Research tells us that the relationship between the client and the therapist is one of the strongest predictors of whether or not therapy is effective. At Two Chairs, we aim to simplify the process of finding a therapist who is a good fit for you.
The first step in starting care is a virtual matching appointment. In a Two Chairs matching appointment, you can expect to have a meeting with one of our licensed matching experts via video for about 45 minutes. The goal of the appointment is to gather a brief overview of what brings you to therapy, understand current symptoms and stressors you might be experiencing, and discuss your goals for treatment, as well as any preferences you have about your therapist.
The matching therapist may ask you questions like:
- What brings you in today?
- Do you ever find yourself missing work because of what you’re feeling?
- What is your social support network like, and do you feel connected to them?
- What have you found, if anything, to be helpful in coping with this?
- Have you tried therapy before? What was helpful or unhelpful about it?
- What are your hopes and expectations for therapy now? What do you want? What do you not want?
Our matching expert will also ask you about your:
- Therapy style preferences (your therapist’s level of directiveness, whether or not you’d like to incorporate homework between sessions, how expressive you want your therapist to be, etc.)
- Demographic preferences (age, race, gender, ethnicity, etc.)
- Therapy modality preferences (virtual, hybrid, or in-person)
At the end of the appointment, the matching expert may share some initial thoughts on what type of therapy or therapist might be a good fit for you. They will also give you an idea of how long you can expect to be in therapy to reach the goals you talked about. You’re welcome to give feedback on any of this—what your care looks like is a joint decision.
Following the appointment, our matching expert will take what you’ve shared and use our research-backed methodology to determine who among our team of licensed therapists is a good fit for you.
For more details, we invite you to read more about our matching approach here.