Finding a safe and comforting place to talk about all the emotions that come with expat life is tremendously beneficial. 

There are many different kinds of  therapy and many different types of therapists, but the objective is to find someone you can freely share your deeply personal thoughts and feelings without risk of judgment. The richness of the therapeutic relationship is the freedom to be able to explore anything without fear or repercussions, which isn’t always the case in the real world.

Your motivation, and the severity of your concerns will impact how effective therapy is. However, research shows that the one key factor in all effective therapy is the strength of the therapeutic alliance. The therapeutic alliance is defined “as a partnership where both therapist and client agree on shared goals, work together on tasks designed to bring a positive outcome, and establish a relationship built on trust, acceptance, and empathy.” (Teyber & McClure, 2011)

Like a favourite pair of jeans, a therapist should be a comfortable fit. You should feel validated, heard, and that you are working toward your goals. We hope to facilitate the fit by matching you to the best therapist based on the concerns you reach out to us with. If you feel after a session or two, that you are not connecting the way you wanted to, please do not hesitate to get back in contact with us so we can facilitate a new fit. 

Sending an email to a few different therapy services can be very helpful. To find the service right for you, ask yourself: How quickly did they respond? Do I feel this is a professional service? Are they really listening? Do I get a good vibe? If you can answer a firm “yes” to all of the above, that’s a good place to start. Ask any questions you need to ask. Note the answer and the tone of the response. Go with your gut feeling.

A final note on therapy. Like all good things, results take time to show and the process is not quick, but it can be infinitely worth doing. Therapy only works when you are totally committed to the process. You need to invest the time and money and be willing to do the following to see the potential benefits:

• Show up consistently for at least 8 sessions, or more. You and your therapist can evaluate how things are going as you go progress. 
• Do your homework in between sessions. Doing the work between sessions can deepen the experience and sometimes quicken the effectiveness of therapy.
• Be honest. Lying to your therapist or omitting information only does you a disservice. If you don’t feel you can trust this person, ask yourself why that might be. If there seems to be a good reason, find another therapist.
• Be courageous. You may feel worse before you feel better. Therapy can be painful, messy and sometimes scary. The result of going through the process, though, can be life-changing.

Many expats in Barcelona find that spending time in a therapist’s office helps them feel a whole lot better. We invite you to come and try it out.