Tips for Finding a Therapist
“How do I find a therapist? Where should I look? Who should I ask? Should I use my insurance? What kind of therapist should I look for? Why can’t I find anyone who is accepting new patients?! Why is finding a therapist so damn hard?!”
Finding a therapist can be incredibly overwhelming. There’s a lot of us there, so there’s a lot to choose from. And you don’t really know who you’re getting. When you’re already feeling exhausted, worrying constantly or feeling defeated, you probably don’t want looking for a therapist to feel like a job. Here are some helpful tips to make finding a therapist a little less confusing:
First, decide if you want/need to use insurance.
This will narrow down your search and determine which direction to search. If you’re looking to use insurance, start with going directly through your insurance company’s directory. This can often be found online.
Most likely, it’s not going to tell you who is or isn’t accepting patients currently, but you’ll at least know they accept your insurance. Once you’ve done this I recommend searching for that therapist in Google, Yahoo, or whatever search engine you use. Not to find out personal information about them, but to look their website. Not everyone has one, but it’s a great place to start.
Their website will give you more insight into what their therapeutic style/approach is, what services they offer and may even tell you if they are currently accepting new patients. Personally, when I’ve used insurance in the past to look for my own therapist, I only called the people who had a website. It narrowed down the search process for me and helped me get a sense of what they’re like.
Consider what kind of support you're looking for from a therapist.
Do you want to take a deep dive in your past?
Do you want to address something traumatic that happened?
Do you want something solution focused, exploratory or both?
Are you looking for concrete strategies you can do to feel better?
Do you want an approach where you talk freely about whatever comes up for you, an approach that is more structured and directive or a combination of both?
What are you most struggling with right now that you need help with?
Do you want someone to see in person or virtually?
Who will be attending therapy? Just you? A couple? A Family?
Are there particular identities you prefer the therapist to have? Like race, sexual identity, gender-identity, spirituality, cancer survivor, etc.
Do credentials matter?
This is a tough question. Some would say “yes,” and some “no.” In true, social worker fashion, I would say “yes and no.” Ultimately, what matters most is whether the therapist is a good match for YOU. Credentials don’t necessarily play a part in that. And with that said, it’s helpful to know what they mean.
If insurance reimbursement for an “out-of-network” provider matters for you; then you may want to call your insurance company to make sure they’ll reimburse for a therapist with those particular credentials.
This varies by state. Here, in New York, there’s two general “levels,” we could call it, that signify the type of degree a therapist holds: Masters or Doctorate levels.
Masters Level Credentials: Honestly, I don’t think one is any better than the other.
LMHC (Licensed Mental Health Counselor)
LCSW (Licensed Clinical Social Worker)- If their an LCSW-R you insurance is sure to reimburse for them.
LMFT (Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist)- Schooling focused on family and couples therapy.
Creative Arts Therapist- Great if you want someone who has more of an Art Therapy Approach.
If you want to look more into these levels this a helpful site that explains them.
Doctorate Level Credentials: As I said above for Masters Level, the same applies to both Doctorate Levels: They’re pretty equivalent and one is not better than the other.
Psy.D.- Doctorate of Clinical Psychology (More clinically focused than research focused)
Ph.D.- Doctorate of Philosophy (More Research Focused than Clinically focused)
Whether you’re using insurance or not, here are some avenues to search for a therapist.
You can ask a primary care provider. I find, from personal and professional experience, that asking a primary care provider or other Doctor that you see for physical medical care, can be hit or miss. It’s worth a shot, but sometimes they don’t know who is “in-network” (aka, takes your insurance) or what the therapist is really like.
You can ask a friend and/or therapist you know personally for a recommendation. This may help with getting a true sense of what the therapist is like because they have 1st or 2nd hand experience. And a therapist friend may be able to help you with using a therapy site to find a therapist.
Use a search engine, designed specifically for finding therapists like: Therapy Den, and Zencare. There are MANY others. Honestly, this is a large part of what makes it so overwhelming. These two sites allow you to search for therapists based many of the questions I asked in considering what kind of therapist you want. You can also try sites like Psychology Today or Good Therapy, but they have less options to narrow down your search and can feel overwhelming.
And it might take a little more time, but read the therapists’ profile information. It’s usually written by the therapist and will give you a decent glimpse into what their approach is like, beyond credentials and training.
“How much should I pay?”
This largely depends on what’s in your budget. Plan on weekly sessions when you’re considering what’s in your budget. It’s the most effective, especially when you’re starting out with a therapist.
If biweekly sessions are something you are looking to transition to in the future, ask the therapist if they offer these. Some don’t.
Many therapists offer “sliding scale” rates and these vary from one therapist to another. Some do not offer this. It will usually state this on the therapist’s website and/or on the therapy website you’re using to search for them.
Therapists’ fees vary significantly for a variety of reasons. And honestly, that’s a whole blog post, that I may tackle later.
Don’t be afraid to “Shop around.”
This has historically been discouraged, for a variety of reasons, but when you’re looking for a therapist, don’t be afraid to “try out” therapists. Be open and honest with them about how you’re feeling with them. Often they’ll check in with you about how you’re feeling at the end of the first session.
If they don’t seem to be a good fit for you, they may be able to refer you to someone that will. It’s okay to “shop around.” I tell all potential clients that while I may be trained in whatever qualification(s) they are looking for, I may not be the right fit. And that’s okay! Listen to your intuition.
Ask for a phone call aka “consultation” before scheduling.
They’re usually a 10-15 minute call. Some therapists offer this, others don’t. Therapists that don’t accept insurance (aka “private pay” or “out-of-network”) usually offer this. We have the time for this. Therapists who accept insurance, are less likely to offer this, because they have to see more people to make a living and therefore have less time to offer a free phone consultation. This is not a hard truth though. This is another one of those topics that requires a blog post of its own for another time.
I hope these help you in navigating the mental health system a little more easily. If you or someone you know is struggling with their mental health, please reach out to someone today. If you are in New York and interested in working with me, please don’t hesitate to reach out. I’m more than happy to answer any questions you may have. If you’d like to follow along for more helpful and totally free mental health focused information, sign up here to get notified of new posts.
Take Great Care,