Written by: Alizah Qadri, MSW, LSW
As a mental health therapist and social worker, I work with a lot of different clients who come in seeking to change or to just have someone who can guide and support them. We discuss so many stories, memories, and small moments, and this offers us the opportunity for change. Generally speaking, sharing the story is a part of the difficult process of therapy that eventually can blossom into healing and acceptance.
But then, there’s the elephant in the room: emotional processing, and more specifically with what follows the storytelling is vulnerability. If you ever wonder what might be one of the reasons for why you have not considered going to therapy, consider the vulnerability to talk about the root of the issue and your emotions as a reason.
Being vulnerable by no means is easy to feel, particularly because for some, it does not bring a “good” feeling. Reminder: there are no good and bad emotions; we all just have emotions. Vulnerability happens to be a part of our emotions and we all hold it. Especially if an experience was potentially very difficult to process or traumatic, there can be barriers that make it difficult to trust and be open.
Despite it being difficult, it’s important to understand why it may be a crucial part of your healing. Therapy is a place for growth and working through perfection, which means that while we are working towards goals and next steps, it’s also understood that there are many patterns, healthy and unhealthy coping skills, and defense mechanisms that you may be bringing into the space and deserve the time, attention, and empathy for understanding your story.
Through modalities such as mindfulness therapy, it can bring about a “nonjudgmental awareness of the present moment experience, including one’s sensations, thoughts, bodily states, consciousness, and the environment, while encouraging openness, curiosity, and acceptance.” (Hoffman & Gomez, 2017). With time, grace, and most importantly, a therapist that is a fit for you, processing your vulnerability can offer a deeply meaningful, clarifying, and empathetic experience of the understanding of “your” world, your body, and mind and the way of moving forward.
Sources
Hofmann SG, Gómez AF. Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Anxiety and Depression. Psychiatr Clin North Am. 2017 Dec;40(4):739-749. doi: 10.1016/j.psc.2017.08.008. Epub 2017 Sep 18. PMID: 29080597; PMCID: PMC5679245.
About the Author:
As a South Asian woman, Alizah Quadri, LSW, has helped clients explore and redefine their sense of womanhood in ways that are uplifting and empowering for the past two years of her practice. Offering sessions in both English and Hindi-Urdu, she specializes in women’s issues, maternal mental health, and body image concerns, offering individual therapy to both young adults and adults. Alizah’s goal is for people to take power back in their well-being, encouraging positive relationships with our bodies and minds through therapeutic tools and processing.
