Q. What is the purpose of therapy?

A. Therapy is helpful to address specific problems that naturally arise when multiple people interact with each other in ways that are not beneficial to the goals of all members involved. It is also helpful to have an outside perspective to help sort through issues during times of crisis, especially when people within a family may not be able to gain a larger perspective on pressing issues.

Q. When should I consider therapy?

A. There are many times and many circumstances as to when individuals, couples or families come in for therapy, but there does exist a common factor? Many folks come to a therapist when they feel they need it. When issues such as depression, anxiety, indecision, frustration, and hopelessness can be overwhelming can often depend on existing life situations and stressors. For those of us who try anything and everything we can think of to problem-solve, we can gain insight by Mark Twain’s famous quotation, “The measure of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, while expecting different results.”

Q. How does therapy work?

A. Therapy is essentially a structured and specialized type of conversation towards a shared goal. It is not a professional telling what you should or should not do, but rather someone who is trained and willing to listen and guide along a path of life that can be confusing and full of ups and downs. A good therapist can act as a coach to change a perspective of a problem into a learning opportunity that can bring a couple or family together against a common issue. Family problems do not need to be an unconquerable enemy to everyone involved.