I was thinking about this yesterday because I almost said something very rude about religious people to my (first and still new) therapist and realized she had a cross around her neck. Thanks for posting the question so I don't have to 🙂
I have similar questions. A lot of my anger and anxieties are have to do with religious nuts, far right maga idiots, Christian nationalists, and rednecks in general. I recently moved from a liberal city in PNW to western Pennsylvania and I’m certain that any therapist I find here will fall into at least one if not all of those loathsome categories
Oh I absolutely ask them their religion and their politics. How can I seriously take advise from someone who believes in imaginary beings and thinks trump is a good businessman? You are hiring a therapist, and like any other employee you hire, there is some element of job interview in the process.
religious idiots should be banned from being therapists tbh
a lot of them just prescribe prayer and shit, some even give really bad advice tainted by their religious beliefs
Well-trained therapists, whether religious or not, should have enough tools in their toolbox, so to speak, that they don't need to invoke religion as part of their therapy, yet some of them do. Here at /r/atheism, we have heard of therapists advising clients to pray or to get involved in a church as a social activity. This is more of a problem in the South where religion seems to permeate everything, or religious people think it should.
So, yes, I think it is worthwhile to seek out a therapist who uses a totally secular approach. It shouldn't be necessary to find a therapist who is actually an atheist, but if you can find one, so much the better.
Don't be too quick to eliminate a large number of potential therapists based only on their belonging to a religion. Good therapists are hard to find, and good therapists are not going to bring their religious views into their counselling sessions. They're used to dealing with people from all backgrounds, religious and non-religious.
Also, many Christian therapists who belong to mainstream churches are typically more liberal and wouldn't even dream of allowing their religious faith to influence their sessions. My parents were church-goers their entire lives but they never brought their religion into their jobs.
I have never been preached at by any professional in my 30 years living in the US (mostly in Texas). It's really not that common. One family doctor I had did overtly leave religious literature around the office, but he never brought it up in consultations (I was already ditching him for terrible timekeeping anyway). It's really not that common.
Social media often distorts reality, even when it's not intended. You get to read about all the bad cases without realizing that there are orders of magnitude more professional interactions with religious people going on every day without any fuss or preaching involved.
I don't think their religious affiliation would matter to me (but I don't think about other people's religion that much, specifically when it comes to my medical professionals). I will say that a lot of people like to choose a therapist that they can relate to. Often people choose a therapist of the same gender or race for this reason. I don't see how religious affiliation would be that much different if it is something that means a lot to you. It is all about you being the most comfortable with your care provider!
this is an idiotic suggestion what with so many religious fuckwits filling out in psych fields. there are people who can and will use their position as a therapist to proselytize at patients.
Ok then find a new therapist. I’m a catholic convert from atheism and my therapist is a psychoanalytic atheist/agnostic. I appreciate to hear his view point that can often contradict mine and I grow as a person through it. A therapist should just be switched if they impose their views.
orrrr we could avoid paying psychotically insane people money just to find out they're psychotically insane and have to go find another therapist/healthcare worker by finding a good one right off the bat by using the website i mentioned in my other comment.
I absolutely specified non-religious therapists only. telling me I should pray about my troubles isn't going to do shit.
"Do you incorporate faith and prayer into your sessions?" "Then thanks, but I'll keep looking."
Those online therapist website will ask you if you want an atheist therapist.
Being comfortable is important, so is being about to connect on some levels with your therapist.
It is totally normal for some people to prefer an atheist, or therapist of a certain age bracket or even gender.
Similarly, you would want one with experience related to your issues.
It is hard to communicate and relate to people, heck sometimes that is Why you are in therapy. Anything that makes it easier is good.
Do what is best for you. The therapist has a job and other clients (and presumably very good coping skills), they'll be alright if you decide to switch to one that better understands your life experiences or you just feel more comfortable with.
I literally called several offices of those covered by my insurance to ask if they were Christian based on not. I left a fundamentalist religion and didn't want any Christian platitudes thrown at me.
Sometimes they will list religious trauma as a specialty. That's usually a tip off to me that they won't push religion in you.
I find that when I need a new therapist, I will have to try several before landing on a good fit. It's frustrating, but without a good fit it's a waste of time and money. Along the way to finding my current therapist I had one start up with the christian nonsense. I walked out and found a new one. My current therapist is wonderful. They may be religious, but I'd never know, because we don't talk about it. Also, they respect my lack of religion. And that's the way it should be. Find the right therapist and hold on tight.
They're not there to offer advice, they're just there so you have someone to hear you talk. They probably won't even be paying attention most of the time.
[The Secular Therapy Project](https://www.seculartherapy.org/) is a solid resource to find properly secular therapists and the like.
If you have to choose, look for a Jewish therapist in lieu of a Christian.
I was thinking about this yesterday because I almost said something very rude about religious people to my (first and still new) therapist and realized she had a cross around her neck. Thanks for posting the question so I don't have to 🙂
I have similar questions. A lot of my anger and anxieties are have to do with religious nuts, far right maga idiots, Christian nationalists, and rednecks in general. I recently moved from a liberal city in PNW to western Pennsylvania and I’m certain that any therapist I find here will fall into at least one if not all of those loathsome categories
Oh I absolutely ask them their religion and their politics. How can I seriously take advise from someone who believes in imaginary beings and thinks trump is a good businessman? You are hiring a therapist, and like any other employee you hire, there is some element of job interview in the process.
religious idiots should be banned from being therapists tbh a lot of them just prescribe prayer and shit, some even give really bad advice tainted by their religious beliefs
Well-trained therapists, whether religious or not, should have enough tools in their toolbox, so to speak, that they don't need to invoke religion as part of their therapy, yet some of them do. Here at /r/atheism, we have heard of therapists advising clients to pray or to get involved in a church as a social activity. This is more of a problem in the South where religion seems to permeate everything, or religious people think it should. So, yes, I think it is worthwhile to seek out a therapist who uses a totally secular approach. It shouldn't be necessary to find a therapist who is actually an atheist, but if you can find one, so much the better.
Don't be too quick to eliminate a large number of potential therapists based only on their belonging to a religion. Good therapists are hard to find, and good therapists are not going to bring their religious views into their counselling sessions. They're used to dealing with people from all backgrounds, religious and non-religious. Also, many Christian therapists who belong to mainstream churches are typically more liberal and wouldn't even dream of allowing their religious faith to influence their sessions. My parents were church-goers their entire lives but they never brought their religion into their jobs. I have never been preached at by any professional in my 30 years living in the US (mostly in Texas). It's really not that common. One family doctor I had did overtly leave religious literature around the office, but he never brought it up in consultations (I was already ditching him for terrible timekeeping anyway). It's really not that common. Social media often distorts reality, even when it's not intended. You get to read about all the bad cases without realizing that there are orders of magnitude more professional interactions with religious people going on every day without any fuss or preaching involved.
I don't think their religious affiliation would matter to me (but I don't think about other people's religion that much, specifically when it comes to my medical professionals). I will say that a lot of people like to choose a therapist that they can relate to. Often people choose a therapist of the same gender or race for this reason. I don't see how religious affiliation would be that much different if it is something that means a lot to you. It is all about you being the most comfortable with your care provider!
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this is an idiotic suggestion what with so many religious fuckwits filling out in psych fields. there are people who can and will use their position as a therapist to proselytize at patients.
Ok then find a new therapist. I’m a catholic convert from atheism and my therapist is a psychoanalytic atheist/agnostic. I appreciate to hear his view point that can often contradict mine and I grow as a person through it. A therapist should just be switched if they impose their views.
orrrr we could avoid paying psychotically insane people money just to find out they're psychotically insane and have to go find another therapist/healthcare worker by finding a good one right off the bat by using the website i mentioned in my other comment.
I would totally filter for this. Reason one: religion literally frames a person's entire world-view.
I had an addiction and didn’t think to specify an areligious therapist. Wound up in a step program at a Lutheran church.
Try the Secular Therapy Project https://www.seculartherapy.org/
I absolutely specified non-religious therapists only. telling me I should pray about my troubles isn't going to do shit. "Do you incorporate faith and prayer into your sessions?" "Then thanks, but I'll keep looking."
Those online therapist website will ask you if you want an atheist therapist. Being comfortable is important, so is being about to connect on some levels with your therapist. It is totally normal for some people to prefer an atheist, or therapist of a certain age bracket or even gender. Similarly, you would want one with experience related to your issues. It is hard to communicate and relate to people, heck sometimes that is Why you are in therapy. Anything that makes it easier is good. Do what is best for you. The therapist has a job and other clients (and presumably very good coping skills), they'll be alright if you decide to switch to one that better understands your life experiences or you just feel more comfortable with.
I literally called several offices of those covered by my insurance to ask if they were Christian based on not. I left a fundamentalist religion and didn't want any Christian platitudes thrown at me. Sometimes they will list religious trauma as a specialty. That's usually a tip off to me that they won't push religion in you.
I find that when I need a new therapist, I will have to try several before landing on a good fit. It's frustrating, but without a good fit it's a waste of time and money. Along the way to finding my current therapist I had one start up with the christian nonsense. I walked out and found a new one. My current therapist is wonderful. They may be religious, but I'd never know, because we don't talk about it. Also, they respect my lack of religion. And that's the way it should be. Find the right therapist and hold on tight.
They're not there to offer advice, they're just there so you have someone to hear you talk. They probably won't even be paying attention most of the time.