One can't just pop a pill and disregard the healing power of shared feelings and positive thoughts and just plain socializing with loving people. One special relationship that needs nurturing like any other is the psychotherapeutic relationship. There are ways you can get more out of it. This is the contention of the book, When Talk is Not Cheap, by Mandy Aftel and Robin Tolmach Lakoff (Warner Books, 1985). What do the authors advise? They counsel: don't sit and have the therapist do all the work. Become actively involved in your therapy! Reading this book helped me. It clarified salient aspects in psychotherapy that are helpful to prevent relapse and move forward to a healthier, more functional life.
The authors maintain that "a good therapist puts you in the driver's seat." They insist that a good therapist "encourages you to take charge!" How do you take charge? By being cognizant that you are the one who is most familiar with your problems and therefore the seeds of the solution are within you. In this you are the expert because you are the one experiencing the problem.
It is my belief that you take charge the moment you affirm "I'm going to be the best me I can be!" This is empowering. I no longer have to compare myself with someone else. What a relief!
How do you take charge? Why not sit down with yourself and plan what the next tiny step in your growth shall be? Check it out with other people and the therapist to se if it's realistic.
To me, taking charge means taking tiny steps. Look at it this way: Be an athlete. An athlete never gives up the game -- he always just improves it and does his personal best.
One word of caution: this book is mostly oriented toward people who do not yet have a therapist, but are paying to find one, people who can afford spending $200 to $300 in search of the right therapist. Yet there are valuable insights to be garnered from this book. I recommend acquiring it from the public library as opposed to buying it.
In conclusion, it's so important to have a sense of flow and movement in life. It's so important to move forward. In the book, When Talk is Not Cheap by Aftel and Tolmach Lakoff, one can glean insights, which can help one advance to a more passionate and satisfying life.
Happy reading.