When you decide on personal psychotherapy, the most important problem is which psychologist to choose. Friends and acquaintances, if they are aware of your intention, vying with each other to recommend specialists known to them, and you are at a loss. This is normal. After all, a correctly chosen therapist can help you change your life for the better, and a reckless choice of a psychologist is not only wasted and a lot of money, but also a great disappointment that can take away from you the opportunity to solve your internal problems.
So, what you need to know when choosing a personal psychologist
Education
Before you make an appointment for your first appointment, be sure to check with a specialist or his administrator what education this psychologist has.
Here you should take into account the following nuances: the presence of a basic clinical medical education. The best option, of course, is when a psychologist has a higher medical education in the field of psychiatry … No, no, this is not because everything is so bad with you. A classical medical education in this area guarantees you that the psychologist knows what he is talking about. The human psyche is directly related to the nervous, endocrine and many other systems of the body. The ability to analyze these relationships and the right to analyze them is very important.
Also look out for a degree in psychology. Currently, any commercial college has a psychology department, so it is better to give preference to reputable universities with a long-standing practice of teaching psychological sciences.
What else? Specialization of this specialist. If he has been in the profession for a long time and firmly, he should have many certificates about the courses he has taken, master classes, trainings, and so on. Pay attention to the topics of these trainings and courses. Feel free to ask questions. You don't have to know what art therapy or gestalt or Hellinger constellations are, so let them tell you all about it in detail. And you choose whether you need it or not.
Personal contact
Remember, the first trick is acquaintance. You look closely to a specialist, and he gets to know you. Your further work depends on how much you both manage to establish this first contact.
You have to be very honest and very careful here. If you don't like something, analyze why. If unpleasant feelings have arisen during the conversation, you can try to discuss them with a psychologist. If later, write them down. Think about your motives: are you prejudiced, and why, did the psychologist say something unpleasant for you, what exactly, why it was unpleasant and for whatever reason you did not track it right away. What else could cause your rejection of this specialist: was he attentive to you, impartial, objective?
Do not hesitate to call a spade a spade, only honesty will help you make the right decision, and a lot depends on this decision.
