Maybe you’ve come here without little knowledge but some curiosity, so you’ve googled “holistic therapy near me.” But perhaps you’ve indeed tried it but want to find a holistic mental health practitioner near you. Online holistic therapy is also an option. And this type of counseling can be tailored to everyone to help them arrive at a state of optimal health.
But what exactly does the holistic approach entail? And what are its counseling services, techniques, and practices? And what are the available options online and in-person? Tag along to find out the answer to any of those questions and more.
What Is a Holistic Approach to Mental Health?
Before we get into “Holistic therapy near me,” we need to establish what that is. Holistic psychotherapy understands mental health in relation to physical and spiritual health. So, a holistic therapist considers these aspects when counseling and understands that your physical health impacts your mental health and vice versa.
In comparison, traditional medicine and therapy practices rarely overlapped in the past. So, a doctor would treat a physical condition with a prescription, and a psychologist would treat a mental health issue with a psychological technique.
What Is the Goal of Holistic Therapy?
Holistic counseling guides the client to understand the self and arrive at a solution for the problem or treatment for their case.
To exemplify, you can approach holistic therapy as a technique to help with your depression, anxiety, other mental disorders, somatoform-related disorders, stress, trauma, and abuse. Of course, the ultimate goal is to get patients to a place of self-acceptance.
What Is a Holistic Therapist, and What Do They Do?
As we’ve mentioned, a holistic therapist puts the holistic theory into practice. And we can understand their counseling practices in terms of what they don’t do and what they do:
What They Don’t Do
For one, holistic therapists don’t diagnose mental illnesses. Instead, they help patients understand the self and deal with what’s out of their control by addressing the body, mind, and soul. Also, holistic counselors don’t treat symptoms but use them as clues for the client to see the whole picture.
And despite popular belief, they don’t take a religious approach. However, they use spiritual therapy so that a person can focus on their value and feel more connected to themselves.
What They Do
We’ve already discussed how they treat mind, body, and soul together. This makes clients more self-aware of their feelings, attitudes, and behaviors, which is a stepping stone to accepting and controlling them. They also help their clients build their self-esteem and find meaning in life.
Still, what hands-on experience does that entail? Usually, these therapy sessions are a chance for patients to discuss their issues and concerns, pushing their thoughts from the subconscious to the conscious brain and releasing the tension in their bodies. Also, mental health professionals may depend on an existential approach in discussions relating to the soul or spirit.
What to Expect From a Holistic Therapist Near You or Online Holistic Therapy
Alternative holistic counseling employs diverse traditions of ancient healing and transpersonal psychology in the healing process, which is the psychology branch focused on the spiritual aspect of life. And it makes use of meditation techniques, mindfulness techniques, and clients’ personal philosophy of life.
Furthermore, a holistic psychotherapist relies not only on existential questioning but also on medication, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), free association techniques, and more. Additionally, here are some of the main holistic psychotherapies.
Breath Therapy
This ancient healing method benefits from high vibrational energy in minimizing negative emotions and trauma, preventing disease and distress. In other words, therapists reintroduce clients breathing to heal their minds, bodies, and souls.
Hypnosis
This famous treatment puts a patient in a highly relaxed state. It’s a natural state, so therapists can pretty much hypnotize anyone. They put the patient into a trance that’s light to medium; this way, it’s effective. Then, they give post-hypnotic suggestions to relieve them from their symptoms.
Guided Imagery Therapy
For this type of therapy, a therapist urges clients to picture well-being and health. This can limit the adverse effects of medical and psychological problems, which can make meaningful life changes.
Heart-Centered Hypnotherapy
Also known as regression therapy, this psychology type also places the client in a hypnotic state of consciousness, during which they reframe unhealthy patterns.
This provides them with more insight and awareness, and it releases their emotions, helping them heal.
Holistic Therapy Near Me or Online: Spiritual Counseling
Now that you know enough about holistic psychotherapy to decide if you want to give it a shot or not, we’ll further guide you with some recommendations. This way, you can find the best holistic therapy online or in your area.
1. BetterHelp
You’ve probably heard of BetterHelp; it’s a leading platform that offers online counseling services, based in the United States. And it has over 6000 experienced, accredited, and licensed professional counselors and psychotherapists. To understand how particular BetterHelp is about its counselors, note that the website only accepts about 15% of its applicants.
Also, you’ll find family therapists and therapists who can support you through your problems, certain situations, and mental health struggles with anxiety, depression, and more. Of course, that goes for all age groups. Thanks to the platform’s algorithm, you can get matched with the right therapist for you.
As for how it works, you sign up, and answer important questions about your mental and physical health. These aren’t an attempt to diagnose you but to find holistic psychotherapy counselors that are compatible with you.
Once you’re matched with a mental health specialist, you can message them and schedule a session. And you’ll get a free 7-day trial period! However, note that response durations may vary.
2. Talkspace
Arguably the second leading online therapy website, Talkspace offers you mental health support with more than 5000 licensed professionals in various fields. Talkspace has been operating for about a decade now and has provided treatment for over a million patients.
Furthermore, their online counseling services will support you while you’re dealing with mostly mental health struggles, such as anxiety, depression, insomnia, addiction, trauma, eating disorders, and more. And they utilize holistic counseling and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, psychodynamic therapy, dialectical behavioral therapy, and the humanistic approach.
Nevertheless, you should know that this platform’s payment system is continuous, so you’ll be making payments throughout the month.
3. Holistic Health with Mandi
If you’re looking for in-person spiritual counseling and you live in Pittsburgh, Holistic Health with Mandi might be the choice for you. To align your mind, body, and soul, Mandi ensures you get nutrition counseling along with your regular sessions.
In addition, Mandi employs the Emotional Repolarization Technique (ERT) to resolve any blockages in the mind regarding traumatic and negative experiences. Accordingly, most people can get to the leading cause of their mental health problems.
Not to mention, she’s a certified practitioner of Quantum Reflex Analysis (QRA). QRA recognizes that the human body operates with electricity and searches for solutions at the level of the quantum. Then, it arrives at the root of your problem and recharges you, physically and mentally.
4. Village Center for Holistic Therapy
At the Village Center for Holistic Therapy in Pittsburgh, each counselor seeks to create a safe space and listen to you as you discuss your concerns and feelings. That allows them to personalize their approach to your well-being. In addition, of course, all of the counseling center’s treatments have a holistic focus, and the therapists are highly credentialed.
Moreover, their counseling services include individual sessions, couples sessions, and group sessions. There are also workshops on everything related to wellness. And you can take meditation and exercise classes as a sort of mindfulness-based therapy. Last but not least, the center offers integrative health coaching, so it devises a health plan to accommodate the needs of the client.
In addition, this counseling center has locations around Pittsburgh. And you can enroll in classes and workshops at most of the center’s sites.
5. ReGain
ReGain is another online service, but it’s geared more towards couples therapy. Their professionals use a holistic approach, which popularized ReGain. And their psychologists are experienced and licensed, so they have a doctoral or master’s degree.
Moreover, you can choose a counselor or therapist with your preferred spiritual affiliation, which means you get to determine whether religiosity is involved or not. Still, the main drawback is that there’s no live customer support.
Final Words
Overall, holistic counseling therapy (see also ‘Therapy for Empaths‘) focuses on healing the whole person and nurturing their mental, physical, and spiritual health. This gets people struggling to a place of self-awareness and acceptance and healing. A holistic counselor uses an existential approach in their sessions, employing different traditions of old healing.
Also, there are countless online and in-person options for therapy as we’ve elaborated. And finding the best holistic therapist for you depends on you specifying what you’re looking for and are comfortable with. Your healing journey begins here.