Does it get worse before it gets better in Counseling /Therapy?

Question

Hi,
I started counseling 4 months ago. The past 2 months have been hell for me. I feel worse than I did before. Part of it is I have only been able to see the therapist about once a month and it caused me so much frustration to wait til the next vistit. I asked him for more visits, but he said his schedule was full. I finally asked to plan a month in advance and he then gave me 2 visits per month. The problem is that I cannot stop obsessing about counseling and reading and thinking. I was very numb before and counseling seems to have opened up a flood of anxiety that I cannot seem to stop obsessing about. Is this normal to have such anxiety after starting therapy? Thanks!

Answer 1

I think you need to find a counsellor that can see you more often, I know a psychologist and she told me monthly visits are not that effective for making cognitive changes. You should try and go weekly, then switch to bi-weekly and then monthly. My guess is you are feeling like the counselling sessions are keeping you from going over the edge, but I bet you arent anywhere close to the edge, not even on the ledge. You just think you are.

I think you need to look at ways of dealing with your anxiety, perhaps see your family doctor or pick up some books on anxiety. A good one is "feel the fear and do it anyway." Not bad for a self help book.

The thing about obsessions is that they are usually just a means of distracting you from dealing with your problems or something else that is bothering you. Try getting involved in lots of things to keep you busy, the busier you are, the less time you will have to think about all of this. Cut off your internet if you have to, dont read any thing on your mental health, you will be fine, I dont doubt it for a minute,

Answer 2

In my experience, yes. It does get better.

I've found that a good therapist will bring certain issues to the surface that have otherwise been buried, hidden, or not recognized - the types of things one doesn't like to think about or talk about. The process of recognizing these things and how they affect behavior and thought patterns and such is key to receiving the proper treatment.

As with anything else, identifying the problem is only the first step. Identification won't always solve the problem, so significant effort must be put into working on these things.

Sounds to me that you've already gotten past the identification step (or are progressing well in that process), so once the 'healing' begins, you'll start to feel better. As for the anxiety, I'd talk to your counselor about it - straight up. Tell him how much you stress about it and talk about what you can do to help and ask him if there's anything he can do on his end to alleviate the anxiety.

Answer 3

Yes, it does. You see, the numbness you used to feel was your mind playing the part of a bandaid for your issues. When you seek to uncover the wound and remove the bandaid the wound is now opened up again causing as much pain as when you were first 'injured'. But the bandaid is not a cure to heal the wound, it only protected it. Now the therapy can do its job of cleansing and healing the wound like Bactine would do for a scrape. It burns like hell when you first put it on but in time the wound heals and with minimal scarring. You'll be glad you did! And as for seeing the therapist more often, I found that the time between visits was neccessary to heal properly. I too read all I could ect. and this was as much a part of the therapy as the therapist. In fact, I believe it was even more helpfull. The therapy was basically only the removing of the bandaid, you have to heal yourself...hence the reading ect. Good Luck Sweetie!

Answer 4

Going through therapy often opens up memories, thoughts and feelings you have tried to forget or supress. So it is natural to feel kind of depressed during the first while of therapy. All of these bad things come flooding back. As for you feeling anxious after starting therapy, it could be that you don't know quite how to deal with these old thoughts and feelings. Therapy helps you channel them in a healthy way, so if you have a lot of things you still need to or want to talk about, its natural to look forward to your next session. If you feel you are not getting the help you need, talk to your therapist next time and say you feel you need some more time with him/her to work out some feelings. Ask if the therapist thinks it would be helpful for you to have more sessions (sometimes it can actually have a reverse effect, it depends on the person). myabe he/she doesn't have the time, maybe they can refer you to another therapist...or suggest a help group as well and one-on-one therapy. What ever you choose to do, make sure you tell you therapist why your asking these things, tell him/her about your anxious feelings. maybe there is something else they can suggest. I hope this helps you.

Answer 5

Yes, what your going thru is normal. My recommendation is to take one of your therapy sessions and explain how your feeling. Share your anxiety, obsessive thinking, ruminating........... If you feel too awkward to do this verbally then write it down and give it to him/her to read or via email. Once they know that this is occuring, they can then help relieve some of the discomfort/anxiety it's causing. The important this is to reach out and get the help and support you need between the therapy sessions. Unfortunately therapists aren't mind readers.

If you should feel suicidal/homicidal I hope that you have an arraignment that you can call him or someone else in an emergency.

Sounds like you need therapy and a good support person.

Answer 6

yes with time you are going to get better in the future keep on going to therapy

Answer 7

yes usually