The rise in life, wellness, executive and other types of coaches has crowded the mental health space and blurred the line between therapy and coaching. While there can be overlapping qualities and areas of focus between the two, coaching is not a substitute for mental health treatment, and it is important to be aware of the differences so that you can determine which one is more appropriate for you. If you’re still unsure after reading this, it might be helpful to speak to a professional that has experience with both.
What is Therapy?
Therapy is a process involving clinical interventions designed to address mental health conditions such as anxiety or depression, improve functioning and emotional wellbeing, and support healing and psychological growth.
It often explores past experiences, relationships, trauma, attachment patterns, family dynamics, and learned ways of coping in order to understand what is currently happening in someone’s life and help someone make changes in the present.
Sometimes, therapy involves diagnosing and treating mental illness, but people also seek therapy to understand themselves better, regulate emotions, modify thinking and behavior patterns, improve relationships, process grief and loss, and get support during difficult transitions or life periods.
Therapists undergo formal postsecondary education, rigorous clinical training and supervision, and licensure that is governed by the state or other jurisdictional boards. There is an accreditation and regulatory body that oversees licensees and requires compliance with standards and laws in order to maintain good standing and continue practicing as a therapist.
What is Coaching?
Coaching is a future-focused, action-oriented process intended to help people move from where they currently are to where they would like to be. Coaches focus on helping people with personal and professional growth; identifying goals and creating a plan to achieve them; developing new skills and healthier habits; improving performance and effectiveness; turning insights into action; and maintaining accountability and follow-through.
Coaching models operate under the assumption that people are capable, resourceful, and self-efficacious, and coaches’ roles are to help identify what is getting in their way and discover new pathways for overcoming these obstacles and achieving their goals. Since coaching clearly defines a specific objective or desired outcome, it tends to be time-limited and the coaching relationship ends once the outcome is achieved.
Most coaches have a credential or certificate, but since there is no regulatory body, legal oversight, or licensing requirement for coaches, many do not have professional training and consider themselves “self-taught.”
How to Know Whether Therapy or Coaching is Right for You
There can be overlap between therapy and coaching, so for some people, these can be used interchangeably. However, there are some key distinctions that can help you decide whether therapy or coaching is a better fit for you:
When Therapy is a Better Fit:
You are experiencing emotional distress or overwhelming emotions
You are struggling with psychological symptoms (e.g. from anxiety or depression)
You need help healing or processing trauma
You have unresolved experiences, or significant grief and loss
You are engaging in unhealthy behaviors that are significantly impacting your life
You are having trouble understanding why you keep reacting a certain way
You are repeating dysfunctional or painful relational patterns
You want to understand yourself more deeply
Your emotions or symptoms are impairing your ability to function
When Coaching is a Better Fit:
You are feeling stuck, unfulfilled, or want to make a significant change in your life
You are ready to take action but don’t know how
You know what actions to take, but need help with the first/next step
You need accountability and structure around goal-setting and follow-through
You need help clarifying what you want in various areas of your life
You know what you want, but need help removing blocks or obstacles
You want to improve a specific area of your life (e.g. relationship, career, health)
You want to develop a particular skill
You want to achieve more confidence or mastery in your abilities
You are psychologically stable and doing reasonably well, but know you could be doing better
The most useful question to ask yourself may be, “Do I need help healing something, or creating something?”
Therapy has a clinical scope, and is better suited to address psychological problems, so the answer to the former question would likely be therapy. Coaching has more of a developmental focus, and is designed to facilitate growth, performance, and goal-directed change, so the answer to the latter would likely be coaching.
And if you find yourself answering “both,” that doesn’t necessarily mean you have to choose—the two can complement each other, and sometimes either or both forms of support can effectively address your needs. To learn more about whether therapy or coaching is a good fit for you, feel free to schedule a complimentary phone consultation.