Being there for your kids - Are You Ready?

Episode Date: April 17, 2026

Starting psychotherapy is a big deal. Something's happened in your life and it's not going well. You know therapy is an option, but you're not sure it's "right for you." You've always been able to take care of yourself. But this time? Maybe you'll look into it and give it a try. There's this one guy you've heard good things about. Maybe...  My new book, The Healing Journey: Overcoming Adversity on the Path to the Good Life has a bunch of examples of effective psychotherapy as I introduce what I call Mentalligent Psychotherapy (MPT). Buy your copy on amazonbooks.com. Follow the link, https://www.amazon.com/Healing-Journey.../dp/B0CY9PQXMZ. Blessings, Dr. Jon

Hi, I'm Dr. John Robinson, and this is Teachable Moments. Let me ask you something. When is the right time to start psychotherapy? It's been a long road. It's been mostly smooth sailing, but there have been bumps along the way. You handled them fine and got back to basics. So, you've heard of this thing called psychotherapy. It sounds like some kind of hokom.

I'll take my money scam. And yet, your coworker, Jay, started having sessions with a therapist some time ago. He looks like he's benefited from it. Maybe, but why bother? Historically, psychotherapy has had a social stigma, the ugly stepchild of medicine. You've got to be a wacko to see some shrink. Nowadays, not so much. It's not like everybody's doing it, but going to therapy is more commonplace.

Part of that is removal of the stigma. While psychiatric consultations and psychoactive medications still have their place, standalone talk therapy is gaining a prominence. You know why? Because it works. Current research shows that good psychotherapy affects brain functioning, creating new adaptive neuropathways as much or more than medication. Medication can tamp down symptoms,

while psychotherapy lays the foundation for changing your behavior altogether. So, when is the right time to start psychotherapy? When you notice your words and actions are not working for you, making your circumstances worse. In my new book, The Healing Journey, Overcoming Adversity on the Path to the Good Life, I talk about the four stages of healing. The first stage is that of being in unconscious ignorance. That is, we don't know that there's a problem, and we don't know that we don't know.

We're just blissfully going on doing as we always have, totally clueless. Then, wham, we go through what is subsequently called a precipitating event. Something happens to us or by us that is unsettling. How we have usually handled these life events is not working. We're not getting past the event and on with our lives. By deciding to start psychotherapy, we are entering stage two of the healing process, that of conscious ignorance. We know that there's a problem, and we want to solve it, but we don't know how to do that. Working on a healing becomes the focal point of your life.

Now, if you are one of the very few enlightened people in this world who are self-motivated to begin the healing process of psychotherapy, then good for you. Unfortunately, most of us need a push in the right direction. A spouse, a partner, your employer, your neighbor, your best friend, brings your words and actions to your attention, and you listen to them. Reluctantly, you may be coerced into starting psychotherapy by the law, by a threatening spouse, by your boss, and you agree to give it a try. Your choice of therapist and how they guide you confirms for you that you've made a good decision and you're on your way. A good therapist or counselor will become your guide on your healing journey. Talk therapy has morphed over the years from the silent, wise presence of a Sigmund Freud-type psychoanalyst to today's version of

chief advocate, encouraging guide, mentaligent psychotherapist who listens, teaches, gives feedback, and gives behavioral prescriptions, also known as homework. Today, being in therapy is hard work, but it's worth it. Want to know more about the process and review plentiful examples? Go to Amazonbooks.com for your copy of my new book, The Healing Journey, Overcoming Adversity on the path to the good life. If these comments stir questions of your own, contact me through my website at www.org,

thereformykids.com, or email me at John Robinson-0.0.bilsouth.net. I'm Dr. Jonathan C. Robinson, licensed clinical psychologist, and author of Teachable Moments Building Blocks of Christian Parenting, and my new book, The Healing, The Healing, Journey, Overcoming Adversity on the Path of the Good Life. Blessings, Dr. John. Teachable Moments, Buildings. blocks of Christian parenting is available online at Amazonbooks.com and in local and national

bookstores. More on Dr. Robinson at TMC-P-I-N-C.com.