"Talking is Strong Medicine"
When one talks in therapy, one comes to know oneself intimately and to discover what is at the root of painful thoughts, feelings and actions. Feeling seen, heard and understood is key to alleviating pain and suffering.
Deep and abiding change is possible because an authentic relationship with a caring and skilled therapist allows one to explore, with another, that which can be too painful to deal with on one's own. Symptoms such as depression, anxiety, obsessive compulsive behaviors, sexual dysfunction etc. are actually signs of intelligence that alert us to the fact that something is amiss and in need of our attention.
Taking the time to uncover the meaning of one's particular symptom/s requires careful exploration ... like performing a delicate operation. I believe it is the therapeutic relationship itself which allows awareness to grow as well as for repair, change and healing to take place. Symptoms that exit at the beginning of therapy become unnecessary over time and are replaced, over time, with creative, skillful and pleasurable approaches to living.