4 Surprising Benefits of Therapy

We learned via GoodTherapy that people enter therapy because they want something, whether its "seeking relief from debilitating symptoms" or they want help with a life changing decision.

They stated that if therapy has a "therapeutic competence, perseverance, compatibility, and good fortune" people can meet their goals. However, people find that therapy has unexpected benefits too. Here are 4 surprising benefits GoodTherapy found about therapy:

1. Depth: GoodTherapy stated that "we’re accustomed to having mundane conversations revolving around the weather, bullet points from work, some celebrity/sports highlights, and the story we just heard on NPR or Fox News." However, therapy pushes us beyond this and asks deeper questions about ourselves. They stated that, "When people realize talking on this level is not just interesting, but also productive and healing, they want to recreate this depth in other relationships."

2. Empathy: The article stated that people come to therapy wanting to address their own problems, however once they dive into their issues they learn how to help others on a new level. Therefore, gaining empathy and a deeper understanding of other people's lives and perspectives. 

3. Contagion: The article stated that when people go to therapy and learn more about themselves, soon their friends were interested in finding their own therapist. They stated that "People feel empowered and excited about growing. Their mood, attitude, and/or behavior changes, and their friends are intrigued." 

4. Listening: When someone spends a large amount of time with a professional listener, they learn the ability to listen. The article stated that "People in therapy know how good it feels to be on the receiving end of that kind of attention and are more likely to replicate that for their loved ones."

Interested in trying out therapy for yourself? Community Well has several marriage and family therapists to help heal the community. Check out their pages below and start healing!

Click here to learn more about psychotherapy.

Click here to learn more about child and family therapy.