Coaching or Therapy?

Choosing Coaching or Therapy

Both therapy and coaching are designed to help people recognize their strengths, grow, and develop better insight and self-awareness while identifying and recognizing patterns of being that may be limiting. 

With life coaching, you may still struggle with occasional low moods and feeling stuck. Certain situations can be anxiety-provoking, and others activate your stress response in ways that you would like to change. With my coaching practice, there is less psychoanalytical processing of the causes of maladaptive functioning and coping behaviors and more training and support to meet specific goals for the future. 

Successful coaching assumes that you have worked through any underlying traumas, psychopathology, or disorders to a baseline level that does not restrict your daily functioning.  

About Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy is provided by a licensed behavioral healthcare provider. It requires "medical necessity" to receive services through in- or out-of-network healthcare insurance providers. Federal law requires that, in most cases, mental health services, including psychotherapy, be covered by health insurance similar to other medical care costs. 

Psychotherapy can be provided by many mental health professionals, including psychiatrists, psychologists, licensed social workers, licensed professional counselors, licensed marriage and family therapists, psychiatric nurses, and others with specialized training in psychotherapy. 

For example, I am a licensed psychotherapist with a private practice in Connecticut, which means I can legally provide psychotherapy to clients who reside in the state where I'm licensed. 

I also have a separate coaching business, and as no legal regulations require licensure, I can provide services virtually anywhere in the world. (If you still have questions or are trying to decide what direction to go, I would be happy to provide a free 15-minute consultation to help you choose your best path.)

Problems helped by psychotherapy include:

• Difficulties in coping with daily life;

• The impact of trauma, medical illness, or loss, like the death of a loved one;

• Specific mental disorders, like depression, anxiety, PTSD, and others.

There are several different types of psychotherapy, and some types may work better with specific problems or issues. Psychotherapy can help eliminate or control troubling symptoms so a person can function better and increase well-being and healing. The therapist formulates a diagnostic assessment and treatment through the professional application of psychotherapeutic theories and techniques in delivering services to individuals, couples, and families. Finding a psychiatrist or other therapist with whom an individual can work well is important. Sources of referrals include:

• Primary care physicians

• Local psychiatric societies

• Medical schools

• Community health centers

• Workplace Employee Assistance Programs (EAP)

• Online resources

Psychotherapy is legally bound to confidentiality and best practices in the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment, and such services and records must be HIPAA compliant. These practices differ in objectives, ethics, and approaches.

About Coaching

Whether for life, personal transformation, spiritual, executive, career, relationship, or another reason, coaching doesn't require specific training or education. 

Since coaching is not regulated, anyone can call themselves a coach. 

While some coaches pursue education or training, and some organizations provide you with their organization's certification, this is not a requirement. Therein lies the danger — Coaches may not know when they're out of their depth and can (inadvertently, I'm sure) do more harm than good. 

This is most dangerous to someone who really needs therapy. 

Because there are no requirements, some coaches can quickly exceed their limitations regarding understanding mental health disorders, evidence-based practices, and their ability to differentiate between someone who will benefit from coaching — and someone who needs mental health treatment. It is also important to mention that many therapists, psychologists, or psychiatrists whose licenses have been suspended or revoked by their licensing board to practice under their formally licensed profession. 

While many coaches are professional, ethical, and responsible in their work, it is essential to note that this is a growing, unregulated profession. Therefore it is vital to recognize that some people who call themselves "life coaches" are failed or unprofessional therapists who want to continue practicing therapy without the consumer protection that comes with a license and regulatory structure.

Why It Matters to Me

As a licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT), I am bound to a code of conduct and ethics by my licensing board and through professional associations such as AAMFT (American Association for Marriage and Family Therapists.)

I have also completed a rigorous Master of Science degree in MFT accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy (COAMFTE). I have thousands of supervised practice hours, met the comprehensive standards and requirements to become licensed, and have furthered my training as required with continuing education. (I also love to learn, so I am constantly digging in to continue growing and learning as a person and professional, even when it's not required.)

It is a natural expansion of growth and services for me to create a coaching business so that I may continue to help others explore and evolve into their best self and have a life that is fulfilling for them without the limitation of them needing to reside in my state or have a medical necessity benefit from a change. 

I have seen tremendous growth and transformation in my psychotherapy practice clients, and I know the need firsthand for others to experience the safety and collective approach to becoming the women they were born to be.