Therapy is seems to be a mysterious thing. We may imagine something like this:
Or, a cute cartoon like this:
Therapy has become a joke to many. Actually, it is a really effective tool to help ourselves when there is a problem or during a big life change.
When you come to therapy - here's what you might encounter:
1. You enter the therapy office. Many times you will have your first interaction with a receptionist or front desk staff. They will ask you to complete a set of forms. The forms often include:
Registration Form: You write down your name, address, date of birth, insurance information.
Intake Form: It could ask for information about your family history, the reason(s) you are
seeking therapy, medical conditions, your occupation/education, relationships, drug/alcohol
history, legal history.
Consent Forms: You look over the Patient Rights and Responsibilities, Health Information
Privacy Accountability Act, Financial Policy of the provider or clinic.
Scales and Questionnaires: You may be asked to complete some questionnaires that
appear to be more like tests or quizzes. It is important to be as truthful as possible as
you complete these forms. They are the PHQ-9, CAGE-AID, GAD-7, etc. These
questionnaires look at your level of depression, anxiety and/or your substance use.
2. When you have completed all of these forms (are your hands tired from writing yet?!?), the therapist will meet you in the lobby, introduce themselves and invite you to come back to their office.
3. You are in the office and the therapist will ask you some general questions, like: What brings you in today? How long has this problem been going on? The clinician may ask you some clarifying questions.
4. During the appointment, the clinician will review the consent forms and explain them. One of the most important things that the clinician will review is regarding privacy. Almost everything is confidential. What isn't confidential? If there is abuse/neglect of a minor (under the age of 18), if you are going kill yourself and plan to complete suicide, if you are planning on killing someone else and have a plan to complete the homicide.
5. Toward the end of the appointment, the therapist will talk with you about how often you would like to attend therapy. Sometimes people come to therapy once a week and when the problem starts to resolve, the client may want to come in less often.
At the next session the therapist may talk with you about your diagnosis and talk about what might help you.
1. You enter the therapy office. Many times you will have your first interaction with a receptionist or front desk staff. They will ask you to complete a set of forms. The forms often include:
Registration Form: You write down your name, address, date of birth, insurance information.
Intake Form: It could ask for information about your family history, the reason(s) you are
seeking therapy, medical conditions, your occupation/education, relationships, drug/alcohol
history, legal history.
Consent Forms: You look over the Patient Rights and Responsibilities, Health Information
Privacy Accountability Act, Financial Policy of the provider or clinic.
Scales and Questionnaires: You may be asked to complete some questionnaires that
appear to be more like tests or quizzes. It is important to be as truthful as possible as
you complete these forms. They are the PHQ-9, CAGE-AID, GAD-7, etc. These
questionnaires look at your level of depression, anxiety and/or your substance use.
2. When you have completed all of these forms (are your hands tired from writing yet?!?), the therapist will meet you in the lobby, introduce themselves and invite you to come back to their office.
3. You are in the office and the therapist will ask you some general questions, like: What brings you in today? How long has this problem been going on? The clinician may ask you some clarifying questions.
4. During the appointment, the clinician will review the consent forms and explain them. One of the most important things that the clinician will review is regarding privacy. Almost everything is confidential. What isn't confidential? If there is abuse/neglect of a minor (under the age of 18), if you are going kill yourself and plan to complete suicide, if you are planning on killing someone else and have a plan to complete the homicide.
5. Toward the end of the appointment, the therapist will talk with you about how often you would like to attend therapy. Sometimes people come to therapy once a week and when the problem starts to resolve, the client may want to come in less often.
At the next session the therapist may talk with you about your diagnosis and talk about what might help you.
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