What Do I Talk About in Therapy?

Therapy is an excellent place to discuss any mental health struggles you have. People with mental illness go to therapy to discuss their issues. You can read more about the benefits of therapy and mental health disorders here.

Counseling a time that is dedicated to your specific emotional needs. You can use your therapy session to talk about life stressors, challenges with mental health problems, transitions, and more. Some people develop strategies for dealing with anxiety or depression.

Other people discuss grieving a loss of a loved one, or issues surrounding relationships in therapy. Things come up from different aspects of your life. Here’s how you can use your therapy sessions to the best of your ability.

Start from where you are emotionally

Sometimes you go into a therapy session not knowing what to talk about, and that’s okay. Start from where you are. Whatever is the first thing that comes to your mind, say it aloud.

You can begin by saying: “I don’t know what to talk about today.” Your therapist is someone you can trust with your problems. Maybe you’re nervous about opening up and telling your deep dark secrets.

It’s natural to want to take your time. A therapist is there to develop a relationship with you that involves trust. Start from where you are that day at that moment.

Ask yourself: what do I need help with right now?

Generally, the thing you want to talk about in therapy is what is at the forefront of your mind. Perhaps you’ve had a conflict with a friend, and it’s bothering you. You don’t know how to resolve the issue. That’s something you can talk out with a therapist.

Your mental health professional is dedicated to showing you how to cope with different problems. Inevitably, we have conflicts with those in our lives. That is something you can discuss during your session and delve into the feeling surrounding the conflict.

Your therapist is there to brainstorm and problem-solve with you so that you can come back to the conflict and have strategies to cope with it.

Dream interpretation

Often we have repetitive themes in our dreams. A therapist is someone you can talk to about those. Maybe you have chronic nightmares. That could be the sign of unresolved trauma.

Or perhaps you’ve had a puzzling dream that you would like your therapist to interpret. A therapist is someone you can trust to disclose your dreams to you, and they will help you figure out what they mean in “real life.” Sometimes we wake up from dreams, and we are disturbed by the content.

A therapist will not judge what you’re dreaming and help you understand the significance of it.

Working through trauma

Trauma can have a significant impact on your life. It can affect the way you relate to other people and take a toll on your relationships. Therapy is a safe place to discuss traumatic memories and how they are continuing to affect you to this day.

A therapist understands that trauma is not something that is quickly resolved. These wounds take time to heal. Your therapist will be patient with you while you disclose your trauma and help you recover from the pain. It may take several sessions to process your traumatic experiences. Ultimately, it will be worth it to let go of the pain and start to heal.

Taking the leap and going to therapy

Whether you work with a therapist in your local area or someone online, it’s essential to seek out somebody who can support you. A mental health professional is in this field because they care about helping people sort through their problems.

If you’re not sure what to discuss in therapy, you can always consult with your therapist. Ask them what they feel will be beneficial to work on. Remember that your therapy session is dedicated to your well-being. There’s no wrong way to use a session.

Sometimes you need to sit in silence for a little while to figure out what you want to discuss. Your therapist will be patient with you no matter what you need to do during that time.