Five Strategies to Overcome Obstacles for Finding Therapy.
It is not a mystery to therapists and their clients that there are unique challenges that prevent many from connecting with quality mental health services. If you have ever realized you were interested in therapy and started the search you may quickly become overwhelmed by some standard choices that include: therapy modalities, professional licenses, payment options, and finding a therapist with availability to name a few. While there are many barriers to seeking mental health assistance, I hope that this article will address a few of the common ones that may arise in your search.
“It's expensive!”
This is the first and largest barrier to many seeking therapy, and with current inflation rates it is even more prudent to address. Aside from unhelpful comments like, “increase your income” or “stop buying avocado toast” having the financial ability to afford quality mental health care is a privilege many do not have the budget for. For those with health insurance, it is best to see what mental health clinics or therapists are on your panel to pay a smaller co-pay for therapeutic services. Another option is contacting your local community mental health clinic that may offer sliding scale, grants, and other low-income options to assist with finding care. Finally, many therapists in private practice will offer sliding scale services for those that request it or refer you to someone that offers it if they are unable to. The website, OpenPath, is another option that will list therapists that offer their services at a steeply discounted rate once you are fully enrolled on their platform.
“Therapists have no availability!”
Another common remark that is heard from those seeking mental health care is that they can’t find a therapist and that they are all booked out for months. This is another well known barrier, and sadly, there will always be more demand for therapists than can be provided. My first recommendation would be to use therapist aggregate source, like Psychology Today, and contact those that have availability. If you are in college your university should have counseling services that are provided through your tuition and fees. Finally, contacting your local community mental health clinic for any groups might be a low expense option to connect with others in a larger dynamic.
A word of caution on telehealth platforms like BetterHelp, TalkSpace, and similar options you might have heard advertised or sponsored on social media. These platforms, in theory, are great options to address the lack of therapy resources and bring much needed disruption to the classic therapy model. However, there are ethical and privacy concerns that need to addressed before I would recommend any of these platforms. Here is good article that reviews these concerns in more depth.
“There are too many acronyms and choices!”
I agree! When it comes to therapy and mental health, therapists are their own worst enemy when it comes to the undue complexity in the field and lack of consumer resources to understand psychotherapy terms and acronyms. When you are reviewing therapists, you will see many types of credentials: LMHC, LICSW, PsyD, and LMFT to name a few. There are also therapeutic modalities and certifications annotated in therapist profiles like CBT, ACT, DBT, EMDR, and many others. A good place to start is this article by Stephanie Hairston that goes into depth of the different types of therapists out there. I’ll clue you into a secret though, the most important part of therapy is the therapeutic partnership you create with your therapist. It is one of the strongest correlations to your progress and success in therapy. Don’t lose sight of the forest for the trees, finding a therapist you feel safe and connected to is the most important factor that you should primarily focus on in your search.
“Therapy is hogwash!”
There are plenty of articles that argue otherwise, but when I hear this comment, it usually comes from a place of strong emotion or fear that needs to be explored. Therapy will have very limited to no impact with those who have no commitment or motivation to engage in services and work towards their goals. If you have had a bad experience with a previous therapist or heard horror stories from others, it will be difficult to overcome your initial bias and experiences towards psychotherapy. An argument to this is that if you had a bad primary care doctor do you swear off the entire medical system and avoid all future medical care? Most likely not, you will search for another doctor that will allow you to feel heard and validated. It might take several referrals to find the right therapist, but when you do, that’s where the real progress and healing can be made.
“I live in a rural area and services are limited.”
This is a unique barrier that I have come across several times working in a state that has several large rural areas where mental health services are extremely limited. The silver lining to the pandemic is that many therapists now offer (and can bill for) telehealth services that are provided through HIPAA compliant video and telephone sessions. If technology and reception are limited, I recommend connecting with your primary care physician and asking for a referral for local mental health care. You can also call 211 (state specific) and see what resources are available to you.
