Aren't Therapy Sessions Private? Then Why Post About Them?

I had a very interesting conversation with a friend of mine about therapy. She's not an advocate of it and believes I can be better healed by going outside into nature--listen to music, go for a run, that sort of thing. She went on for a bit of a ramble about Freud and sex, and all that stuff, and I just let her talk. When she finally paused, she looked at me and said: "Besides, aren't therapy sessions private? So why do you post about yours?"

That's a good question, and it was one that I had to think about before I answered. I told her I'd put my answer in this blog, because I needed time to fully articulate my thoughts.

Did you know that when you google therapy, 2,050,000,000 hits come up? I didn't either until I started writing this. I surfed through a number of hits, on various pages, (not all two billion so I'm certain I missed a lot of information), and I saw three main motifs: pro therapy, anti-therapy, and a mix of pro and anti with a strong focus on doing other things instead--yoga, breathing, etc. I saw posts that spoke about the pros and cons of Freud, that demonized and praised CBT and DBT, and a host of definitions, opinions and alternatives. There were not a lot of personal posts, especially posts that gave a sneak peek into a client-therapist interaction. (Many of the ones who did were negative). Some also gave a theoretical, but not personal, look into it, discussing the potential leather couch (I'm not knocking psychoanalysis, I've heard it works well for some people).

So, like with everything else in my blog, I like to give a window into my journey, into my therapist appointments and conversations, to not only see some of the stuff I deal with, but also to show that not all therapy is a cut and dry, leather couch with a blank slate therapist. I'm not saying my therapist is the world's greatest, but for what I need right now, she's a rockstar and the best for me. She's human, she shares things with me, I feel cared for as a person, she challenges and tests me, she pushes me, but also supports me and is one of my biggest cheerleaders. She gives me a space every week to be me, fully present, fully Kelley without masks and without a role to play. She's compassionate, sarcastic, friendly without us ever being friends, and she helps me untangle the biggest puzzle of my life--me.

My posts allow others to take a peek into this private world--to see another part of mental health treatment that isn't always readily accessible unless you're in the room, to quote the musical Hamilton, where it happens. Yes, all our session work is private, along with all of our emails and texts. I very rarely use my therapist's name, never state where she works, and I never discuss the heart of our sessions--everything I say stays firmly between us (you can see how heavily I've edited out the personal stuff within this post). But I do post moments that are meaningful and highlight the triumphs and compassion that I sometimes find in our work.

So I hope I have answered why I often post about my experiences in therapy to social media. I want to give a window into all facets of my journey, allow for a glimpse of the client-therapist therapeutic relationship, celebrate my own successes and sometimes failures, and also to continue to break the stereotypes that surround mental illness. Going to therapy is no different than going to a doctor for a cold. I hope, in my own little way, that my posts, and this blog, help to normalize that idea.

If you are contemplating therapy, I urge you to do your homework, research types of therapies and therapists and find one that is right for you. Most importantly, don't give up. If you don't click with one therapist, you will click with another. Therapy is hard work, but the results are well worth it. Trust me, I wouldn't be here without it.