L.I.F.E. Management Systems

Site Contents

About L.I.F.E.

Fees

Therapy FAQ

What is Good Mental Health?

About Dr. Lee

Life Coaching

Managed Care

Our Philosophy

Therapy Groups

Therapy FAQ

Contact Us

How Can I Tell If My Family Or I Need A Therapist?

We’re glad you asked. Certainly not every life challenge or problem requires the services of a professional psychotherapist, despite what the talk shows may imply. But here is a partial list of situations or experiences that many times benefit from the professional assistance of a licensed mental heath practitioner. Individual, couple, family or group therapy may be valuable if you…

Experience strong mood changes, feel sad, depressed, consistently discouraged.
Feel fatigued, worried, unable to get out of bed.
Are going through a separation or divorce.
Need help with your child’s issues: emotional, behavioral or academic problems
Experience chronic anxiety and discomfort.
Feel nervous around people or when socializing.
Are teary “for no reason”.
Having eating, sleeping or sexual problems.
Experience anxiety or panic attacks.
Are overwhelmed at times with fear, anger, resentment or guilt.
Thinking about hurting yourself or others.
Feel like your life doesn’t have any meaning or joy.
Experience painful loneliness or isolation.
Wonder about your alcohol or drug use.
Were emotionally, physically or sexually abused.
Have self-defeating habits or patterns of behavior.
Are chronically stressed, physically or emotionally.
Are suicidal.
Believe others are plotting against you.
Have addictions that are troubling you.
Hate your job and don’t know what to do.
Want to explore other career options or vocational choices.
Are struggling as a parent.
Are unhappy with your marriage or significant other.
Have a long- term medical condition or life threatening illness.
Have flashbacks of past experiences.
Wonder if you or your child has ADD or ADHD.
Want psychological assessment to pinpoint learning disabilities.
Can’t get along with others either at work or home.
Feel like you can’t manage your temper or anger.
Repeat behaviors, thoughts or rituals, which are not really necessary.
Cry a lot for no particular reason.
Hear voices or see images that other people do not experience.

But Do I Really Need Psychotherapy?

Please note that we are not saying that if you have any of these problems or issues, that you definitely need psychotherapy or will benefit from professional services. However, we believe it is worth seeking a professional opinion and diagnosis of your problem. After one or more assessment sessions, you and your therapist should be able to determine if treatment is warranted, what the course of treatment might look like, as well as what benefits you might reasonably expect.

Please remember that psychotherapy is both an art and a science. Therefore, the factors which affect the outcome of psychotherapy are complex and numerous, such as how long you have had the problem, how motivated you are to learn and grow, how you deal with change, how others respond to your growth, whether medication may be indicated, etc. But research and clinical experience both indicate that the fit between the client and therapist is crucial, i.e., how safe and accepted you feel with your therapist and how well are you both able to form a therapeutic alliance toward your growth and healing are crucial factors.