Finding a Therapist in Thailand

Everything isn’t always at it seems, and I have been dealing with a lot.

I live in a beautiful country, I enjoy my job and I feel extremely lucky to be doing all of this. I’m happy and I love Thailand, but some of my decisions have led me down some dark pathways. When you’re far from your family and friends it’s easy to feel lonely and look for comfort in whatever ways you can find it. One bad decision after another led me to a meltdown in the Thai islands that left me feeling completely helpless. At its peak it led to me contacting my family and begging for them to get me back home. After the situation passed I knew in my soul that I didn’t want to go home, but I also knew that I could not stay in Thailand unless I actively started working out my internal issues. I decided therapy would be the best way to harness some positive energy and direct it straight into my soul and personal sphere.

Finding a therapist abroad isn’t as hard as most would think, but it does come with some added challenges when you’re in a country that doesn’t speak your native tongue. The first therapist I went to was a Thai English speaker, who after about six minutes, prescribed me an antidepressant and told me my mood was unstable. When I asked about scheduling a legitimate appointment I was told to come back the next day at 8 a.m. and to just hope that an appointment would open up. After that crash and burn I was feeling pretty defeated, but I told myself not to give up.

I began looking for western therapists and at first it was difficult. The first therapist was out of the office for the next six weeks, and another one didn’t have any openings until January. The third time must have been the charm because the third therapist I found was  accommodating, affordable and available! I was offered a free 15-minute Skype consultation and told that a 1-hour appointment would cost 2,500 baht ($75 USD). The consultation went great, and we set to have an appointment the following week. On the day of my first appointment I wasn’t able to make the appointment due to unforseen circumstances. My therapist was kind enough to let me have a Skype appointment the next day for no extra charge.

Since going to therapy I have been feeling much better about my decisions, my life and my understanding of who I am becoming. For me, going to therapy is a no brainer because there’s no shame in talking out your issues with someone. I’m a firm believer in affordable therapy because not everyone is looney enough to take medication, but we’re all looney enough to need to talk to someone about what’s going on inside of us. I’ll also admit, that it’s nice to have someone from your native country understand the growing pains that come with moving to a new country. I’m excited and looking forward to my journey toward mental and psychological wellness.

Have any of you traveled abroad and seen a therapist? Were they native to the country you were in or a native from your home country? Have you ever tried remote therapy and if so did you enjoy it? Let me know in the comments below.