Thoughts from a Therapist

I use this blog to talk a lot about plant-based living, but if you’ve checked out my About Me page or my first blog post then you know that by profession I am a therapist. I spent my graduate studies learning in-depth how us humans operate…I learned what drives us, what breaks us, what helps us, what hurts us, etc. I hope to use this blog to share some of the wisdom that I feel so lucky to have learned in my graduate program about human behavior.

Back in graduate school my classmates and I watched a documentary called The Color of Fear about racial issues in the United States. Roberto, one of the men being interviewed in the documentary, made a comment, which originally comes from the famous Persian poet Rumi, that really struck a chord with me. He stated, “The cure for the pain is in the pain.”

That simple phrase speaks volumes. It encapsulates everything therapy is about. Even though it can be hard, uncomfortable, or even downright painful to confront our issues head on…when we have emotional pain over anything, be it our relationships, work, divorce, abuse, trauma, early childhood experiences, etc., the best way to work through that pain, and to over come it, is to explore it. To really examine, how did this affect me? How did I deal with it? Why did it happen to me? How can I make it better? And most importantly, how can I grow from it?

Therapy provides a safe place for people to explore their struggles, however big or small they may be, and learn to grow from them. And growth is a beautiful thing.

If you are interested in starting therapy psychology.com is an excellent resource to find therapists in your area. You will be able to see where the therapist is located, what their specializations may be and which insurance plans they accept.

If money is an issue, check to see if your local university offers a sliding-fee therapy clinic. These clinics are able to offer low cost therapy to their clients because the therapists are current graduate students working on their degrees in counseling. These student therapists work closely with a seasoned therapist supervisor to assure that the client gets the best treatment possible. I worked as a therapist in one of these clinics during graduate school and it was such a rewarding experience.

Feel free to reach out if you have any questions. And remember…the cure for the pain is in the pain.

xo,

Tedi