5 Reasons Your Family Needs Therapy

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Our family is on a journey. We adopted our sweet twin boys when they were just barely two years old. The bond was instant. We sought help early on because becoming first-time parents to twin two-year-olds is basically getting caught with your pants down. We made all the rookie mistakes, and we wanted to be better. I was so glad we reached out for help early, because counseling for our family ended up being a lifesaver.

therapy

After a few years in to therapy, I realized we had more to work on than just working through the transition adoption brings. It made me think that almost everyone can benefit from counseling. Here are five reasons why everyone should consider getting help:

  1. Big decisions need wise counsel.
    We sought guidance and counseling during the adoption process. We’d been married for fifteen years and had struggled with infertility issues for about ten years before our miracle adoption. We wanted to take care of our marriage AND our growing family.
  2. You don’t know everything.
    For some reason we have a hard time accepting help. There’s a weird almost shame-like reaction to admitting you’re in therapy, when, really the choice to get counseling should be celebrated!
  3. Specialized help is a total game-changer.
    Both kids were diagnosed with ADHD, one with Tourette’s and rage issues, and added to their adoption-related abandonment issues, we tried three more therapists before we found the right fit. OMG you guys, I feel empowered every time I leave the counseling office! There’s an action plan. There’s new tools in the parental toolbox. It feels almost euphoric when you find the right person for your needs. 
  4. Ask for a recommendation.
    We would not be where we are now without doctors and trusted friends and family who encouraged us, and told us about various therapists or counseling practices. I am so grateful for people brave enough to share their stories and experiences so we could be brave and share ours as well.
  5. It’s okay to move onto someone else. 
    It’s really important to evaluate after you’ve had a few introductory counseling sessions. Don’t feel obligated to a therapist. It’s not personal for them. You’re the client and you’re in charge of your family’s mental health. Personally I struggled with this because I genuinely liked all of them as people. They just weren’t the right fit for our family’s needs. But you are not seeing them to make friends; you’re there to get help.

Do you have a hard time asking for help? Are you taking charge of your family’s mental health? If so, how has therapy helped you and your family?

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Jenny
Textbook extrovert. If there’s a stage, Jenny wants to be on it; whether it’s singing in church, doing stand-up comedy or acting. She has recently joined a cult called LuLaRoe. Her husband, David, is deeply concerned. Jenny and David, a pastor, are recently celebrating eighteen years of marriage. After years of infertility, they became adoptive parents of two year old twin boys in 2014. They’ve never been happier or more exhausted. Every day is an adventure. Jenny blogs at thefivestages.wordpress.com and has a regular feature in Tualatin Life newspaper called Everyday Heroes to celebrate those serving our community. She and her husband started a clothing line based on their story and you can check it out at bottlecapbadge.com. There’s nothing we can’t do with a little bit of love and a whole lot of caffeine.

1 COMMENT

  1. So good!! Thank you for your wise insight and transparency! Let’s be real, we all need counseling.

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