Crying during therapy

I have recently started therapy for panic attacks and anxiety. The first 2 sessions were pretty relaxed, the therapist just had me talking about my life in general and I think she chose some pretty good questions to help get me started.

During the third session I was at bad place in my spectrum of anxiety, I'll save the details but basically I just lost it and could not stop crying for several minutes. It was a combination of the fact that I just needed to vent and I felt comfortable to do it with my therapist and she plucked a pretty sensitive nerve in a couple of the questions she asked.

Is it normal or ok to just let yourself go during therapy?
how normal is it for people to cry infront of their therapist?

s4431915 wrote:I have recently started therapy for panic attacks and anxiety. The first 2 sessions were pretty relaxed, the therapist just had me talking about my life in general and I think she chose some pretty good questions to help get me started.

During the third session I was at bad place in my spectrum of anxiety, I'll save the details but basically I just lost it and could not stop crying for several minutes. It was a combination of the fact that I just needed to vent and I felt comfortable to do it with my therapist and she plucked a pretty sensitive nerve in a couple of the questions she asked.

Is it normal or ok to just let yourself go during therapy?
how normal is it for people to cry infront of their therapist?

Hello!

It is perfectly normal, accepted, and encouraged to cry and let go during therapy. I know a friend of mine who went to her first therapy session and the whole time she practically cried, like an immediate relief in a safe space. I've been going to therapy now since October of last year and my therapist reiterates the importance of letting go -- you'll be amazed by the transformation you make, and slowly but surely your mind is going to make sense of all your emotions. By letting go each and every time.

I hope this helps. Best wishes.

I have cried in front of my therapist. I've been seeing her for about 2,5 years now and it did take me some time to come to terms with crying in front of her, but she deals with it really well. You're talking about your deepest feelings in therapy, your worst fear, and it can be overwhelming. I think it's pretty normal to cry in therapy. It's a safe place.

I just started therapy and I cry all the time in my sessions. I struggle with anxiety too. Like PP said, it is a safe space. I Sometimes I cry in therapy for seemingly no reason, even when I'm not talking about anything sensitive.

For instance, once my therapist just simply asked me how I was feeling, and I had no idea how to answer the question. She gave me a sheet with a number of feelings on it to help me, and when I picked out the ones I identified with most they were all negative. This brought on the waterworks big time and it caught me off guard.

There was a time when I was too tense and stressed to cry. Tears are a cathartic. They relieve stress. When I felt that things were finally going to be OK, I was able to release the stress and weep. I was able to 'hand it over'. I didn't have to be everybody's rock.
Crying is like a body's pressure relief valve. When people can't cry, it holds the tension inside and can cause problems.
Best of luck to you.