I(18f) have experienced a form of abuse several times as a kid. i never told people around me abt it, not when it took place nor until now. But now, everytime a news article, post or some media comes out containing this form of abuse, i just get so frustrated and somewhat angry. It feels as if every feeling ive felt since the abuse is on the verge of coming out in a not so pretty way.

I can’t afford therapy but ive been searching for ways to let these feelings out. I dont have close friends, and the friends i do have, im afraid it’s a sensitive topic as im not very close to them. Are there any suggestions, any solutions that i can look up? I’d really appreciate any advice

I’m 20 years old, I’m still in college, no friends, only child and feel like I'm drifting through life without a real sense of purpose, weighed down by loneliness that never seems to go away. No matter where I am or who l'm around, I feel disconnected, like I don't truly belong anywhere. I have no real friends, no one to share my thoughts with, and every attempt at forming connections either fades away or never even begins. The isolation eats away at me, making me question if I'll ever find people who genuinely care or if I'm destined to go through life alone. Beyond that, I struggle with direction—| want to achieve something meaningful, to have goals that give my life structure and a reason to push forward, but I feel lost. I see others building their futures, forming relationships, and finding their paths, while I remain stuck in this cycle of emptiness. It's not that I don't have ideas; I do, but without motivation, support, or a real sense of belonging, everything feels pointless.

Everywhere I go, I feel loneliness. Seeing people with friends and family reminds me of everything I don't have, making me feel like a failure. I don't want my parents to find out how alone I really am. They always talk about how their friends' children are traveling the world with friends, experiencing life together, while I keep myself sheltered, knowing that, to them, I must be a disappointment. I feel beyond sadness—like there's nothing left for me. It's exhausting to keep hoping things will change when nothing ever does. And I feel like, sooner or later, I might just give up on life entirely. So I'm asking real people one last time for advice-please, help me.

Please help me.

I'm studying to be a mental health counselor and learning about evidence-based therapies. I was recently attending group therapy and found out on my own that she was leading the group with a non-evidence-based model. She gave the name of the woman who came up with the model and also mentioned the book that she would be going off by. I got curious and wanted to read the book between groups and found out the author has no credentialing of any kind. In fact, there's hardly any information about who she even is. However, there is a lot of information about her well-known centers that use all the ploys and buzzwords. I also found information about other books and workshops that you can buy. It seems very schemey, especially for people who are paying lots of money and seeking help. I emailed the therapist, letting her know I no longer wish to attend the group due to the program's credibility, which she was respectful of. Do you think this is something a therapist should be upfront about? That the teachings of what is being presented is from someone who has no credentialing with a model that hasn't been studied?

Let me just start by saying I think my therapist is the best. I enjoy our sessions, they're amazing, and I've had many therapists in the past none were as good as this one (in terms of qualifications, experience, AND approach).

She is great to the point where I often wonder how I've found the perfect therapist for me.

We've worked on:

• processing past traumas, we haven't gotten very far there but I've opened some really old wounds
• they were also the one that pointed out that I might have autism (turns out I do)

And some other stuff but these are the main ones

The problem:

• I feel like I've opened a can of worms that I struggle to deal with, I'm in pain all the time and it's overwhelming. I feel like I've bit off more than I can chew and I'm not in the right headspace anymore, I'm always one word away from bursting into tears.

This might get better with regular therapy but my therapist's schedule is always full, I have to fight for a slot (they're never fixed slots just randomly assigned after every session).

I can't even know how big the gap between sessions is going to be until the session is over and my therapist goes "ok so your next session will be in x weeks" (usually 2-4). So imagine opening up and talking about a hard topic and they go "ok so we'll continue in 3 weeks".

They're also never around for more than 2 months in a row, just when I feel like we got a good pace going they announce at the end of the session that they will be away for 1-2 weeks, which makes appointments even more cramped afterwards.

I understand the busy schedule, I really do, but I need structure in my life, I don't like it when scheduling is this messy and it makes things much harder for me.

I don't know if the struggle is enough to make me give up all the progress I've made and quit. I’m unsure which is the lesser of two evils.

Finding another therapist is not an option, I've had it with starting over in therapy. My options are to quit and free myself of this messy situation or to push through for a chance of eventually getting better.

Edit: typos. + Any advice would be helpful I'm honestly tired of thinking about this.

2nd edit: might be worth mentioning that we've also uncovered some traumatic events that I didn't know I experienced, contributing to why I'm not in the right headspace.

They know my name and contact information and I see them in person.

Is it okay to trust my therapist with this information. While they don’t have access to the content, A fear I have is the unlikely possibility of them using this information to blackmail me further OR telling it to someone else. Trusting someone blindly is how I got into this incident and has caused me all these stress so far. So far my therapist has been very supportive and I feel that I can trust them. But i have only had a couple of sessions with them.

I tried to sign up to better help because I'm desperate and my doctors have an 8 month waiting list, however I literally cannot afford £45 per week. Does anyone have any similar websites with cheaper options?

i need someone to talk to. iam breaking hard nowadays. it's about a sexual abuse thing in my childhood but i can't say any more here. if someone wants to i would be happy with their help.

I'm a new member here I just want a solution for my overthinking My brain won't shut down about one topic and I think I'm loosing myself to my thoughts about it. It's not dangerous but it really bothers me and I hate that, I want my brain to stop thinking about all of this I'm spiraling!! Please help!

As the title says. For the sake of simplicity I know I need therapy and probably on a seriously deep level for a substantial time period to deal with my past wounds and trauma baggage, which from a dispassionately objective (perhaps even disassociated) level is negatively affecting me being able to live with myself in the present, look myself in the mirror, be an easier person to love, and love others with some semblance of secure attachment.

But whenever I even so much as entertain the idea or even the simple statement of "I need therapy", I get this almost-immediate visceral reaction scream out internally "I don't need f@#$ing therapy. I hate the idea of even considering therapy. What use is even f@#$ing therapy for me? I don't need fixing!". And just like that, my feeling of momentary clarity immediately turns into anger. Anger at myself, anger at the world, anger at others.

The last time I saw a therapist was almost a decade ago. My last session with them they flat out told me that "you don't actually need therapy, because everything you're feeling is justified, you're right to feel angry because others have treated you wrong, and you should stop blaming yourself and thinking that it's all your fault and that you could have done better to avoid being wronged or mistreated or abused by others. So go out there and live your life on your own terms. You don't need therapy."

For the longest of times I thought that was exactly the kind of validation and "closure" I needed from getting therapy or counselling of any kind. But now, there's that little bit of me inside that isn't so sure anymore, hence this constant background conflict between my head saying I need therapy (again) and my heart screaming right back that I don't need therapy because even a professional therapist in the past had said so.

I know I need therapy. I also deeply resent the idea that I need therapy. Help? I don't know how to square this circle of my mind anymore.

ive never understood how therapy works. i get people discuss issues and thoughts, outlay it, discuss why they might feel that way and what past experiences might have caused that thought process or etc but then...what? i dont understand what you do after that. personally discovering i think this negative thing because of this prior experience doesn't make me feel better, and usually when ive spoken to people ive got a general "you start healing"

it feels like online tutorials that randomly skip a major step and leave you more confused lol..i think i probably need therapy and ive tried to look into journaling in a therapeutic way but i get frustrated because i dont understand what im supposed to be doing. i really do need it explained step by step in easy words like im 5 lol.. but im really trying. im sorry if im not making sense 😔

I 21(M) have been friends with (for sake of anonymity Lisa 21(F). Before going into details I’m facing the same conundrum like many others. My feelings have turned from platonic to romantic.

It may seem very cliche however, recently these feelings have become a heavy burden to my mental health.

I am afraid of rejection because we are very good friends. We’re honest, critical(when we have to be) and helpful. To bring out the best in ourselves. And I don’t wanna lose that.

It may seem selfish to want more, and on a baseline it is. But I just don’t know how to approach the topic with her. Or just how to tell her.

Please help me, any advice would be appreciated

I (13F) just got done with a PHP and am now getting a therapist and a therapeutic mentor. I have struggled a lot with thoughts of attempting and was seriously about to attempt. I have also had a pervious attempt in the last few months. I want to be able to talk to my new therapist about all this but I’m afraid of being sent away to a mental hospital. Also I know that you can’t tell parents when a patient self harms but can that also play a roll in being hospitalized?

I feel like most times there is a wall between who I am and who I can be. When I feel good, I can talk with anyone, enjoy the moment, have a clear vision, look forward to and enjoy life.

But when I dont feel good, its the complete opposite.

This impacts my life a lot as this isnt just a once in a while thing, its hard to get things done when one day I feel like I can take over the world, and the next I feel confused and numb.

How can I break out of this? It happens very frequently and Im having a hard time learning how to get out of this vicious cycle.

If anyone has any stories that could help, it would be nice if you shared them, anyting will help <3

I feel like i need it but i dont know how much it will cost and i dont want to go further into debt paying someone who is probably going to try and push anxiety meds on me

My therapist suggested trying tai chi. She gave me some relaxation techniques and stuff and mentioned this one. But i hate having anythjng to do with my body . I tried yoga and can't. It's like I'm embarrassed idk. Idk if it's from past trauma. But in general I'm a very athletic person, love sports and can do any sport, even dance I'm good. So i guess it's not like i can't do yoga or tai chi but hate my body. I can't take it. I put a video on yt and just stood still and got angry and kind of started crying. I think bcs in yoga you have to be much much more focused in your body than in sports Any advice pls?

I'm a 35M taking therapy after a divorce and due to many other things happening in life. My therapist has been a huge support , I am able to cry my heart out in front of her , like I cry for hour in my therapy sessions and lately, I’ve started feeling something more for her , may be bcz I am vulnerable now so I am bending more towards her and getting kinda attached emotionally. I know she’s just doing her job, but I can’t help but feel drawn to her understanding, and the way she genuinely listens something I felt was missing in my marriage.

I’m aware of transference, and I know this is not real. How do I separate genuine feelings from just emotional attachment due to vulnerability? I don’t want to ruin therapy, but I can't tell this to her obv.

I want to ask her out in future but that would be hella unprofessional from my side so I will not do that.

Because I think everything. But then I doubt and temper my thoughts, run them through a filter, practice saying it 10 different ways, write them down, erase them, write them again, then say half of that. Truthfully, most of the time, I don’t even know how I feel. Getting asked “how are you doing” at the beginning of every therapy session is my personal hell. I don’t know how I’m doing. Some things are good, some are bad. It’s a mixed bag. Am I suicidal? No. Maybe. Sometimes. It depends on the moment. Did I envision dying 15 times today? Yes. Do I actually want to leave? Usually, no. Am I depressed? Of course I am, it’s absolutely wild if you’re alive here and somehow aren’t. But do I also have good things and things to be happy about? Of course I do. I don’t know what I think. I think everything and nothing. How do I fix that?

So I had one consult last fall with a therapist and she said we'd be a good fit to go ahead and start working together. I told her I wanted to get settled into college and then start. I set up another consult appt with her as that was the only way to get in again before I could make an appt. At this consult, she stated that she didn't think we were a good fit now. She stated that MA is weird and I should just find one there. Is this something that therapists do before even diving into what I'm dealing with? I'm already dealing with rejection issues and this feels like a huge upset in this area for me. No reason behind it other than I'm sorry I thought we'd be a good fit initially and now I think we are not. Can anyone give me some perspective on this?

I think all the betterhelp ads convinced me to try therapy again. I matched with someone and been speaking to her for about a month and half.

At first it was alright. I thought she's all right, despite her not knowing much of anything about ocd.

However, the last time I spoke to her, she kept putting me on speaker phone and I think doing the dishes, so it was like an hour of me not being able to hear her. I would have to keep asking her to go off speaker phone. Also, she also had this habit of not responding or saying much of anything, so sometimes our sessions would get strangely quiet--like I thought this is weird, do I just hang up?

Eitherway, I finally dropped her. But, man lol, what a weird experience.

I'm just curious if any of you had bad experiences with the app, and did you end up just finding someone in your city to talk to?

There are days where I’m not sure I want to die, where maybe I do want to live but when I realize it I get sad that I’m not sick anymore, I get sad that I’m getting better so I guess I can’t really consider it being actually ok cause if that was the case I would be happy about it and enjoy it. Why does this happen? Anyone relate?

I'm constantly struggling with thoughts about dressing and acting like a woman. I try to fight it, but I keep finding myself crawling back to sissy stuff. I'll be doing good until I see a hot girl in a cute outfit. Then I just start thinking about dressing like her. I hate how much I have thoughts about being a sissy. I unfortunately have thoughts about getting gangbanged. If there's any professional help y'all can suggest I will greatly appreciate it. I'm trying to be straight and avoid going to hell.

I feel like I’m pitying myself to the extreme right now. Now I know some of this is justified and I’m allowed to feel sorry for myself over certain things but I feel like I’ve hit rock bottom. Quick vent here: I’m losing an insane amount of weight (about 30 pounds in 6 months) completely unintentional. Working with doctors currently. I bought a car in April and the car was complete trash after only a few months. The dealer was an a-hole. Then I sold that car in January and the guy who bought it from me, flipped it, lied to the new buyer, sold the car in my name AND forged my signature. (Working with the police) I don’t have a car. I have laryngitis after having flu A and it’s been over 2 weeks of no voice. (Taking care of myself don’t worry) I just feel like so much bad has happened to me and I don’t know how to stay positive or stop pitying myself. I feel depressed and anxious. I also have OCD and emetophobia that literally takes over my day. I’ve gone to therapy, I’ve tried meds, I’ve tried ART therapy (not the arts and crafts kind, the eye movement one) I just don’t know what to do. I need advice on how I can improve my thoughts and stop sitting here crying feeling so sorry for myself.

I’ve been through a lot—a dysfunctional upbringing with DV, I have a longtime stalker, multiple miscarriages, depression, overthinking, anxiety, 9 pregnancies, and the death of two close friends. Not to mention I struggle with food addiction and substance/alcohol abuse in the past. Though I’ve made a lot of progress on my own, my mind is an actual prison. I need to work on creating constructive coping mechanisms instead of destructive ones, but for some reason I’m so worried that I will bring it up to my spouse and he will find it unnecessary, not understand, or consider it a waste of money. How can I explain it to him? I just need that continuous support person to help me help myself move forward.

I am an adult woman now, aged 33. I have been thinking about the way I feel sex repulsed when it comes to the act. And I recently found out that the origin reason was me trying to prove to my father that I am not interested in sex with other teenagers when I was in high school. He would often complain to mom that I might be sexually active and would make remarks on how I wore a push up bra back then. He would also talk to me in an angry way about how 'females' look to run away with men when they reach a certain age... I would feel so angry and disgusted when I hear that. Then at some point he started to complain to me about how my mother doesnt sleep with him over and over again. My question is, is this normal??? What counts as sexual abuse?? Am I just overthinking it?

I keep reading questions from the clients point of view in which the Therapist argues with them about something, or brought a goal to the session, or worse still argued over politics.

I’m asking Americans because I’m curious about why this keeps happening.

Why is American therapy so goal orientated?

Why do you fall into countertransferences?

Why argue with the client instead of meeting them where they’re at?

Where does Roger’s work go in the sessions? I get the feeling that Americans aren’t taught UPR or any humanistic/ client lead work

Please don’t be nasty. Thank you for your answers

Been going to therapy but we focus more on learning emotion regulation and building my self esteem which is progressing but not as fast as I would like . I have been diagnosed with Borderline personality disorder so finding out my ex is now dating didn't feel great haha I had suffered everyday for an entire three months it was the reason I visited. Anyway Soo I have problem with being authentic and not letting my ego guide me so I have problem maintaining friendship more then 3 months, are there any book recommendations or stuff for this problem? I just want to build a deeper interpersonal relationships with people aka having friends whom I can hangout with asap been feeling so lonely.

I have a new psychiatrist and I had a first appointment when I joined the appointment I was surprised to see there was another person on our video call and after about 30 seconds I heard someone else talking next to him, then he asked me if it was fine that those two people were going to listen in on my appointment and that he was going to record; I felt pressured to say yes, because they were literally already there. If I was asked beforehand I would’ve said no. The whole thing felt very coercive to me, I feel like you should have to agree beforehand and sign a document or something for this, not be bombarded. What made it even worse is he asked me to go into detail about my SA in front of a group of strangers. The other person on the video call had their screen off which made me even more uncomfortable. I left feeling upset. Am I wrong to feel this way?

Hello! I have a question for the therapists who may have experience with psychedelic assisted therapy and are in a state where its use is legalized. What are some of the benefits you have seen when it comes to treating a client’s diagnosis? Do you notice if the treatment is faster than talk therapy alone? Also does the treatment stick with the client long-term or do clients seek multiple psychedelic treatments?

To start off, no im not an edgy 14 year old. Im an adult.

I dont care for anything and i really struggle to find the means to empathize with anyone. I also dont really know how to feel in any social situation really; i just use social queues to go about being “normal” if you will but most things are never really genuine. Im an impulsive liar that wouldn’t hesitate to lie if it means getting what i want. I never recognized i was actually doing this or felt this way towards others until one of my friends while i was expressing my thoughts on a specific matter said something along the lines of you might be a sociopath (i don’t remember) and i was curious so i looked into it and it was only then i understood how i constantly felt. It was essentially like putting words to how i feel and i honestly hate it. To stay blissfully ignorant of how I actually am wouldve been great but too bad ig.

The problem to me is caring about people or i guess the lack of caring for people. How do i tell that to anyone? Its not like i do bad or (what i presume) objectively wrong things… its just when i do good things, it will never be genuine. Nothing i do is for other people it’s just for myself. Even for something as simple as giving someone advice. For example, i went to go text my friend individually in hopes he had issues with his relationship because i was bored and giving advice is amusing to me. I dont care for the outcome or the situation in general, i just saw the situation as temporary entertainment. Only then my perpetual numbness is subsided.

But idk man thats all i can think of rn. Im really not sure if im a sociopath what do you think?

If you have any questions just ask pls

in the past 2 months i feel like ive played every game, met every person, tried every program and tried every mod and its giving me a sence of depression and boredom