Chicago Counseling and Psychotherapy Fear, Lita Perna, LCPC

Dear Chicagoan,

We know Chicago people are known the world over for being gritty and tough. But is it toughness or is it fear that stops some Chicagoans from calling psychotherapists when they think they might need one?

Maybe it’s shame? Or maybe it’s fear of finding that their problems are a symptom of sickness. Maybe they think that they’ll learn they’re not normal. Or that they’ll be diagnosed with a Major Mental illness and be in treatment for the rest of their lives.

We’ve seen the movies where patients are tied down and convulsing as electrodes shoot lightning bolts into their brain. We’ve watched them reduced to zombie-like states, shuffling down the hallways in their slippers seeking another dose of meds.

Is this what runs through someone’s mind?

Unlike regular doctor or dentist visits; most people only think of calling psychotherapists when they feel unbearable pain: that dull persistent aching in their hearts kind of pain; the kind that feels like a throbbing abscess in their soul.

Chicagoan, if you’re reading this, I wonder if that’s you.

The thought of talking about pain in a psychotherapy session can feel like surgery or a root canal without anesthesia, or like getting naked in front of a stranger and showing them your scars.

And if that isn’t enough.

It’s easy choosing a doctor or dentist, but trying to pick a psychotherapist can be as stressful as your problem.

And Chicago offers as many different psychotherapists as it does exotic cuisines. Open the menu.

You can choose among Psy.Ds, LMFTs, LCSWs, LCPCs, PhDs, CSATs, BCPCs IDDVPs and CADCs.

And if that isn’t enough.

It can seem that there are as many different types of therapies in Chicago as there are varieties of ethnic groups.

You can choose from among therapists who offer: CBT, MBCT, RET, DBT, EMDR, Mindfulness, Body Centered, Relational, Gestalt, Solution Focused, Psychoanalytic, Psychodynamic or Motivational Interviewing. (This last one can make one think of sweating under a hot light and being grilled to confess all their sins.)

The choices can be daunting, but studies have shown that initials and techniques aren’t as important as a warm relationship with a therapist you can trust.

Chicago people are tough. They have the kind of toughness that comes from enduring subzero temperatures, blinding blizzards and suffering through stifling summer days. With barely a blink of an eye, they navigate through and around dangerous neighborhoods, live with an awareness of the constant danger and then watch all the chaos on the nightly news.

Some people carry all that chaos around inside.

It takes a Chicago kind of toughness to pick up the phone and call a psychotherapist, especially when you’re hurting and feeling afraid. We’re not known as the city of big shoulders for nothing. Sometimes you need one of them to lean against, even if it’s just for a while.

Love,

Lita Perna, MA, LCPC, NCC