Knowing how to choose a therapist matters because the relationship itself is one of the biggest predictors of whether therapy actually helps. It’s a decision people face at very different starting points — some are picking a therapist for the first time and don’t know what to look for, others…

Your first therapy session sets the tone for everything that follows, and most of the nerves people feel beforehand come down to one thing: not knowing what actually happens once they sit down. There’s no script to memorize and nothing to get “right.” A first counseling appointment is really just…