What to Do If You Feel “Stuck” in Therapy

You’ve been going to therapy for a while now. In the beginning, you felt like you were making great progress, but lately, it feels like you’re just spinning your wheels. You find yourself talking about the same things over and over, and you’re not sure if you’re getting anywhere. You’re starting to wonder: Is therapy still working? Am I stuck?

At Televero Health, we want you to know that feeling stuck in therapy is a normal and even common experience. It does not mean that you have failed or that your therapy has failed. In fact, these moments of feeling stuck can often be a sign that you are on the verge of a major breakthrough. The key is to not give up, but to get curious and to talk about it.

Why Do People Get Stuck in Therapy?

A therapeutic plateau can happen for many different reasons. Understanding the potential cause can help you to figure out how to get moving again.

• You’re Avoiding the Hard Stuff: Therapy often involves confronting painful feelings and difficult truths. It’s natural to have some resistance to this. You might find yourself sticking to safe, surface-level topics because you are, consciously or unconsciously, afraid of going deeper.
• The Initial Crisis Has Passed: Often, people come to therapy in a state of acute crisis. The initial phase of therapy is focused on stabilizing the situation and learning some basic coping skills. Once the crisis is over, the deeper, underlying work begins, and this can sometimes feel slower and less dramatic.
• The Therapeutic Approach Isn’t the Right Fit Anymore: The style of therapy that was helpful for you in the beginning may not be what you need now. Or perhaps the goals you set initially are no longer relevant.
• There’s an Issue in the Therapeutic Relationship: Sometimes, feeling stuck is a sign that there is an unspoken issue between you and your therapist. Maybe you felt hurt by something they said, or you’re not feeling as connected as you used to.
• You’re Not Applying the Skills Outside of Sessions: Real change happens when you take the insights and skills from therapy and practice them in your daily life. If you’re not doing the work between sessions, your progress will likely stall.

How to Get “Unstuck”

The single most important thing you can do when you feel stuck is to talk to your therapist about it. This can feel incredibly awkward and confrontational, but a good therapist will not only welcome this conversation, they will see it as a huge sign of progress. It shows that you are invested in the process and that you trust the relationship enough to be honest.

Here’s how you can start that conversation:

• “I’ve been feeling like I’m not making much progress lately, and I’m not sure why.”
• “I feel like we’ve been talking about the same issue for a few weeks, and I’m feeling a bit stuck with it.”
• “I’m feeling frustrated with therapy right now. Can we talk about how things are going?”

This conversation can open the door to a productive exploration. You and your therapist can get curious together. Is it time to set new goals? Do you need to try a different therapeutic approach? Is there something in the relationship that needs to be addressed? Talking about the “stuckness” is often the very thing that gets you unstuck.

Other Strategies to Consider

In addition to talking with your therapist, you can also reflect on your own role in the process.

• Recommit to the Work: Are you being an active participant? Are you doing the homework? Are you taking risks and being vulnerable in your sessions? Sometimes, just recommitting to the process can reignite your progress.
• Revisit Your Goals: Are your goals still meaningful to you? Maybe it’s time to celebrate the progress you’ve made and set a new, more challenging goal.
• Consider a Second Opinion: If you’ve had an honest conversation with your therapist and you still feel like it’s not the right fit, it is always okay to seek a second opinion or to find a new therapist. The most important thing is that you get the care that you need.

Feeling stuck is not the end of the road; it’s a fork in the road. It’s an invitation to pause, reflect, and choose a new direction in your therapeutic journey. By bravely addressing it, you can often turn a frustrating plateau into a powerful catalyst for growth.

Key Takeaways

• Feeling stuck in therapy is a normal experience and does not mean that you or your therapy has failed.
• The most important step to get unstuck is to have an open and honest conversation about it with your therapist.
• Feeling stuck can be caused by many things, including avoidance of difficult topics or a need to revisit your therapeutic goals.
• Addressing the “stuckness” directly can often be the catalyst for a major breakthrough in your therapy.

Ready to take the first step? We can help. Get started with Televero Health today.