The client’s path to a psychologist is oh so difficult. At first, it takes a long time to drive away the thought that something is wrong with you. Because it’s scary, what if I’m crazy? Then you realize that you still need to do something. For a long, long time you doubt whether you need a psychologist? Or maybe on my own somehow? Or, as a last resort, some kind of free marathon? Or, at worst, a paid online course? Then you realize that all this is not the same. It seems that the words are correct, and in general everything is convincing. But... ...Not that. Not about you. This good and correct knowledge does not affect your life. Either paid or free. And then you realize that the problem is in you. In a tangle of feelings, conditions, fears, beliefs, restrictions that do not allow you to move on. And continuing to brush them off, relying simply on a lack of knowledge or skills, is futile. This is the first important insight on the path to a psychologist - the realization of one simple thing - first you need to find that unique place in your personality where you “put” the necessary and important knowledge and skills so that they become part of you and “earn”. And now, let’s say you no longer doubt whether it’s worth going to a psychologist for a consultation. You dared. And... Another ambush. How and where to look for it? Based on reviews? Of Education? By fame? What to look for? How not to miscalculate who can help? 1. Education Obviously, a diploma is important. In our age of quick courses, online learning, a second higher education without a first, it is not difficult to get a pile of “papers”. No, advanced training courses are not bad at all, they are very good. Hone techniques, deepen topics, master new methods. But no course can replace a specialist’s basic higher education in the field of psychology. This is a guarantee that the specialist not only knows the technical side, but also knows the structure and patterns of mental processes, and therefore will not do any harm. Well, really, you don’t go to a dentist who only knows how to do ultrasonic teeth cleaning? Or to a cosmetologist who only applies masks. You choose a doctor who knows the indications and contraindications, side effects, emergency measures, disease dynamics, etc. So don’t be shy about asking for a diploma! Although, one cannot rely only on having a higher education. A psychologist is still more than knowledge and skills. This is skill. How to “see” this cannot be explained in words. This can only be felt in contact with him. A skill that consists of careful and tactful handling of your mental reality - beliefs, feelings, emotions, bodily reactions, words. The kind that makes you really want to be honest. Not because you came to a psychologist and “you need to tell everything as it is,” but because you don’t even want to do it any other way. 2. Experience and limits of competence Experience is important, yes. Feel free to ask how many years the psychologist has been practicing. And don’t hesitate to ask what range of problems this psychologist most often works with. It is impossible to understand everything. Usually a good psychologist has favorite topics and techniques to work on. And a competent psychologist does not undertake “analysis of any flight.” Usually, a good specialist, even before the first meeting with you in consultation, clarifies in a nutshell the topic of your request (the relationship with the child has deteriorated, I can’t get over the divorce, I don’t know what I want, I’m weighed down by a feeling of guilt, constant fatigue, etc.). And if he hears topics that are not his own, or suspects that a preliminary consultation with another specialist is important here, then he will certainly tell you about it, or even recommend one of his colleagues. 3. Transparency of the process Already at the first consultation, a good psychologist will tell you about what will happen during your meetings - about the process itself, and about the rules, and about payment, and about the duration of meetings and therapy in general, and about homework, and about the ethical side of their work, and about who is responsible for what in the therapy process. All this should not.