You may have decided to go to therapy because you have trouble managing your emotions and thoughts or a problem has arisen that you don’t know how to solve. Or maybe you have already been in therapy for a few weeks. Luckily, going to psychological therapy is becoming more and more normalized and the associated stigmas are being denied.
There are many psychological clinics, both in person and online, that offer you different options to go to therapy. There are many variables that influence when choosing a psychologist, from their age or gender to their therapeutic model.
In the end there are so many options that it can be overwhelming. It is difficult to know how to choose the correct option, this doubt may even arise when you have already started therapy. How do you know if a psychologist is good? Let’s see it.
In this article we describe how to know that a psychologist is a good option based on a series of characteristics and factors to take into account.
1. Based on the opinions of former users
The first thing of all is to choose the therapist. The best criterion for this is as with the products you buy online: knowing the opinions of former patients/clients that they have in their profile or that they have told you.
To do this, you can look at psychologist directories or search engines, which are web pages where a multitude of psychologist profiles appear. In the search you can put filters with the city, price and modality (online or in person) that you prefer. In each profile there is a description of the therapist himself, what problems he treats and contact information.
And most importantly, opinions and ratings appear (typical of the five little stars) from people he has treated. You can be guided by these opinions and see if it fits your needs, depending on whether former patients/clients are happy with this person and the results of the therapy.
Another more traditional way is the opinion of your acquaintances. You may know that someone around you has gone or is going to therapy and is satisfied, so it is a good idea to ask them about their therapist to make an appointment with them.
2. Once in therapy, he actively listens to you and does not judge you
If you have already chosen a therapist, you should check if they convince you during the therapy itself. To know if a psychologist is good, it is essential to detect that he/she has the skill of active listening: the ability to listen with full awareness to the person who is speaking.
Active listening involves giving you full attention, making you feel heard and understood, showing real interest in what you are telling them and helping you by asking you comments and more questions, and being empathetic with you unconditionally. It is very important that you do not feel judged at any time, since you need to feel comfortable to open up and be able to tell all the necessary information to the therapist.
At the same time, it allows psychologists to efficiently understand patients’ emotions and thoughts, and makes it easier for patients/clients to tell them all the information relevant to therapy. With this data, therapists are guaranteed to be able to help you, which is, after all, their ultimate goal.
3. Maintain healthy and explicit communication with you
It is difficult to know what to expect from each treatment, especially if you have not previously gone to therapy. To reduce uncertainty and prevent them from feeling lost, psychologists must inform patients/clients throughout the therapy process about what they can or cannot achieve, how the problem or disorder is evolving. In fact, being informed about the status of treatment is a right of the patient according to the Psychologist’s Code of Ethics.
In addition, it is important that open communication is maintained at all times by both parties to prevent conflicts from arising or, where appropriate, so that they can be resolved. To be a good psychologist, this must be able to talk explicitly about problems that may have arisen within the therapist-patient relationship since it is necessary that you feel comfortable with your psychologist, for the therapy to work.
4. There is a good connection
Until now we have talked to you about the therapist’s capabilities. These skills can be trained, and the training of any psychologist includes this training, so it is actually easy to find any trained psychologist.
That’s why we recommend that you prioritize finding a psychologist with whom you feel comfortable, and can feel confident enough to talk to them about your intimacies and to try the solutions they suggest. To achieve this comfort, it no longer only depends on the active listening skills of the therapist, but also on the existence of a certain feeling.
It may happen that because of your way of being, you perceive that there is no connection between you, in the same way that it can happen to us with any person. This doesn’t actually mean that the therapist isn’t good at her job, but that he/she just isn’t good for you. For therapy to work, you need to trust him/her almost from the beginning.
If it happens to you that you cannot create that connection despite leaving a margin of time, do not abandon the idea of ​​going to therapy. Look for another psychologist, you will surely be able to find someone who is suitable for your way of being. Lucky for you, there are plenty of fish in the sea.
5. It is professional as well as close
Psychologists are experts in mental health, that is, they have sufficient experiences, skills and knowledge to help you solve problems. Therefore, one way to know if a psychologist is good or not is his/her level of professionalism. This can be detected if the therapist shows confidence when speaking and applying psychological techniques, and if you are making progress when you carry out the tasks and recommendations he/she suggests.
In addition to appearing professional, it is important that the therapist appears authentic and approachable. Authenticity means that psychologists appear natural, so that there is congruence between how they are as people and how they are as therapists. This characteristic is detectable although it may seem difficult to believe, because If the psychologists were not authentic, they would seem uncomfortable and insecure during the session.
Therefore, authenticity allows patients to see therapists as confident when applying techniques or giving explanations, and to see them as close people, with whom they can establish a connection and feel confident to speak openly. Some ways to show authenticity and closeness are to show your own emotions in session at appropriate times, tell things about your own lives that are related to the topic being discussed, or even use a sense of humor.
6. It adapts to your needs while also being persuasive
In the same way that it is important for the psychologist to adapt the therapy to his or her own way of being to appear natural, it is even more important that it adapts to your needs. The treatment has to be adapted to your way of being, thinking and feeling, and the speed and time you need to take each step, since each person has their own idiosyncrasies. This is essential to know if a psychologist is good or not.
However, psychologists must also have the ability to be persuasive when explaining the tasks and recommendations that you have to follow, without being too insistent. Excessive insistence can cause the opposite reaction to the desired one on the part of the patient. You will always have the last word.
Are you looking for quality online psychological assistance? If you want to start an online therapy process, Psychologist Plus It is a perfect option for you. On this platform you will find a system to find the psychologist that best suits what you are looking for, answering a few simple questions anonymously.
