If the professional help of a therapist is needed by black clients, what does it matter if the therapist is black? What is more important is finding a therapist that is able and willing to help with his/her services. Well, this sounds logical, but things are not always this straightforward.
This is not to say that therapists of other races are not qualified to attend to the black man. It is just that it is best to deal with therapists that understand your reality as a black man. This is especially concerning certain issues.
You need someone that feels what you feel. For example, a black therapist will likely relate better when black men complain about the challenges of racism; mental health challenges; poor sex life; financial challenges; marriage & family challenges; racial inequality; and lots more during therapy.
Keep reading this article on IST Health’s welfare segment to discover an easy way to find a black therapist as a black person.
Summary
Black Therapists Are Scarce
If you make sense of all these as a black man, then just find and work with a black therapist. This is fine except that finding people of color in the counseling business is not so easy. There are even fewer African American professional counselors licensed in the counseling business.
The number is about 1 in every 25 professional counselors. Most of the professionals are white professionals. So, people in the black community are not well represented. Any black man looking for a black therapist near me, has a lot of finding to do.
This is especially for men looking for black male therapists as most of the under-represented black people are women. So the odds are more against black men as they have fewer people gender-qualified to counsel them on gender-specific issues. These may be things as simple as the benefits of taking cold showers for men.
Trusted Online Support for Finding a Black Therapist
Fortunately, there are platforms and group organizations that care for and support the black community. Some of them understand the importance of mental health and do not want the mental wellness of people in the black community to be threatened.
Some of these platforms and group organizations have gone on to provide the right tools for finding black therapists. By tools, we mean the right online platform. There are online directory platforms with a well-compiled network of black therapists.
These platforms are resources provider that helps you know the list of black therapists better. It is advised that you properly go through the online directory to understand what every black therapist in the network has to offer.
This will ensure that you end up getting psychological and (if need be), medical treatment from the right provider of these services. Some of the things that should inform your choice include:
Experience
Experience means a lot in the business of offering counseling services. So, you might want to take this into account as a person looking to engage the services of a black therapist.
Cost
Of course, the counseling sessions will help you. This is as long as you commit to taking the expert advice of the therapist and using the services of a good one. However, it will also cost you.
So, find out how much each session costs and if you will be able to afford it. You might want to find out if there are other perks like a free first-time consultation, among other things. Also, make sure to find out if insurance is accepted (if your insurance covers such).
We have other information on our website’s welfare segment that you will find helpful. For example, you can discover if ginger ale is good for you.