than that.
So please: stop suffering. Get help. It can make all the difference.
That’s what we do here at The Chestnut Hill Institute.
