Behind The Name
Hi there! I'm glad you're here. I'll be honest; it has been over ten years since I did any sort of blogging. Gone are the days of WordPress, Xanga, and Tumblr, where I'd find myself with a curated iTunes or Spotify playlist playing in the background as I made feeble attempts to build a habit of writing. Returning to this space feels odd, and my hopes for my return to blogging still need to be fully formed. However, one thing is certain. I want anyone reading this, particularly those of you thinking about (re)starting therapy, to feel like you have a slight sense of who I am as a human.
Sharing a bit about the practice's name is a fitting place to start. I landed on the name Therapist & A Couch after many scribbles across too many pieces of paper and a handful of random notes stored on my phone; multiple hours of lost sleep; numerous games involving semantics; a disturbing amount of research; and sporadic sources of inspiration.
It felt like a rather consuming process that I painfully kept getting stuck on, but the practice's name greatly mattered to me. I knew I wanted whatever name I chose to attempt to capture the essence of therapy and parts of my personality. Then, weirdly enough, my final source of inspiration came from recalling a restaurant in Chicago – one I have never even personally visited. The thought "Girl & The Goat" popped into my brain, and I couldn't let it go. I genuinely loved the rhythm of the name.
For a little bit, I toyed with what words I'd use to form a name with a similar structure. Eventually, I found myself slightly in awe of how bare and simple therapy is as a form of helping others. It is not a doctor's office full of stethoscopes, a dentist's office full of tools, a physical therapist's office full of exercise equipment, or an optometrist's office full of phoropters. Instead, it is two humans in the same space – in-person or virtual – at the same time looking to talk and connect. One person, the therapist, brings their education and training; the other, the client, brings their struggles and a deep desire to ultimately feel "better."
Even if it isn't at the forefront of anyone's mind other than a therapist's, therapy is more than what unfolds in fifty minutes. These conversations happen in a space that is intentionally thought through and in a space that is meant to feel safe. Whether it is the same gentle greeting, a warm candle in the background or a comfortable and cozy place to sit, these rather abstract pieces make up part of the instruments of therapy and help people feel cared for no matter what they are experiencing.
As a name, Therapist & A Couch is meant to be meaningful and grounded in the beauty of therapy. If you are looking for a therapy space that cares about all of this, reach out to schedule a consultation.
