How to choose a good psychologist who offers psychotherapy?

Some guidelines to know how to choose the most qualified psychotherapist to give you professional support.

If you are interested in seeking psychotherapy services and you do not have much experience in this field, it is good for you to know a series of criteria that you can use to select the right psychotherapist.

After all, there are many myths about what psychotherapy is all about, and this means that there is a certain risk of going to people who are not really qualified to treat patients, in which case they may even make the problem worse. Fortunately, there are some basic aspects that help to avoid problems of this type.

So... how to choose a good psychologist at the time of going to therapy?

6 keys to know how to choose a good psychotherapist

When you are interested in seeing a psychotherapy professional, consider these guidelines for making the best choice.

1. Check their specialization

Not all psychologists are professionally dedicated to psychotherapy.. There are other branches of psychology that do not have much to do with patient care: marketing, education, Human Resources, research, etc. In all of them it is possible to work full-time and exclusively as a psychologist.

Therefore, it is important to pay attention not only to the fact that the professional we are considering is a psychologist, but also to make sure what his or her specialization is.

2. Check that he/she is registered with the Official College of Psychologists.

Psychotherapy is a form of intervention with patients that must follow a series of principles and rules, as it is within the field of health. Therefore, it is important to check that the person we are assessing is a member of a professional association.The colleges regulate the activity of professionals.

3. Check that his or her work is based on science

Psychotherapy is applied science, that is, its methods and tools are based on scientific knowledge. For this reason, all psychologists are obliged to use scientifically validated therapiesThis implies that their positive effects on patients have been proven through a series of investigations over the years.

Therefore, the fact that a psychologist expresses himself in esoteric terms or appeals to supernatural entities to explain the human mind and our behavior, is an alarm signal that should lead to its discarding; one thing is that consciousness and subjectivity are part of the field of study of psychology, and another that these should be understood practically as if they were magical elements, disconnected from the human body and matter in general.

Similarly, combining psychotherapy with pseudoscientific or esoteric practices such as tarot or homeopathy is also a powerful reason to choose another professional.

4. If the professional is highly specialized, don't worry.

The fact that a psychologist specializes in a very specific area of psychological well-being is not in itself a reason to discard him or her, nor does it imply that he or she is a worse professional. Simply put, consider whether the problem you want to treat in therapy fits the professional's training..

For example, if what you are looking for is help to overcome agoraphobia, it is fine if the psychologist you are going to has no experience in child therapy or couples therapy, as long as he or she has experience in anxiety disorder intervention.

5. The psychologist should not offer friendship

A person who claims to offer psychotherapy and at the same time offers to establish a friendly relationship with the patient, in all probability is not qualified to practice that profession.

The therapeutic relationship is clearly professionalAlthough patients talk about their problems openly and honestly, and psychologists may offer empathy and even brief moments of relaxed conversation, the goal is clear: to offer a goal-oriented service.

6. It offers concrete objectives

In every psychotherapeutic process there is a first phase of patient evaluation which takes place just before the actual intervention begins. In this phase, psychologists seek to understand the characteristics of the problem of the person who comes to them, as well as his or her life context and characteristics as an individual.

At the end of this phase, before starting the treatment phase, it is important that the professional proposes concrete and easy-to-objectify objectives. In this way, there will be a clear reference at all times that will show whether there is progress or not, and that will mark the moment to end the therapy.

Keep in mind that the process of psychotherapy cannot be indefinite.It must have a duration of a few months or weeks. Only in some cases of chronic and severe illness it will be necessary to make visits throughout the years, but in these cases they are much more spaced than those of a psychotherapeutic intervention to the use, since they serve to make pursuit.

If after the first contact sessions the psychologist suggests that the therapy will last for years or will be something for life with weekly regularity, it is advisable to change psychotherapist.

Are you looking for expert psychological assistance?

If you are interested in the professional support offered by expert psychologists in psychotherapy, please contact our team. In Cribecca Psychology we serve people of all ages, couples and families, either in our center located in Seville or through the online therapy service. The psychologists who work here specialize in all areas of mental health and emotional well-being, and we base our work on the cognitive-behavioral intervention model, one of the most effective and versatile.

For more information about Cribecca Psychology and see our contact details, access this page.