🛋️ How Therapy Helps: Debunking Common Myths About Counselling/Psychotherapy

For many people, the idea of going to therapy still carries a cloud of stigma, confusion, or fear. Despite the growing conversations about mental health, myths about counselling persist — often preventing people from seeking support when they need it most.

Therapy is not just for crises, nor is it a luxury for a select few. It's a tool for growth, healing, and empowerment. Let's break down some common myths about therapy and explore why it can be transformative at any stage of life.

Myth #1: "You have to be in crisis to go to therapy."

Reality: Therapy isn’t only for people in acute distress. It’s for anyone who wants to better understand themselves, improve relationships, cope with change, build resilience, or process life's challenges — big or small.Going to therapy when you're not in crisis can be even more powerful because you're proactively strengthening your mental health before things escalate.

Think of therapy the way you think of going to a doctor: you don't have to wait for a heart attack to start taking care of your heart health.

Myth #2: "Therapists just listen — they don't actually do anything."

Reality: Good therapists are not passive listeners. They are trained professionals who use evidence-based techniques to help you explore patterns, challenge negative thinking, heal past wounds, build coping skills, and create meaningful change.Yes, they listen deeply — but they also reflect, guide, challenge, and empower you.

Many therapeutic approaches, like Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), and somatic therapies, involve structured strategies designed to create real shifts in thinking, feeling, and behaviour.

Myth #3: "If I start therapy, it means I'm weak."

Reality: Seeking therapy is a profound act of strength and self-awareness.It takes courage to look inward, to confront painful truths, to ask for help, and to commit to change. Therapy isn't about weakness; it’s about resilience, growth, and the radical decision to prioritize your well-being.

The truth is: everyone struggles. Therapy simply gives you a healthier, more empowered way to navigate those struggles.

Myth #4: "Therapy will change who I am."

Reality: Therapy isn't about turning you into someone else. It's about helping you become more fully yourself — without the layers of fear, shame, trauma, or conditioning that may be clouding your authentic self.

You don’t lose yourself in therapy; you rediscover yourself.

You learn how to differentiate between who you truly are and the survival patterns you've developed to cope with life. And in that process, you gain freedom.

Myth #5: "It’s too expensive and takes forever."

Reality: While therapy can be an investment, there are often more options than people realize. Many therapists offer sliding scales, insurance covers sessions in some cases, and community agencies provide low-cost services.

And no — therapy doesn’t have to last forever. Some people benefit from a few sessions to work through a specific issue. Others choose ongoing therapy as a form of long-term personal growth.It’s flexible — built around your needs, your goals, and your timeline.

The goal of therapy is empowerment: helping you build enough insight, skills, and support that eventually, you may not need it in the same way.

How Therapy Can Help You

Build emotional resilience and healthier coping skills
Process trauma and painful life experiences
Untangle unhealthy relationship patterns
Improve self-esteem and self-compassion
Navigate major life transitions (career changes, loss, parenthood)
Reduce symptoms of anxiety, depression, and stress
Create a deeper, kinder relationship with yourself

Therapy isn't magic, and it isn't a shortcut. It's a space where healing is possible — where growth is cultivated with patience, honesty, and support.

Closing Thought

If you've ever wondered if therapy could help you, the answer is likely yes.

You don’t have to be "broken" to deserve support. You don’t have to be "perfect" to be worthy of healing. Therapy is simply a sacred space where you can be real — and where real change becomes possible.

You are allowed to ask for help. You are allowed to heal. And you are allowed to build a life that feels more like home.

Nilu Mohaktarian is a Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying) at Catharsis Psychology and Psychotherapy.