How to Pick a Mental Health Provider
- Alexandra Fisher
- Sep 20, 2021
- 3 min read
Updated: May 13, 2022
If you have made it to this point, congratulations! You have embarked on your very own choose-your-own-adventure. You may be overwhelmed, here at the precipice of change!
Remember that this is your journey, and you are the authority on your own experience. No matter what, you deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. Now that you’ve gotten a pep talk, here are some quick tips for how to pick the right person to help you along on your way.
Generally speaking, there are five(ish) different kinds of mental health professionals to choose from. Please keep in mind that this is not an exhaustive list and there are lots of people out there!
A Social Worker (like me!) is usually a Master’s level practitioner who can provide mental health counseling in a variety of modalities (but we will talk more about those later). Social Workers have the ability to work in a wide variety of settings and positions. You can identify a Social Worker by the letters after their name; either LCSW or LMSW.
A Mental Health Counselor (MHC) is another Master’s level practitioner who can provide a variety of modalities of intervention. An MHC is a person typically focused only on clinical therapy.
A Clinical Psychologist is either usually a Doctoral level practitioner who can do clinical therapy or psychological testing. This is helpful if you are looking for a formal diagnosis of a condition. A Master’s level psychologist is also known as an LPC and they tend to do more clinical counseling. Psychologists can be found in a wide variety of settings and positions.
A Psychiatrist is a medical doctor who prescribes medication. Psychiatrists sometimes provide regular, clinical therapy, but are usually focused on prescribing.
A Life Coach/Health Coach is usually not a doctor or a Master’s level provider. They may have a variety of training and certifications that allow them to engage in treatment of some minor conditions and health concerns.
The benefit of working with a licensed professional is that they are guaranteed to have a certain level of education and are also mandated to engage in continuing education. They also answer to the licensing board. The licensing board holds professionals accountable for their behavior and hopefully reduces inappropriate activities by those with licenses.
Now, think about what kind of person you want to talk to.
Do you prefer a man or a woman or a non binary person?
Do you want to speak to someone older or younger than you?
Does their level of education matter to you?
What about their religious practices?
Do you want to see someone in person or virtually?
Once you have figured out what kind of provider(s) you are looking for, take to the interwebs! A fantastic place to start is Psychology Today online, which allows you to filter providers for all of your specifications, including whether or not you want to go through insurance. If you would like to go through insurance, you can also search the company’s website and filter accordingly. Alternatively, you can use Google or Instagram and search your area and “therapist” and filter through your findings.
Most, if not all, providers will make themselves available to have a short discovery call to assess whether or not you are a good fit for one another. This is your opportunity to ASK ALL OF YOUR QUESTIONS. Ask about their backgrounds and education, their offices, their modalities, and how they think they can help you. Ask them if they know about whatever your presenting problem is.
Take notes. Compare answers.
Do not settle for a provider just because they are taking new clients. If you don’t have chemistry with someone, do not force it. There are more providers and opportunities out there and you deserve to have someone supportive to work with.
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