How Therapy Can Transform Your Life: Benefits You Need to Know

In recent years, the stigma around mental health support has slowly begun to fade—and with good reason. Life is complex, and it’s perfectly okay (and wise) to seek support when navigating its challenges. Whether you’re dealing with anxiety, relationship struggles, burnout, grief, or simply want to better understand yourself, therapy can be a powerful tool. But what can you actually expect from therapy? How do you know if it’s working? And what if therapy isn’t accessible to you?

Let’s break it down.

What Is Therapy?

At its core, therapy is a safe, confidential space where you can explore your thoughts, feelings, and behaviours with a trained professional. It’s not about someone telling you what to do—it’s about having a guide who helps you understand your inner world, make sense of your experiences, and build healthier patterns over time. There are several different types of therapy: 

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

What It Is:

CBT is a structured, short-term therapy focused on the connection between your thoughts, feelings, and behaviours. It’s very present-focused and goal-oriented.

What You Do in a Session:

• Identify negative or distorted thought patterns (e.g., “I’m not good enough”)
• Examine how those thoughts influence feelings and behaviours
• Practice re-framing thoughts into more balanced alternatives
• Learn practical coping skills (e.g., relaxation techniques, behavioural experiments, journaling)

Psychodynamic Therapy

What It Is:

Psychodynamic therapy focuses on unconscious processes, inner conflicts, and how past experiences (often from childhood) influence present behaviour. It’s a deep, exploratory type of therapy.

What You Do in a Session:

• Talk freely (called free association) about whatever comes to mind
• Explore your relationships, dreams, and emotions
• Examine patterns that repeat in your life (especially in relationships)
• Reflect on your early attachments and how they shaped your view of self and others

Humanistic Therapy (e.g., Person-Centred Therapy)

What It Is:

Humanistic therapy emphasizes self-growth, authenticity, and personal meaning. The focus is on helping you become the most fully expressed version of yourself.

What You Do in a Session:

• Talk about what’s important to you in the moment
• Explore your emotions and how they align (or don’t) with your values
• Work on accepting all parts of yourself without judgment
• Engage in present-moment awareness

Internal Family Systems (IFS)

What It Is:

IFS is a newer, increasingly popular form of therapy that sees the mind as made up of different “parts” (e.g., an inner critic, a protector, a wounded child). It aims to heal the inner system.

What You Do in a Session:

• Identify and connect with different parts of yourself
• Dialogue with these parts (often in a meditative or imaginative way)
• Discover the origins of these parts (often linked to childhood)
• Build a relationship with your core “Self” — the compassionate inner leader

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)

What It Is:

EMDR is a trauma-focused therapy that helps you reprocess distressing memories using bilateral stimulation (like side-to-side eye movements).

What You Do in a Session:

• Identify a traumatic memory and related beliefs (e.g., “I’m powerless”)
• Use eye movements or tapping while recalling the memory
• Let your mind process freely—new insights or feelings often arise
• Replace negative beliefs with more empowering ones (e.g., “I did the best I could”)

Somatic Therapy

What It Is:

Somatic therapy connects the mind and body, recognizing that emotional trauma is often stored physically.

What You Do in a Session:

• Tune into physical sensations as you talk about emotions
• Practice grounding, breathwork, or body awareness exercises
• Explore where in your body you “hold” stress or trauma
• Gently release stored tension or emotion through movement or sensation

Couples or Relationship Therapy

What It Is:

Couples Therapy for romantic partners (or sometimes family members) that focuses on communication, conflict resolution, and attachment patterns.

What You Do in a Session:

• Practice active listening and communication skills
• Identify triggers and recurring arguments
• Explore how your individual histories (especially from childhood) affect how you relate
• Learn to support each other with empathy

How Therapy Explores Childhood—and Why It Matters in Adult Life

One of the most powerful aspects of therapy is its ability to shine a light on our early life experiences, helping us understand how the past may still be shaping the present. While it’s easy to assume that childhood is behind us, the truth is that unresolved emotions, unmet needs, or subconscious beliefs formed in childhood often continue to influence our thoughts, behaviour’s, and relationships as adults.

Therapy provides a safe space to explore these early imprints—not to blame or dwell in the past, but to gain clarity and release the emotional hold these experiences may still have on us.

Why Childhood Matters

In our early years, we’re highly impressionable. Our brains are developing, and our sense of self is just forming. During this time, we’re constantly learning things like:

• Am I safe?
• Am I loved?
• Can I trust others?
• Is it okay to express my emotions?
• Do I have to earn love through achievement or being “good”?

These early messages—spoken or unspoken—shape what psychologists call core beliefs. These beliefs can be empowering (e.g., “I am capable”) or limiting (e.g., “I’m not good enough”), and they often live beneath the surface, affecting how we see ourselves and interact with the world.

What Therapy Looks Like When Exploring Childhood

Therapy often helps clients trace current struggles back to their roots. For example:

• Why do I fear abandonment in relationships?
• Why do I keep sabotaging success?
• Why do I shut down emotionally when I feel criticized?

By gently exploring childhood memories, family dynamics, and attachment styles, a therapist helps you connect the dots. This isn’t about rehashing the past endlessly, but about gaining insight into why you feel or react the way you do today, and then choosing healthier, more conscious responses moving forward.

A Real-Life Example

Let’s say a woman named Sofia comes to therapy because she’s struggling in her romantic relationships. She describes herself as “clingy” and says she feels panicked when a partner doesn’t reply to a message right away. She knows it’s irrational, but she can’t help it.

In therapy, Sofia begins to explore her past. She recalls that as a child, her father was loving but unpredictable—sometimes attentive, sometimes emotionally unavailable. She often felt like she had to earn his affection or guess what mood he was in.

Through this lens, the therapist helps her see that her adult fear of abandonment may be tied to those early experiences. Her nervous system learned that emotional connection wasn’t consistent, and now, as an adult, she unconsciously fears being left or ignored, even when there’s no real danger.

This realization is a breakthrough—not because it magically fixes everything, but because it gives Sofia the self-awareness and compassion she needs to start healing. Over time, she learns how to soothe herself, build emotional resilience, and create more secure relationships.

What This Work Can Unlock

By connecting past to present, therapy can help you:

• Understand your emotional triggers
• Break cycles of self-sabotage or relationship struggles
• Build self-compassion and inner security
• Change limiting beliefs at the root—not just on the surface

When we heal the parts of us that were hurt, ignored, or misunderstood as children, we open the door to becoming more grounded, confident, and emotionally free adults.

Exploring childhood in therapy isn’t about blaming your parents or reliving pain unnecessarily. It’s about recognizing the emotional blueprints you carry—and giving yourself the opportunity to rewrite them with compassion and intention.

The past may explain you, but it doesn’t have to define you. That’s the real power of therapy.

How Does Therapy Work?

Therapy is a process, not a quick fix. Over time, you and your therapist build a relationship that becomes a foundation for growth. Some of what therapy involves:

• Identifying patterns in thoughts, feelings, or behaviours
• Exploring emotional experiences in a deeper way
• Learning coping tools and communication skills
• Processing trauma or unresolved issues
• Setting goals and working toward them in manageable steps

Some sessions may feel intense, others more reflective or even light. Progress isn’t always linear, but it’s still progress.

How Do You Know If Therapy Is Working?

Therapy progress doesn’t always look like a dramatic “aha” moment—it’s often subtle, and it builds over time. Signs it’s working include:

• You feel more self-aware or less emotionally overwhelmed
• You’re making decisions with more clarity or confidence
• Your relationships are improving
• You’re developing tools to manage stress or triggers
• You feel supported and heard in sessions

If you’re unsure, talk to your therapist about your concerns. Good therapy includes space for open dialogue about the process itself.

What If Therapy Isn’t Accessible to You?

Not everyone can access therapy due to cost, location, or other barriers. But that doesn’t mean you’re without support. Here are a few alternatives:

Life Coaching

Life coaches can help with goal setting, accountability, and personal development. While they aren’t mental health professionals, a good coach can help you move forward with structure and encouragement.

Peer Support Groups

Free or low-cost support groups (in person or online) are available for everything from grief and addiction to anxiety and burnout.

Self-Help Resources

Books, podcasts, and online courses can be valuable tools for self-reflection and growth. Some evidence-based options:

• The Mindful Self-Compassion Workbook by Neff & Germer
• Feeling Good by Dr. David Burns 
• Podcasts like “Therapy Chat”, “The Imperfects” or “Unlocking Us”

Mental Health Apps

Apps like BetterHelp, Talkspace, Headspace, or Insight Timer offer access to therapists or structured self-help tools on your own schedule.

Life Coaching at Shanti-Som: A Holistic Approach to Personal Growth

At Shanti-Som Wellbeing Retreat, life coaching is more than just goal-setting and productivity tools — it’s about creating a deep, meaningful connection with yourself so you can align your outer life with your inner truth. In a peaceful and supportive environment, life coaching becomes a powerful complement to the retreat’s overall focus on mind-body wellness, self-discovery, and transformation.

Our life coaching is a guided process designed to help you:

• Clarify your goals and priorities
• Identify obstacles or limiting beliefs
• Create a realistic and empowering action plan
• Cultivate greater confidence, self-awareness, and purpose

Unlike therapy, which often focuses on healing past wounds, life coaching is future-focused — it’s about where you’re going and how to get there, using your existing strengths and untapped potential.

How It Works at Shanti-Som

Coaching at Shanti-Som is integrated with the retreat’s holistic philosophy. You’re not just sitting in a room talking — you’re engaging in a full-body experience of self-awareness, supported by:

• Peaceful surroundings that encourage reflection
• Mindfulness practices like yoga and meditation
• Nourishing meals that support mental clarity
• Spa and wellness treatments to help reset your nervous system

Coaching sessions are typically one-on-one by our Wellbeing Coach and customized to your needs. Whether you’re facing a life transition, feeling stuck in your career, navigating relationship challenges, or simply wanting to reconnect with yourself, the coaching process helps bring direction and meaning to your journey.

While Shanti-Som is not a clinical therapy center, life coaching here can be incredibly therapeutic — especially when paired with the retreat’s restorative environment. For guests who may not have access to traditional therapy or who are looking for a practical, growth-oriented alternative, coaching offers a safe and empowering space to explore personal change.

Is Life Coaching Right for You?

Life coaching at Shanti-Som may be a good fit if:

• You’re ready for change but aren’t sure where to begin
• You want to create better balance in your personal or professional life
• You’re seeking motivation, clarity, or a deeper sense of purpose
• You want guidance in an uplifting, non-judgmental space

Final Thoughts

Starting therapy can feel vulnerable and even intimidating—but it’s also a courageous act of self-care. Whether you’re working through something big or just want a better understanding of yourself, therapy offers a space to be fully seen and supported.

And if therapy isn’t an option right now, don’t give up. Growth and healing can still happen through alternative paths. What matters most is your willingness to take that first step toward well-being—however that looks for you.