You’ve decided to go into therapy for your social anxiety, but now you’ve got a whole new kind of anxiety to deal with: how to choose a psychotherapist. You could ask for a referral from your family doctor, check out a few professional listings online, or even just pick a name from the yellow pages. But as long as you’re reading this article anyway, why not become an informed consumer and increase your chances of making the right call? It won’t take much effort, I promise, and the payoff could be enormous.
Step 1: Know What You’re Looking For You know you need help for your social anxiety, but now it’s time to get more specific. What exactly do you want to achieve in therapy? Maybe there’s a great new job in your company, but you’re hesitant to apply because it involves a lot of social interaction. Maybe there’s a special someone you’d like to get to know better, but you feel held back by your condition. We all know we’d like to get better, but the point here is to find out what better means to you. Ask yourself this question: when I’m better, what will I be like? How, specifically, will my life be different than it is now? Knowing what youre looking for is the first step to finding it.
Step 2: Ask Around Shopping for a therapist is a bit like shopping for a car. In both cases you’re going to be spending a lot of time and money on your purchase. When you shop for a car, you probably ask around among friends and family, and they’re usually only too happy to give you their opinions of models and manufacturers. If you’re able to, go ahead and do the same for therapists. You might be surprised at how much useful information you get.
Step 3: Create Your First List Now you can open up the yellow pages or the online professional directory. Instead of picking out therapists that look good, start by eliminating the ones that you know won’t work for you. For example, if youre friend had a terrible time with Dr. Hamilton, he gets crossed off. If Sheila Frank’s advertisement reveals that she focuses only on couples and families, she gets eliminated as well. You get the idea.
Step 4: Refine Your List Now you’ve got a list of therapists who made the cut, and your next step is to put them in order of desirability, with the most promising names at the top of your list and the least promising names at the bottom. How should you prioritize? Well, that’s up to you ultimately, but here are some factors to consider. If the therapist advertises a sliding fee scale, that could move them way up your list if money’s a major problem for you. Likewise, if a therapist’s office isn’t convenient to public transportation and you don’t have a car, they’re probably going to get bumped down. Recommendations from a friend will probably mean a lot. You could easily spend all day rearranging this list, though, so set yourself a reasonable time limit.
Step 5: Get on the Phone Start with the person at the top of your list and give them a call. Tell them you’re considering therapy and are checking out local therapists. Ask if they have a minute to talk to you. Don’t be surprised if they set up a time to call later, or if they ask you to come to the office in person. If they don’t have time to talk, or they want a consultation fee just for the privilege of asking them questions about their work, run for the hills! Set up appointments with the top two people on your list.
Step 6: Evaluate Your Potential Therapist
Whether you’re on the phone, or in person, don’t be afraid to take notes. The way a therapist answers tough questions can tell you a lot about them, so don’t be afraid to bring along a list of questions that are important to you. Here are some suggestions:
¨ I think I might have social anxiety. What is social anxiety and what are the symptoms? This is a great question to ask even if you already know the answer because it will reveal whether or not the therapist knows anything about the condition. If they’re evasive or vague, it’s probably best to move on. ¨ How much of your practice is geared toward people with social anxiety?
This isn’t a deal breaker. Just because a therapist doesn’t see a lot of clients with social anxiety doesn’t mean that they’re no good at treating it, but experience is helpful. ¨ Are you trained in CBT?
In case you don’t already know, cognitive-behavioral therapy has been proven to be the most effective treatment for social anxiety. You definitely want to steer clear of therapists who aren’t familiar with it. ¨ Am I required to sign a contract or anything?
A therapist may have you sign a number of documents (disclosure forms, privacy notification forms, history forms, etc.) but if they insist on you signing a treatment contract (i.e. you’re locked in for a certain number of sessions and a certain amount of money) then you’re probably a lot better off looking for someone else. ¨ Are you licensed? Tell me about your education and training.
There are all kinds of therapists out there: psychiatrists, psychologists, clinical social workers, licensed professional counselors, marriage & family counselors, etc. Keep an open mind about the kind of therapist you see. (Personally, I’d rather choose a master’s level professional counselor with a specialty in social anxiety than a psychiatrist with no specialty at all. Be sure you’re comfortable with their level of licensing, though. There are many good unlicensed and pre-licensed counselors practicing under supervision in community clinics and hospitals, but running a private practice without a license is a bit shady. Licensing by the state is designed to protect the consumer, so if the therapist you’re speaking with isn’t licensed, ask them why.
Step 7: Think it Over and Make a Decision Look over the notes you’ve taken on your therapists, and make a decision. That might sound over simplistic, but after interviewing a couple of therapists you’ll probably have a pretty good idea of what will and will not work for you. If nobody works for you, go to the next two therapists on your list and do it again. Good luck!
- Just Ben
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