If you’re deciding between seeing a life coach or therapist in Denver, you’re probably considering a bunch of different factors—price, expertise, training, and goals for what you want to achieve. You might start searching and be surprised to find that many life coaches are actually more expensive than therapists, or that very few therapists accept your insurance.
There’s a good chance that you’re finding it extremely confusing to figure out the differences between these two mental health professionals, so we’re here to help.
Even though we’re therapists, we don’t believe that all life coaches are unqualified or inexperienced. Also, some life coaches might say that therapists aren’t good at helping people set and achieve goals in their everyday lives. As mental health professionals that are in the business of helping people, there are good reasons to see one or the other (or both!), and there are strengths for both professions.
To help set the record straight, here are a few myths and things that people often wonder and say about therapists and life coaches that can help you decide which one is right for you.
Therapy and life coaching aren’t the same
They’re just not. Some people say that therapists receive training that would allow them to act as a life coach, but life coaches aren’t trained as therapists. There’s a difference between the two.
When you see a therapist, you’re often looking to heal, learn, and grow from your time seeing a therapist. Your sessions become a safe place for you to share what’s on your mind, what you’ve been through, and where you don’t need to be “on”—you can just be you. That’s all you need to be.
On the other hand, a life coach is there to help you perform and succeed. They are there to help you improve at whatever place you’re at. Your life could be amazing, and you could be a high achiever, and a life coach might be there to help encourage you to go even further to make progress towards your goals.
A great life coach can be a master of helping you reach that next level in your life or career, but they’re not trained to help you heal from trauma, PTSD, or provide specialized therapy for something that’s holding you back from reaching your full potential.
Therapy looks backward, life coaching looks forward… sometimes
Depending on what’s bringing you to therapy, there are likely going to be times when you’re going to be discussing your past or something that happened in your life.
However, many effective forms of therapy are about focusing on the present, and your therapist wants to help you be prepared for and even look forward to your future. They can help you set goals, anticipate change, and be ready for whatever life is bringing to you, just like a life coach.
Life coaches are still people, and people generally ask questions to get to know someone who learn about where they’re coming from. A life coach is not going to ignore your past to help you achieve things in the future, but they’re less likely to dwell on things that happened in the past. Life coaches are there to help you take action and stay motivated with what’s happening in your life, but they won’t completely ignore your past in favor of the future.
There are similarities between life coaching and therapy
Therapists and life coaches both are there to help people. What they’re trained to help people with can be different, but there are places where the two professions overlap.
Therapists can also help people achieve life goals and become more effective, but what brings someone to a therapist to start might be different from what brings someone to a life coach.Many life coaches work with therapists to help people work through the stuff that therapy is needed for—depression, anxiety, postpartum issues, family trauma, and things like that.
If you’re not working through emotional issues or deeply rooted things that are holding you in the past, then seeing a life coach who can help you achieve and perform could be a great fit for you. Therapists have different types of training that equips them for many of the more “serious” types of mental health issues that someone could need help with.
Therapists only work with people who have serious mental health issues
Therapists can help their clients with so much more than mental health issues. Not only can they help you heal, give you tools to deal with specific issues, and coach you to grow in new ways, they can also help you set and achieve personal life goals, just like a life coach.
When you see a therapist, they want to help you with what’s bringing you to therapy, and that thing can change and evolve over time. As you heal and address issues, you can move on towards growth and change in very real, tangible ways. Your therapist wants to see you succeed in all aspects of your life, even after you’ve addressed any underlying issues that might’ve prevented you from getting there. While it’s true that only a therapist is qualified to help you with mental health issues, they can do more than just help people heal.
Personal growth is something that’s fully in a therapist’s wheelhouse to help you with, and it’s not something that only a life coach can help you achieve.
Many life coaches still have standards of their own
Many people call out that it requires licenses, specific education, and training to become a therapist. That’s absolutely true. There are standards that therapists have to meet in order to work in their field, and in most cases, it takes much longer to become a licensed therapist than it does to become a life coach.
In general, life coaches aren’t required by a board or governing body to meet a certain standard—it’s an unregulated profession. People can be great life coaches because they’re naturally great at it, and they don’t need a license to be good at what they do. Most life coaches want to help you succeed, and they’ll often seek out additional trainings and certifications, including life coaching certifications, to help them be better at what they do.
While it’s true that life coaches aren’t regulated like therapists, a good life coach could have their own ethical standards that they’ve adopted to help keep themselves accountable and you on the road to success. Some therapists also provide life coaching, so you might be able to find someone who has a background in therapy who can also help you in times when a life coach could be exactly what you need.
You don’t need to go to both therapy and life coaching
Some people think that you need to see a therapist before you can see a life coach, and that’s absolutely not true. Depending on what they’re trying to get from a therapist or life coach, many people might not even need therapy to perform at a higher level or achieve a specific goal.
When people come to see a therapist, there are many times when someone needs to heal from wounds or experiences before they can even think about being motivated and committed to achieving some life dreams. If you feel like you’re drowning or unworthy, continuing to pursue aggressive goals in your life could be really harmful and set you back from being able to heal in your everyday life.
Some people think that life coaching can be a lighter form of therapy, and it really depends what you’re looking for. People can see a therapist for years and continue to make progress, set goals, and reach them, without ever seeing a life coach. In some ways, it puts less pressure on you to feel like you have to “make progress” when you take therapy as its own standalone thing that you’re doing for yourself, without the expectation that you need to “make it” to life coaching.
There are situations where it makes the most sense to see a therapist. There are others where it makes sense to see a life coach. They don’t need to both happen, but they could depending on what you’re looking for.
Therapists can help you with more parts of your life
As trained therapists in Denver, we have decades of combined experience, training, and education to help you with whatever is happening in your life. Life coaching can be valuable for many people, but as therapists, we’re able to help you heal, learn, and grow in more aspects of your life—past, present, and future. When you’re trying to find a therapist or life coach in Denver, we’re here to help you find the right match with one of our therapists to see if we’re the right fit for you.
