I came to therapy like most people. A major life transition. My counselor helped me navigate my family as I prepared to graduate from college. Her compassionate guidance was like a compass pointing to the North Star, and in each session, I learned how I couldn’t save people or change the past but could become a better person. By working with Katherine, I realized how much an experienced psychologist could help you and, later, how a lousy therapist could destroy your sense of reality.
Good therapy provides a safe space for people to get to know themselves so they don’t repeat negative behaviors that could impact their futures or their families’ futures. Given that twenty-one million Americans suffer from depression, twenty million people are recovering from addiction, and forty million adults have anxiety disorder, therapy is a valuable tool to improve mental health.
However, bad therapy can further traumatize people who are already vulnerable, exacerbating mental illness, PTSD, and suicidal ideation.
The most prominent forms of abusive therapists are sexual advances, inappropriate touching, financial exploitation, lack of professional boundaries, or shaming and blaming you for no reason. If you notice anxiety or uncomfortable thoughts after a session, and it’s not about a challenging subject but the therapist’s behavior…
