Coaching vs Therapy: What’s the Difference?
There’s great value in having the support of someone who is able to hold a compassionate space without judgment, and who believes in your capacity to reclaim your life’s narratives in a way that empowers and supports you. Coaches and therapists are excellent resources who can hold this kind of space and are well-equipped to support clients in creating profound transformational experiences for themselves. In today’s practices, there’s an abundant diversity of niches, styles and modalities to support these transformations on a very nuanced level: there’s someone for everyone. And for someone who’s had to endure unbearably difficult circumstances throughout their life, a trauma-trained licensed therapist or certified coach could make all the difference in facilitating a safe, trauma-responsive space that’s needed to effectively support a client.
However, it’s important to know there are significant differences in therapy models vs coaching models. This is by no means comprehensive, but here are some critical differentiations:
Licensed therapists have the educational background and training that qualifies them to provide diagnoses (ADHD, narcissistic personality disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, clinical depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, bipolar 1 or 2, to name a few), while coaches do not. A coach without these qualifications, and who attempts to diagnose a client or to suggest a diagnosis, is practicing beyond their scope.
Only medical doctors such as psychiatrists are able to prescribe or administer medication to assist in a person’s recovery from clinical diagnoses.
Licensed therapists and clinical providers are equipped to support the needs of clients who are in severe mental distress, such as instances in which a person might need inpatient care or hospitalization. In these cases, once this person has made progress in their recovery where they’re able to take basic care of themself and is ready to move forward, a coach can be an excellent resource to support the client in supporting them to set and achieve forward-looking goals.
One might find that in therapy, there’s a lot of regression to the difficult circumstances of a client’s past, where the therapist will unpack those moments to help their client understand the “why’s” of what they’ve experienced, allowing for deep, empowering recovery and release of those painful experiences. In coaching the same client, there will still be some work to support the ongoing recovery and release of stored emotions, but the focus might be more on the “how’s” of moving forward to living the happy and fulfilling life that at one time, might have felt out of reach.
I hope we can continue to become more open to discussing mental health and wellness, to normalize and prioritize mental and emotional health as much as we do physical health, and it’s my honest hope that wether a person chooses to work with a therapist or a coach, that we all are able to receive and welcome the support we each deserve and need.
How do I know what’s right for me?
In most cases, you’re the best person who can answer that for yourself. I encourage my potential clients to evaluate their options and see how they align with their individual goals and objectives, and to remember that what works for someone else doesn’t guarantee it will work for them, and just because one thing doesn’t align with them now, it could align with them in the future. It’s also not uncommon to work with both, if the means and resources are available.
Are you ready to work with a trauma-trained and certified BIPOC coach to finally break free from the stories that have been holding you back? Work with me.
