Psychotherapy is a professional conversation focused on increasing self-awareness and mental, emotional and relational well-being. You may wonder why psychotherapy is worth the time, money and effort. Why therapy? Because…

It’s Needed: Research says somewhere between 30-50% of adults experience deep emotional difficulty at some point in their life, and common sense tells us that even these staggering numbers may be a bit low. At some point, almost everyone needs someone to talk to. Click here to learn more about the basics of psychotherapy.

It’s Effective: People generally have fewer negative emotional symptoms and report experiencing a higher overall quality of life after receiving therapy. For the scientists and skeptics among you, here’s some research:

• The Consumer Reports Study: The Effectiveness of Psychotherapy
• NREPP: Evidence-Based Therapy Relationships
• American Psychologist: The Efficacy of Psychodynamic Psychotherapy (pdf)

It’s Lasting: People who receive psychotherapy actually continue to improve and flourish after discontinuing it. With many things in life, it’s “use it or lose it.” Not so with psychotherapy. Life after therapy can carry lasting healing, growth, and positive change.

It’s Green: We live in a medical age where it seems easier (and certainly quicker) to just “pop a pill” and get on with it. Eye-opening new research suggests that 1 in 5 Americans uses at least one psychiatric drug. Not only is this alarming but potentially harmful to our health as well. Through psychotherapy, you can do something good for your body by avoiding side effects.